Rose Giacinto, business owner and ex-patriot of the United States, has been living in the BVI since 1981 and on the island since 1988. ROse has become an icon and an important personality of Virgin Gorda and it’s development.
Bath & Turtle 1988.
The Beginning
Bath & Turtle was purchased in 1988 from Tony and Mary Velleck by Rose and the late Michael Giacinto. Rose continues the business and is presently running the operation of Bath & Turtle/Chez Bamboo at one location.
Everybody knew her husband Michael because there were around 50 expatriates by then. They used to live on Marina Cay, moved back to NY in 1984 and decided to buy The Bath & Turtle in Virgin Gorda, November 1988. By then, it was only a tiny bar with a couple of tables. Unfortunately, Michael passed away in 1992. After this tragedy Rose decided to stay although it wasn’t easy for her. People believed that Rose could do it on her own. She loved the restaurant and being around people and so, she decided to stay.
Bath and Turtle has been an icon in Virgin Gorda and Virgin Gorda Yacht Harbor for years. Sailors, charters, tourists, and locals have shared precious moments in this charming place. Live music, breakfasts, dinners, festivals, Caribbean buffets, vibrant happy hours and more added a picturesque and charming atmosphere to the Spanish Town scene until 2017. “In April 2017 we changed locations over to our restaurant Chez Bamboo in order to put both businesses under one umbrella. We have discovered, especially after Hurricane Irma, the transition has proven to be a huge success!” says Rose.
Press
Bath &Turtle/Chez Bamboo/Chez B Grind
Pics by Marta Garraus for Virgin Islands Property & Yacht | July/August 2021 | Summer Special
by Virgin Islands Property & Yacht
“Serum of steam rising from the cup what comfort to be known personally” —Naomi Shihab Nye from “My Uncle’s Favorite Coffee Shop”
Warning: if you walk into Bath & Turtle/Chez Bamboo/Chez B Grind, you may never want to leave.
“There are a lot of customers who we serve two or three meals a day— breakfast, lunch, and dinner,” says proprietor Rose Giacinto. “We want it to be a place where people linger.”
The homemade baked goods, local produce and seafood, gourmet coffee, and fresh cocktails are what keep customers coming back. The restaurant is an oasis in the middle of Spanish Town, Virgin Gorda, with cheerful décor in which Caribbean flora such as bougainvillea vines and palm trees peep through bamboo walls.
I’d call their menu down-home fusion—a range of everything from sushi and entrée salads to Johnny cakes and mutton soup. Chefs Cecily, Rachel, Danny, Jerome, and Chris know their way around a kitchen and have created this unique menu.
For breakfast, try the Johnnycake with ham, egg, and cheese or pancakes with scrambled eggs and sausage. Pastry chef Zhel makes all their baked goods on site: pastries, cookies, brownies, cakes, and bread (buy some in the morning before they sell out). Coffee and cakes can be enjoyed in the Chez B Grind, a laid-back lounge area with sofas, low tables, and Illy coffee drinks.
The lunch menu features individual dishes or family-style meals. Some highlights of the menu include a whole roasted chicken, a mahi-mahi burger, sushi platters, or an entire beef and spinach lasagne. They make fresh pizza dough every day for their selection of pizza toppings. Or if you’re looking for something lighter, Bath & Turtle/Chez Bamboo offers West Indian soups or fresh salads topped with fish or chicken.
For dinner, you are spoiled for choice. Giacinto says, “everybody can always find something” on the menu. Asian cuisine, Caribbean favorites, and American classics dominate the dinner selections.
The relaxed, eclectic outdoor space with the “temporary” bar that was rebuilt post-Irma, still going strong. Appetizers consist of coconut chicken tenders, freshly made fish fingers, quesadillas, and deep-fried pickles. The famous entrée salads— such as a Caesar or a chopped salad— are composed of lettuce grown in neighboring greenhouses and can be topped with fresh fish, chicken, or shrimp. Order from a wide selection of sandwiches and wraps, including an Irma Burger with buffalo sauce, bacon, and blue cheese; a fish taco or pulled pork wrap; or a West Indian chicken burger—all served with fries.
Asian specials consist of sesame-crusted seared tuna, shrimp and pork siomai, and a variety of sushi rolls.
On top of the regular menu, Bath & Turtle/Chez Bamboo offers daily specials based on seasonal produce and fresh catch. Chef Zhel’s desserts and homemade ice cream are available in the evenings. Front-of-the-house staff Sharon, Jhanet, Rachel, and Roy are on a first-name basis with most of their customers, and they will do anything to make you feel at home. If there is something you want that isn’t on the menu, just ask them, and they’ll do their best to accommodate.
They are also famous for their sumptuous cocktails. Happy hour is from 4-6 pm every day with cocktail specials and three beers for $10. The cocktails are made from local ingredients such as mango, mint, banana, key lime, and passionfruit. After Hurricane Irma, Giacinto and her crew moved the bar to the front of the restaurant, and it’s become such a popular watering hole that it’s never moved back.
Since Hurricane Irma, Bath & Turtle/Chez Bamboo have moved under one roof to combine menus and provide consistent service for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Giacinto and her staff provided meals for the workers clearing the Virgin Gorda roads immediately after the hurricane, and they’ve provided delivery service to people in quarantine. They continue to offer delivery services to families and couples staying in nearby villas. The inviting atmosphere, mouth-watering menu, fresh cocktails, divine desserts, and dedication to the community are only a few of the reasons why Bath & Turtle/Chez Bamboo is an institution on Virgin Gorda.
The Valley
1996
Chez Bamboo
Chez Bamboo is the product of love and hard work from Rose who fell in love with the property years ago and waited patiently for it to go on the market. When it finally did, she acquired it and turned it into one of Virgin Gorda's most popular restaurants.
A New Challenge
September 6, 2017. Hurricane Irma. This day will be forever remembered as the day Hurricane Irma, the most powerful Atlantic storm to ever make landfall, destroyed the Caribbean and decimated everything in its path. Irma was rated a category 5, but that’s only because there’s no such thing as a 6 or 7.
The morning after, Virgin Gorda dawned in silence and destruction. There was no water, food or shelter. “People were in complete devastation and a lot of women and children evacuated the island, which is very understandable. It was a life changing decision: but as a business owner of two well-known restaurants, the Bath and Turtle Restaurant and Chez Bamboo, that was not an option for me”, says Rose.
The efforts to fix what Irma destroyed were huge. After many long hours, days and months of hard work and dedication Bath & Turtle / Chez Bamboo is back with its charming personality, captivating colors, glittering lights, lush tropical plants, and vibrant live music nights.
Every morning Bath and Turtle wakes up with a coffee aroma and birds chirping. Welcoming another beautiful day in this Caribbean gem: Virgin Gorda.
