Lime Out: How to Visit the USVI's Floating Taco Bar

Lime Out: How to Visit the USVI's Floating Taco Bar

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Picture a bright lime-green taco bar floating about 100 feet off the coast of St. John, where you eat from your own boat or from "lily pads" — little seats that float right on the water. That's Lime Out, and Time magazine named it one of the world's greatest places. It might be the only floating taco bar on earth, and it's absolutely worth building a day around.

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📍 Where: Coral Bay, St. John, floating about 100 feet offshore.

🚤 How you get there: By boat only. For safety, you can't swim out to it — you arrive by charter, dinghy, or a group snorkel tour.

🍴 The food: Tacos, and very good ones — fish, meat, vegetarian, and vegan, plus fresh-squeezed cocktails made with local ingredients. The blackened shrimp taco (cherry tomatoes, pesto, chili garlic, parmesan) is the one people dream about later.

📅 Book ahead: Space is limited and it fills up — this is one to reserve in advance.

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What It's Actually Like 🌮

You pull up, settle onto a floating lily pad or stay on your boat, and eat tacos with tropical fish darting around below you. There's a drink in your hand, St. John's green hills in the background, and nowhere you need to be. It's less a lunch and more a "remember that time we ate tacos in the middle of the Caribbean" kind of moment.

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As for what's on the menu...it's..umm...tacos — you'll find fish, meat, vegetarian, and vegan — plus fresh-squeezed cocktails made with local ingredients. The blackened shrimp taco is the standout! You heard it here first.

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Nice bonus: Lime Out takes sustainability seriously — solar-powered, reusable cups, compostable taco containers. You can feel good about the whole thing while you're on your second round.

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Fun for the whole family

There's calm water, a kids' menu, and the novelty of floating lily-pad seating, which makes it a fun stop for families after a morning of snorkeling.

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How to get there

A few ways, depending on your day:

By private charter is the most flexible — your captain can fold Lime Out into a day of snorkeling around Coral Bay, Hurricane Hole, and Salt Pond Bay, and you linger as long as you like.

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By group snorkel tour is the easy, lower-cost option if you're solo or a couple and happy to go with a set itinerary.

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One rule worth repeating: no swimming to Lime Out from shore. You arrive by boat — full stop.

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A heads-up on timing

Lime Out isn't open every single day, and space is genuinely limited, so plan ahead rather than hoping to wing it. If you're coming off a cruise, give yourself time — it's about 30 minutes out from the dock, and you don't want to be the one watching the clock.

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Make a day of it

Lime Out is the kind of stop that deserves a whole afternoon around it. Whether you prefer to make a lunch stop on your private charter, or join one of our group trips that have the whole afternoon mapped out for you, one thing's for sure...you definitely want Lime Out on your list!

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EXPLORE THE BOATS THAT TAKE YOU THERE

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