Travel Food Stories: The Cayman Islands

The food of the Cayman Islands is as big of a melting pot as its current population, which is roughly 50% “natives” and 50% expats, consisting of people from all over the globe. It is any and all kinds of fusions of world cuisines, mixed in with Caribbean staples such as plantains, conch, seafood, and rice.

During my trip to Grand Cayman, I mostly cooked “at home”, home being the condo we rented, which came with a thrifty electric grill on the patio, and I have to admit that cooking freshly-caught fish was probably my favorite food experience there.

I’d also like to mention that the eggs there were amazing and I have a feeling that’s because all the chickens on the island are free to roam as they wish…road companions, dinner guests..everywhere

I did, of course, have dinner at restaurants, two of which I will highlight in this post: Agua and the Lobster Pot where my meals consisted mostly of Peruvian-style ceviche, conch soup, and various forms of seafood. Agua – a fusion of Italian, Spanish, Peruvian, and of course, Caribbean, presented a menu that seemed like a mish mosh whirlwind around the world, with my favorite dishes being the Mix Peruvian Grill and the Cayman Ceviche

The Lobster Pot ended up being a much more straightforward representation of seafood, which was quite fresh and tasty.

One interesting ingredient I found that I had not previously encountered on other islands was the Scotch Bonnet Pepper, very widely used to spice up various dishes and represented quite well in a full line of amazing Jamaican-made hot sauces, which I found in the supermarket while I was hunting for Cholula. The brand is called Pickapeppa and it’s got a crazy good line of sauces if you love your hot sauce with a ton of flavor. A little goes a long way…and tastes amazing.

And of course no Caribbean island visit is complete without some tasty tropical drinks to be thoroughly enjoyed on the beach

With scenery like that, warm ocean breezes, and chill island attitude, you can’t go wrong with any food.