Food & Drink

While it is hard to pin down any specific Belizean cuisine, what you will find in Belize is a mix of Caribbean, Mexican, African, Spanish, and Mayan culinary influences. You'll also find burgers, pizzas, Chinese food, and even Indian restaurants.

Belize's strongest suit is its seafood. Fresh fish, lobster, shrimp, and conch are widely available, especially in the beach and island destinations. Belize has historically been a major exporter of lobster, but overharvesting has caused the population to decline. It is still readily available and relatively inexpensive, but there is a lobster season, usually from February 15 to July 14.

Rice and beans is a major staple, often served as an accompaniment to almost any main dish. A slight difference is to be inferred between "rice and beans," which are usually cooked (sometimes in coconut milk) and served together, and "beans and rice," which are usually cooked and served separately. Belizeans tend to use a small red bean, but black beans are sometimes used.

Aside from rice and beans, if there was such a thing as a national dish it would be stew chicken, and its close cousins stew beef and stew fish. These Kriol-based recipes are dark stews that get their color from a broad mix of spices, as well as red recado, which is made from annatto seed or achiote. A similar and related stew commonly found around Belize is chimole, which is sometimes called black gumbo.

Perhaps the most distinctive element of Belizean cuisine and dining is Marie Sharp's Hot Sauce. Almost no dining table is complete without a bottle of Marie Sharp's. The original Marie Sharp's is a very spicy sauce made from a base of habanero peppers, carrots, and onions. Currently, Marie Sharp's has a wide range of different hot sauces, jams, and chutneys. If you have a hankering for the hot stuff, you will find that your options aren't confined to Marie Sharp's. In many restaurants, you will often see a jar of habanero peppers and onions marinating in simple white vinegar. Marie Sharp's original sauce was named Melinda's; however, she no longer has anything to do with Melinda's (it's not even made in Belize anymore). One other local hot sauce you might see is Lizette's, which is also quite good.

Meals & Dining Customs

Belizeans tend to eat three meals a day, in similar fashion and hours to North Americans. Breakfasts tend to be served between 6:30 and 9am; lunch between noon and 2pm; and dinner between 6 and 10pm. Most meals and dining experiences are quite informal. In fact, there are only a few restaurants in the entire country that could be considered semiformal, and none require a jacket or tie, although you could certainly wear them.

Food

Breakfast -- The typical breakfast in Belize is quite simple, usually anchored by some scrambled eggs and refried red or black beans. However, instead of toast, you will often have a choice of tortillas, johnnycakes, or fry jacks to accompany them. Johnnycakes are a semidry, baked round flour biscuit, served with butter or stuffed with ham and/or cheese. Fry jacks are a similar batter and shape, but deep-fried, and either served as is or dusted with confectioner's sugar. The most common tortillas served in Belize are corn tortillas.

Appetizers -- Conch fritters are by far the country's most popular and tastiest appetizer. Deep-fried balls of flour batter and chopped conch meat are on most bar and restaurant menus in the country, particularly on the cayes and along the coast. Try some.

Sandwiches & Snacks -- Belize's light menus show a heavy Mexican and American influence. Many simple eateries and roadside carts will feature simple tacos, tamales (also called dukunu), or garnaches. The latter, a fried corn tortilla topped with beans, cheese, or shredded meat or chicken, would probably be considered a tostada by many. Popular stuffed pastries include meat pies and panades, small, deep-fried empanadas.

You can also get traditional sandwiches, often served on sliced white bread, as well as American-style burgers. I personally recommend looking for fish, shrimp, or conch burgers, which are available at most beach and island destinations.

Meat, Poultry & Wild Game -- Belizeans also eat a fair amount of meat and poultry, as well as some more interesting game. Because Belize only recently began to raise its own beef, the country relied for a long time on wild game. Some of the more interesting game items you might see on a Belizean menu include gibnut (paca) and iguana. The gibnut is actually a large rodent, which is often called "The Queen's Rat" or "The Royal Rat" because Queen Elizabeth was served gibnut during a visit here. Gibnut allegedly tastes like rabbit, a comparison I can live with, I guess. Iguana is frequently called "bamboo chicken," and it does actually taste a bit like chicken. Occasionally, you may also come across wild boar, armadillo, or some other forest-dwelling creature.

Another popular wild animal found in restaurants is the sea turtle, endangered all over the world, including in Belize. It's not yet illegal to sell sea turtle within Belize, but international agreements prohibit its export. Please don't order turtle steak, turtle soup, or turtle eggs. In fact, I'm a little hesitant to recommend the eating of wild game at all. So far, there's no reliable data on the impact that the hunting of wild game has had or could have, but there is reason for concern. Belize is struggling to preserve its natural environment, and as long as people order wild game, it will continue to show up on menus. Exceptions would be any farm-raised wild animals, like iguanas. When harvested from commercial "iguana farms," this wild game actually has the potential to mix sustainable yield with modern conservation.

Seafood -- Seafood is the basic staple of most of the country's coastal and island destinations. It is fresh and plentiful. Shrimp, conch, lobster (in season), and a variety of fish are almost always on the menu. You're best off sticking to simple preparations, either grilled or fried. My favorite fishes are grouper, snapper, and dorado (or mahimahi). You will also come across barracuda, shark, and marlin. You'll rarely find snook on the menu, and if so, you should definitely try this delicate white fish.

If you are in a Garífuna region, you should not miss the chance to try hudut, a fish stew or whole fish preparation served in a coconut-milk broth, often accompanied by mashed fried green plantains. Sere is a very similar Kriol dish that seems more like a traditional fish or seafood stew, but again, based on a coconut-milk broth.

Ceviche, a cold marinade of fish, conch, and/or shrimp cooked in lime juice and seasoned, is a great treat for lunch or as an appetizer.

Vegetables -- On the whole, you'll find vegetables surprisingly lacking in Belizean meals. Fresh garden salads are rare and hard to come by. A lack of fresh ingredients makes other vegetable dishes and sides almost as uncommon. Most restaurant meals come accompanied by a simple slaw of grated cabbage, or a potato or beet salad.

Fruits -- Belize has a wealth of delicious tropical fruits. The most common are mangoes (the season begins in May), papayas, pineapples, melons, and bananas. Other fruits you might find include the fruit of the cashew tree, which has orange or yellow glossy skin, and carambola (star fruit), a tart fruit, whose cross-sections form perfect stars.

Desserts -- Belize doesn't have a very extravagant or refined dessert culture. After all, the country was colonized by the British, not the French. However, you can usually find homemade coconut pie, chocolate pie, or bread pudding on most menus. Flan, an egg-and-condensed-milk custard imported from Mexico, is also popular.

Drink

Beverages -- Most major brands of soft drinks are available, as are fresh lime juice (limeade) and orange juice. You're in the tropics, so expect to find fresh shakes made with papaya, pineapple, or mango.

One of the most unique drinks you're likely to sample anywhere is a seaweed shake, a cooling concoction made of dried seaweed, evaporated and condensed milk, cinnamon, and nutmeg, and blended with ice. Seaweed shakes are sometimes kicked up with a shot of rum or brandy.

Water -- Much of the drinking water in Belize is rainwater. People use the roofs of their houses to collect water in a cistern, which supplies them for the year. Tap water isn't generally considered safe to drink, even in most cities and popular tourist towns. The water in Belize City and San Ignacio is relatively safe to drink, but travelers often get a touch of diarrhea whenever they hit a foreign country, so always play it safe. Ask for bottled drinking water at your hotel, and whenever you can, pick up a bottle of spring or purified water (available in most markets) to have handy.

Beer, Wine & Liquor -- The Belize Brewing Company's Belikin beer is the national beer of Belize. It comes in several varieties, including Belikin Lager, Belikin Premium, and Belikin Stout. The recipes and original brew masters all came from Germany. Both the lager and premium are full-bodied, hearty beers. The Belikin brewery also bottles a locally produced Guinness Stout, as thick and rich as its brand name demands.

As you'll find throughout the Caribbean, rum is the liquor of choice in Belize. There are several brands and distilleries producing rum in Belize. Probably the finest Belizean rum is the 5-year-aged Prestige. One of the most popular brands you'll come across is 1 Barrel, which has a hint of vanilla, and is slightly sweet for my taste.

Belize doesn't produce any traditional wines of note. The climate and soil are not very well suited for growing the right kind of grapes. On Ambergris Caye, the Rendezvous Restaurant & Winery does in fact import grape juice for the purpose of producing and bottling their own wines, although they are really more of a novelty than a delicacy.

Several different fruit wines are produced in Belize using native fruits, including pineapple and even banana. These wines are very sweet and are more a novelty than anything else. In remote parts of the country, you'll find homemade fruit wines that are a bit like hard cider.

Fish

Atún -- Tuna

Calamares -- Squid

Camarones -- Shrimp

Cangrejo -- Crab

Ceviche -- Marinated seafood salad

Dorado -- Dolphin, or mahimahi

Langosta -- Lobster

Langostinos -- Prawns

Lenguado -- Sole

Mejillones -- Mussels

Mero -- Grouper

Ostras -- Oysters

Pargo -- Snapper

Pulpo -- Octopus

Tiburón -- Shark

Meat

Bistec -- Beefsteak

Cerdo -- Pork

Chicharrones -- Fried pork rinds

Chuleta -- Cutlet

Conejo -- Rabbit

Cordero -- Lamb

Costillas -- Ribs

Jamón -- Ham

Lengua -- Tongue

Pato -- Duck

Pavo -- Turkey

Pollo -- Chicken

Vegetables

Aceitunas -- Olives

Alcachofa -- Artichoke

Berenjena -- Eggplant

Cebolla -- Onion

Elote -- Corn on the cob

Ensalada -- Salad

Espárragos -- Asparagus

Espinacas -- Spinach

Palmito -- Heart of palm

Papa -- Potato

Pepino -- Cucumber

Remolacha -- Beet

Repollo -- Cabbage

Tomate -- Tomato

Vainica -- String beans

Yuca -- Cassava, or manioc

Zanahoria -- Carrot

Fruits

Aguacate -- Avocado

Carambola -- Star fruit

Cereza -- Cherry

Ciruela -- Plum

Fresa -- Strawberry

Limón -- Lemon or lime

Mango -- Mango

Manzana -- Apple

Melocotón -- Peach

Mora -- Raspberry

Naranja -- Orange

Pera -- Pear

Piña -- Pineapple

Plátano -- Banana

Sandía -- Watermelon

Toronja -- Grapefruit

Uvas -- Grapes

Basics

Aceite -- Oil

Ajo -- Garlic

Azúcar -- Sugar

Frito -- Fried

Mantequilla -- Butter

Miel -- Honey

Mostaza -- Mustard

Natilla -- Sour cream

Pan -- Bread

Pimienta -- Pepper

Queso -- Cheese

Sal -- Salt

Tamal -- Filled cornmeal pastry

Tortilla -- Flat corn pancake

Menu Items

Bail op -- Traditional dish made with cassava, cocoa, sweet potatoes, plantains, boil cake, and fish or pig's tail

Bambam -- Traditional dish made with cassava

Bami -- Cassava bread

Chimoaleh -- Traditional dish of blackened chicken soup and rice; chimole in Spanish

Dukunu -- Dish of mashed and steamed corn, wrapped in a leaf, similar to a tamal

Eskabaycheh -- Pickled onion soup with chicken or fish; derived from the Spanish word escabeche ("pickled")

Garnache -- Fried tortilla topped with beans and rice

Janny kake -- Traditional fried or baked bread, served at breakfast

Konks -- Conch

Panades -- Traditional dish of finely chopped fish wrapped in a tortilla

Recado -- Red achiote paste

Reyeno -- Soup made with chicken, pork, and boiled eggs

Rise and beanz -- Rice and beans with coconut milk

Rompopo -- Alcoholic drink similar to eggnog

Strech-mi-gots -- Traditional taffy

Tablayta -- Coconut candy