Tips On Dining

Most restaurants add a 10% to 15% charge in lieu of tipping, so check your bill carefully.

Sea Turtle -- Turtle meat that appears on menus in the Cayman Islands is from a local turtle farm that raises turtles specifically for commercial purposes.

Queen Conch -- The national food of the Cayman Islands is conch. The firm white meat of this mollusk -- called the "snail of the sea" -- tastes somewhat bland until local chefs work their magic. Conch has a chewy consistency, which means that it has to be tenderized. It's often served at happy hour in taverns and bars, as a main dish, in salads, and as hors d'oeuvres.

Every cook has a different recipe for making conch chowder, but a popular version includes tomatoes, potatoes, sweet peppers, onions, carrots, salt or pork bacon, bay leaves, thyme, and (of course) salt and pepper. Conch fritters are served with hot sauce and are made with finely minced peppers, onions, and tomato paste, among other ingredients. They are deep-fried in oil.

Cracked conch (or "fried conch," as the old-timers used to call it) is prepared like a breaded veal cutlet. Tenderized and dipped in batter, it is then sautéed. Conch is also served steamed, in Creole sauce, curried, "scorched," creamed on toast, and stewed. You'll even find "conch burgers" listed on menus.

Marinated conch is frequently enjoyed right on the water, courtesy of the numerous Caymanian sea captains who operate North Sound excursions that include lunch. They will scoop a conch right out of the sea, remove it from its shell (an art unto itself), slice it up, and serve it with lime juice and onions -- as fresh as it can possibly be.

The Main Event -- Red snapper, mahimahi (which is also called dorado or dolphin), swordfish, yellowfin tuna, and grouper are the most commonly available fish.

The most elegant item you'll see on nearly any menu is the local spiny lobster. This tropical cousin of the Maine lobster is also called crayfish or rock lobster. Only the tail is eaten. You get fresh lobster when it is in season, from the beginning of April until the end of August. Otherwise it's frozen.

Chicken and pork, the meats that are most often prepared island-style, are frequently roasted, grilled, curried, or "jerked" -- that is, rubbed with spices and slow-smoked for hours over a low fire, preferably made with pimento wood. Each cook has their own spice blend, but jerk spices usually include allspice, hot Scotch bonnet pepper, thyme, nutmeg, salt, garlic, onion, and green onion. Other popular meat dishes that are easily found at restaurants serving island cuisine include braised beef liver, curried goat, oxtail, and salt beef and beans.

The most frequent companion for main dishes is "rice and peas," a dish that's also popular in Jamaica, which is actually composed of rice and red beans cooked in coconut milk. Along with rice and peas, ripe plantains (larger, less sweet relatives of the banana) are fried or baked with brown sugar and served alongside main dishes.

The High Price of Imported Ingredients -- Because many ingredients must be shipped in to the Cayman Islands, restaurants here are among the most expensive in the Caribbean. Even so-called moderate restaurants can become expensive if you order steak or lobster. For the best value, opt for West Indian fare at local restaurants.