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The Cayman Islands may be famous for beaches and diving, but the real treasure is in the food. Caymanian cuisine is a flavorful blend of Caribbean, African, and British influences, with an emphasis on fresh seafood, tropical fruits, and hearty island classics. In this video, filmed in the Cayman Islands, we explore the traditional dishes (and drinks!) you can’t miss when visiting.
We’ll cover:
Conch – fritters, stew, and ceviche made with this island favorite
Cayman-Style Beef – slow-cooked, tender, and full of flavor
Rundown – a coconut milk–based stew with fish or turtle
Turtle Stew – one of the most traditional (and controversial) dishes in Cayman cuisine
Heavy Cake – the Cayman Islands’ famous cassava-based dessert
Plantains, Rice & Beans – essential sides in everyday meals
Seafood Specialties – snapper, mahi-mahi, lobster, and more
Whether you’re grabbing a plate at a local beach shack or sitting down at a Caymanian family table, these are the foods that showcase the islands’ culture and history.
Wolters World for Food! Our videos focus on helping travelers know what to eat when they travel, the traditional food that you always want to eat when you travel.
Copyright Mark Wolters 2025
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0:00
Hey there fellow hungry travelers! Mark here with Walter's World and today we're here in the Cayman Islands
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Today we're going to talk about what you need to eat when you come here to the Cayman Islands because this island, this set of islands, has so much great food. Whether you're looking at local food
0:12
international food, all kinds of stuff, you can't go wrong eating here in the Cayman. So what I want to do
0:19
is give you some of the foods you should have and the drinks you should have when you're here
0:23
But I got to tell you, when you come to the Cayman Islands, when you're going to eat
0:27
when you're going to drink, when you're going to imbibe, you gotta have patience because this is an
0:34
island time kind of thing so just be ready for that because I see tourists getting upset and
0:38
you just gotta realize it takes a little more time but believe me when you get the food here
0:42
you get the drinks here, it's gonna be so good. So let's start with some of like the starters you
0:47
may have when you come. You know the appetizers to get you going right? I think one thing you have
0:52
to have are the conch fritters. If you're not sure what a conch is, you know the conch shell like
0:56
the like thing you see like Aquaman calling for the fish to
1:00
come help and all kinds of stuff. I mean, inside is like this little kind of sluggy like thing. And they basically chop
1:06
it up, fried up with in there's some dough make a dough ball out of it. They make a fritter out of it. Oh my god, it is so good
1:12
That's one thing you have to have when you're here. Another thing you can get especially a great starter is the coconut
1:17
shrimp, you know, the coconut and battered shrimp that they fry up and you just eat so well. And if it has some like sauce with
1:24
some scotch bonnet peppers in it, even better. Now, other kind of
1:28
starter things you might want to have when you're here are tostones. And tostones, what it is, imagine like a plantain
1:34
like, but kind of like a banana smashed down, fried and fried again. It's almost like a chip. But it's just this fantastic
1:41
like, oh, I put a little salt on it. It's great to do tostones. Oh, if you drink with your buddies, you can actually just
1:46
get plantain chips like a magic potato chips made out of plantains. Yeah, you can get that when you're here. I mean
1:51
there's a lot of really good starter things you want to grab I think another kind of like, it's not necessarily a starter, or maybe a snack, or especially a cheap snack you want to get when you're here, when you're like, man, it's expensive to eat here, I need to save some money, are the patties
2:04
Now you can get like, there'll be beef patties or chicken patties, but I would say it's like a hand pie from the US, or maybe like an empanade from South America
2:11
It's like their version, but it looks a little orange on the outside because there's a little spice to it
2:15
And inside it's going to be either like a beef ragu in there, or a chicken ragu, like a chicken compote is the best way to explain it, in there
2:22
They're so good. They're affordable and make a really great treat and they got a little kick to them too
2:27
So just be aware of that even handed off your friends aren't used to a little bit of spice
2:31
Now another thing you do for starters or like a smaller plate kind of thing is get some of the soups that are here
2:36
And believe the seafood soups whatever kind of have is gonna be good I personally like the conch chowder you can get that but any kind of stuff you have with seafood and a soup base kind of thing
2:46
Really tasty usually on the starter menu or the appetizer menu set the price a little bit lower
2:50
lower, but that's really good. But let's be honest. You're just starting off with the
2:54
appetizer. You want to know more. Where am I? What am I really going to eat when I'm here? Who's going to get me fulled up? Well, one thing I'll tell you is we're an island
3:00
so fish galore. Snapper? Oh yeah, you're going to have the snapper. But I'll warn you, if
3:05
you get snapped when you're here, they'll give you the whole snapper. You know, with the tail and the head and everything. So you might want to get the fillet version. It might
3:12
cost a bit more You might get a little less fish but for the effort it might be worth So you got that Mahi is great here The shrimp you can have in here the scallops the lobster Oh my god Lobby I mean if you get the spiny lobster here the Caribbean spiny lobster and when it in season you can get it all year round But when you can
3:29
get it, those lobster tails that'll come with stuff. Oh my goodness, it is amazing. That's some
3:33
really great stuff there. But I think one of the important things I got to talk about with the
3:37
seafood is there different sauces you can get for it. So if you ever see like a rundown sauce, like
3:42
like, oh, it's rundown mahi-mahi or rundown, you know, whatever, like the rundown sauce
3:47
basically what it is, it's like coconut milk, spices and veggies together, but it's just
3:53
oh, it is so good. Like, my favorite is the rundown mahi-mahi, like, that's my go-to one
3:58
Now, another really good sauce, you might see with the fish, is escovich. I'm sure I'm saying it wrong, but what you have is different fish, but you have it with
4:04
it, what it has, it has onions, scotch bonnet peppers in there, some vinegar
4:08
I mean, it's just this really, like, flavorful sauce that's going in there
4:12
And I'm going to be honest with you. If you get sauces with your dishes here, especially with your fish
4:16
you might actually even like the sauces better than the fish itself
4:20
And even if you have the super fresh fish that's really coming out of the sea, man, you're going to eat so well
4:24
So definitely go for that. But I know some people are like, Mark, I've been here for five days
4:28
I've had lobster, mahi mahi, snapper. I've had lobster. I've had to get the cock
4:33
Well, can I get some meat kind of stuff? Well, if you're looking at me when you're here
4:36
you'll notice maybe behind me you'll see some chickens going by. Yeah, chickens
4:41
the jerk chicken here you know like the the spicy jerk seasoning now imagine jerk chicken it's
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amazing when you're here if you go to a place like a barbecue place they'll have jerk chicken
4:51
jerk pork is also really good you can get jerk goat um you can get jerk seasoning and sausage
4:56
heck i had jerk seasoning on a burger i mean there's all kinds of like jerk seasoning kind
5:00
of stuff you can get when you're here for the meat stuff but also ribs jerked ribs or just
5:05
ribs when you're here you can have that so there's a lot of different really tasty things you can get
5:09
for your main courses. And they have a lot of really great like side dishes to go along with it
5:14
You might get fry bread when you're here. Like you may get fritters for like a side, which is like
5:18
basically like fried dough balls. I will warn you, well, they bring them out. They bring this fruit
5:22
out fresh when you're here and they're gonna be super hot. Make sure you maybe peel them apart if
5:26
you don't want to like melt your mouth on the inside when they come in. Other really great stuff
5:31
you're gonna see on the side is rice and peas or beans and rice. Basically, it's but let's say mostly
5:35
rice with some beans in there, you can get that. There's also rice with spinach you might see
5:40
which is really tasty. Jocelyn loved that one. Also, sweet potatoes. I saw sweet potatoes a lot
5:45
on the menus here, whether it's from sweet potato fries or roasted sweet potatoes or sweet potatoes
5:50
by themselves. I mean, there's just all kinds of like sweet potatoes might pop up as a side dish
5:54
as well. And what's cool is when you go to the restaurants, they'll usually have like, hey
5:58
here's what we're going to serve it with. But if you want to ask for something different, you can Because I want to tell you this the service here in the Cayman Islands though, it's a bit slow
6:06
Super friendly super helpful. So if you ask them a what should I get
6:10
They're gonna tell you hey, this is what tourists usually like Here's what the locals eat and here's what I like so literally asking for like those three things
6:17
Hey, what do the tourists see? What do you like and what's the most popular dish here? They're gonna give you different stuff and explain why that's how I got in Antuka the Australian Caribbean mixed place on the east end
6:25
That's how I got their booyah bays, which was unbelievable It's how I end up getting the jerk chicken in another place and like go for the jerk chicken over the pork
6:32
This is our specialty here They gonna tell you these things you gonna go Oh my gosh I mean that how I found out about rundown sauce like rundown with the fish like other rundown my my thank you peppers for helping me out You have that really helpfulness in the service industry here And
6:45
no matter where you're going, you're gonna notice there's gonna be hot sauce on the table. And usually the hot sauce is
6:50
from a Scotch bonnet pepper. And I'll tell you a Scotch bonnet pepper, according to the Scoville ratings is actually
6:56
hotter than jalapeno, but it's hotter. But it's actually I think more flavorful. So you actually get some really good
7:01
flavor with it. So it is spicy, but it does taste really good. But if I kind of go back to other kind of starter dishes that you should try when you're here, one, stewed oxtail
7:10
Oh, my gosh, the oxtail here is so good. Or you get the curry goat, which is also really good
7:16
But I will tell you, these kind of come in like a stew thing, and they're literally chopped up. So there could be splinters of bones
7:21
So if you're going to feed it to your little kids or you're going to feed it to yourself, you're not paying attention, you could be like, ah-ah, bone
7:26
So do be careful with it. So you might get a little messy when you are eating it. But the oxtail and the curry goat are so worth it
7:33
Now another popular dish is ackee and saltfish, which when you see it looks like scrambled eggs
7:39
basically. It's more of a breakfast thing, but sometimes you'll see it on the menus. I'm not a
7:43
fan, so I'm not really going to recommend it, but it is something that is popular here. You can have
7:47
it here, you'll see it on the menus. The national dish here is actually turtle stew. And when you go
7:52
and swim with the turtles, all of a sudden you don't really feel like having turtle stew anymore, but that is the national dish. And you don't find it very often anymore, but you can still find it
8:00
if you look for it. Now if you're looking for dessert, they've got some really good desserts
8:04
here. And one thing I realized is since this is part of the British Empire, was part of the
8:07
British Empire one time, you'll see, you'll see when you hold the money, you realize, oh yes
8:11
it's still part of like the British thing. Sticky toffee pudding, seriously, some of the best sticky
8:16
toffee pudding in the world here. Amazing sticking toffee pudding. Something more local based that
8:21
you're like, oh, that's something that's thinking back home, cassava cake. And it's made out of cassava. They grate up the cassava and make this cake. It's very dense. It's kind of like if you
8:29
you took a sponge, filled with water, then smooshed it down and
8:33
then ate it. It's like that consistency, but it's really, really good. And then of course, we're in the Caribbean. So you
8:38
can't go wrong with rum cake. But I will tell you if you're gonna be driving around, rum cake really has a serious amount
8:44
of rum. So maybe don't have a drink and rum cake because then you can't drive. So could plan that out when it comes to eating
8:50
I think planning out eating is important. Realize here in the Cayman Islands, lunch is the big meal of the day. That's where
8:57
you have the big meal. Dinner is a little bit like, it's a smaller meal out there. So do be aware of
9:01
that. So don't be surprised if you're going out with friends here. They're like, let's have a lunch together. That's a little bit more of a big deal than dinner time. Breakfast, you can grab
9:10
stuff, porridge, you know, you'll see if you're in, if you're in one of the resorts, they're going to
9:14
have all the buffet stuff when you are there. But you do have that. But I think another thing I need
9:19
to talk about are the drinks when you come. And when you're thinking about the drinks here
9:22
coconut water. If you've ever had coconut water, imagine like creamy water with a slight hint of
9:27
coconut flavor. It's actually really good, super refreshing. Think of it as more of a nature's
9:33
Gatorade and you'll be okay. Other things, if you're looking at alcoholic beverages
9:37
there's lots of local beers you can get here. K-Brew is probably the biggest one that you want to try
9:41
when you're here. There's different styles. You also get like white tip. There's all kinds of them out there. You can get your international brews as well. In terms of alcohol, they love the
9:48
cocktails here. The restaurants you go to, they're all going to have cocktail menus that you're going
9:52
going to enjoy, but obviously rum is the big thing. So rum punch is going to be the thing that gives you a punch of rum but you going to enjoy it So you should try that And there some rum factors you can do rum tours if you are here to try that And if you not looking for alcoholic beverages remember
10:06
here in the Cayman Islands, you can drink the tap water, it is okay. And when you go to the restaurant, they're gonna ask you
10:11
hey, do you want what kind of water do you want? Is tap water okay? Or do you want bottled water? You can do the tap water
10:16
ice water, you'll be just fine. Another thing I think is important when you're at the restaurant, gratuity tipping, you
10:22
do tip here. However, you'll notice, make sure you look on your bill to see if, in the itemized
10:28
bills, if the gratuity is already included. A lot of places we've gone to, they already included the
10:32
15% or 18% gratuity, so I didn't have to leave any more tip. If you want to, you can, but be
10:38
careful because you might already have the gratuity and then you add on another 20% and all of a
10:42
sudden, wow, that's a, that's a lot of tip right there. So do be aware of that. Some places they
10:47
don't put the gratuity on, so you have to write it in or you tell them that. So do be aware of it
10:51
And when you're going out to eat, credit cards are accepted most everywhere here. I mean, this is a huge financial center, so credit cards are fine
10:57
Even American Express, I've had no problem paying with that. Be some MasterCard, no big deal
11:01
And I think if we look at eating out here, realize when you come to the Caymans, this is island
11:05
This is island time. Outside eating is a thing. So do expect to eat outside
11:10
It's going to be normal. If you're here in the summertime when it's super, super hot, maybe ask to be inside where there's some AC or where there's a breeze
11:15
Because it can get a little warm when you're trying to eat. But it's going to be a lot of outdoor eating when you are here, which is super nice
11:22
And the thing is, when you're coming here, you need to realize there's actually some seasonal foods
11:26
Like, remember the Sponny Lobster? It's not always available out there. Breadfruit is not always available out there
11:32
So there's some seasonal things. And you might see it on the menu, but realize they're not changing the menu every season
11:37
They just have it on there, and they'll just let you know that we don't have that this season. Like, when I'm here now, breadfruit isn't available
11:43
So I'm like, dang it. But the lobster is. So it all works out. And when you are here, since there's so many international people that have moved here
11:50
I mean, literally like over half the people that live here are actually not from here. So you have tons of great international restaurants
11:55
We were at Baccarra by the Yacht Club. I mean, it was unbelievable. Like they're, they're Italian food
11:59
Like I had Biggley with duck sauce that I love from, from Vicenza
12:03
And it was like, I'm like, dude, this is like legit. Like another place we went, it was like legit international food
12:08
Like we went to the check-in, which is like a bar on the side of the road and they had
12:11
legit Czech food. So you can get international. You can get the local Caribbean, Cayman kind of stuff
12:16
You can get all that when you're here, which is really nice, especially if you come with your family
12:20
The kids are kind of tired of the seafood stuff. You can hook them up with things they miss from home, no problem
12:25
But the thing is, when you're driving around the island, remember Georgetown and the Seven
12:29
Mile Beach, that's where there's tons of restaurants along that side. But once you go to the south part of the island, you go to the east end, there's not as many
12:36
So it might be like a place on the side of the road you pull off to to grab a bite there
12:40
because there's not always options on that far side. So just be aware of that
12:44
The thing is, if you're doing a self-stay, like your self-catering stay, like at an apartment
12:48
or a house or a cottage or whatever, there's plenty of grocery stores around the island
12:52
to stock up on so you can get food there and cook at home no problem, alright
12:56
So what's your favorite thing to eat or drink when you come here? Is it a swanky, which is basically like a limeade kind of thing
13:02
Or do you like having the local beers or the local rums? Maybe you're just like, Mark, I'm sticking with the conch forters and ice water because
13:08
I'm looking out for my health. me know in the comments below and I'll help other travelers enjoy the fantastic food and
13:15
the fantastic people here in the Cayman Islands. Bye
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