Sure, we all come to the Caribbean primarily for the natural beauty. But Caribbean food is also one of the world’s greatest treasures — a blend of histories, cultures, tastes and identities as varied as you will find anywhere on earth. And we highlight the richness of the region’s food with the first of what will become an annual celebration: the Caribbean Food Awards. Caribbean Journal’s new venture celebrates the best in Caribbean food, from food destinations to restaurants to food trucks to our chef of the year.
Food Destination of the Year – Anguilla
If you can steal away from Anguilla’s magnificent beaches, you’ll find a marvelously robust food scene that is home to a whopping 100 restaurants. And while Anguilla is known as a high-end destination, the restaurants are free of pretension, from gourmet food trucks to locally-sourced fine dining. In short, Anguilla needs to be on your food travel list. Right now.
Food City of the Year – San Juan
San Juan is a vibrant, pulsing, Caribbean city, oozing with history but constantly changing, too. And that dynamism extends to its food. It’s a cosmopolitan city with great street food, delicious hole-in-the-wall local joints and perhaps the Caribbean’s greatest collection of world-class, haute-cuisine eateries. And happily, there is always more to explore. Behind every corner, up every staircase, is a new culinary adventure to experience. And that’s the mark of a great food city.
Restaurant of the Year – Le Soleil, St Martin
You take a bite and you stop for a moment. And you think about what you just tasted and ponder how many times you’ll think about this meal again. Le Soleil is everything a restaurant should be — not just for the view of Grand Case Beach or the angle of the light at sunset, but for its truly exquisite Franco-Caribbean food and warm, welcoming service. This is a simple restaurant, unpretentious. But it’s also the best meal we had anywhere in the Caribbean all year.
Chef of the Year – Xiomara Marquez, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rican native Xiomara Marquez one of the most dynamic chefs in the Caribbean who has done much to raise the culinary profile of her home city. And at her Yantar restaurant in the San Juan’s Condado neighbourhood, she regularly produces creative, bold dishes that exemplify the best of what the region can be. Marquez is a world-class chef who is reminding the world of the culinary power of the Caribbean. And for that, she is our Caribbean Chef of the Year.
Best New Restaurant – Sapodilla, Bahamas
New to a very competitive food market in Nassau, Sapodilla is led by master Chef Edwin Johnson a longtime veteran of the Bahamian culinary world who has managed to achieve that sought-after result: combining local components and flavours with international culinary expertise. And Sapodilla pulls it off exquisitely, all in a beautiful old estate past Sandyport.
Food Truck of the Year – Chez Marius et Sylvie, Guadeloupe
A food truck among food trucks. Set in Guadeloupe’s food truck capital of Sainte-Anne, Chez Marius & Sylvie serves the best bokit in town, the fried-dough sandwich that is the pride of the archipelago. So get on the next AA flight to Pointe-a-Pitre, grab a cab and order a bokit with merguez. And then repeat.
Street Food Destination of the Year – Port of Spain, Trinidad
Port of Spain is the Caribbean’s capital of street food, a city that is a constant competition between swirling, delicious aromas. At one turn, spicy corn soup. At another, doubles. At another, roti. It’s a city that’s a culinary adventure, where every corner is a street food destination in its own right.
Food Festival of the Year – Saborea, Puerto Rico
As we said earlier, San Juan has a booming food culture, and every spring it’s celebrated with the Puerto Rico Hotel and Tourism Association’s Saborea food festival, a four-day culinary extravaganza highlighting the island’s food, restaurants, rum and more.
Best Cookbook – Caribbean Potluck: Modern Recipes From Our Family Kitchen By Suzanne and Michelle Rousseau
Released this year, Suzanne and Michelle Rousseau’s Caribbean Potluck is a wonderful, energetic homage to the diversity of Caribbean cuisine, with Jamaican flair, blending the two sisters’ heritage with a contemporary update.