The number of world-class Caribbean restaurants continues to multiply, making this landmark selection, which first launched back in 2013, more and more difficult each year.
The Caribbean food sector continues to send a strong message to the world that this is, truly, one of the world’s great food regions, with arguably the most diverse cuisine on the planet and an uncanny range of styles and philosophies.
It’s also wonderful to see a region-wide commitment to local sourcing and, most importantly, to authenticity, across the Caribbean gastronomic scene.
This year’s edition of the 50 Best Caribbean Restaurants, the product of hundreds of meals across the far reaches of the Caribbean, retains our core criteria: food, service and ambience, the three pillars which are the foundation of any great restaurant.
Because meals that are truly great should instantly become great memories, whether they’re at a toes-in-the-sand beach spot or a culinary laboratory.
“The Caribbean’s culinary scene is hotter than ever, and this year’s edition of the 50 best Caribbean restaurants is our most diverse list since we first launched the 50 Best back in 2013,” said Alexander Britell, editor and publisher of Caribbean Journal. “These 50 restaurants exemplify the exciting gastronomic adventure that is today’s Caribbean culinary world. It’s a portfolio of very different but equally outstanding dining destinations.”
Congratulations to this year’s selections!
Sheer Rocks, Antigua The Caribbean’s new number one restaurant is a marvel, from the most stunning location of any eatery in the region (day or night) to a miraculous menu that takes Michelin-style menus conceived by Chef Simon Christey-French to truly admirable, locally-focused sourcing. What’s most impressive, though, is the restaurant’s commitment to culinary education and training. Because it’s not just a world-class restaurant in the Caribbean. It’s a truly Caribbean restaurant, headed by wunderkind Antiguan chef Jamal Warner.
Brass Boer, Bonaire The husband and wife team of Jonnie and Thérèse Boer, the brains behind the three-Michelin star De Librije in Holland, have taken their talents to Bonaire and the result is, well, a complete home run. The culinary expertise is obvious but not pretentious, the setting on the edge of the sea is intoxicating and the service delivers the goods.
Graycliff, The Bahamas The most legendary restaurant in The Bahamas continues to serve up romantic, unforgettable meals – and the food, focused on sourcing outstanding ingredients from around the world, is better than ever. It doesn’t hurt that it’s home to one of the largest wine cellars on earth, either.
Screaming Eagle, Aruba Chef Erwin Husken is one of the most talented chefs in the Caribbean, and his chic, glamorous Screaming Eagle eatery continues to serve up the best food in Aruba — with an impressive, incessant quest to source the finest ingredients.
CocoMaya, Virgin Gorda, BVI Some restaurants just get it. And this longtime Virgin Gorda hub just plain fires on all cylinders, with a fun, energetic, breezy vibe, beautiful decor and a truly remarkable Asian-fusion tapas-focused menu.
Ocean 82, St Martin Grand Case has made a triumphant comeback from Hurricane Irma, and Ocean 82 is right at the center of it, vaulting right back to the pinnacle of the island’s cuisine with outstanding service, a gorgeous perch above the beach and truly extraordinary food.
Savant, St Croix St Croix has quietly become one of the hottest dining destinations in the hemisphere, and Savant is right at the top, with a torch-lit, magical ambience and a brilliant, ever-changing menu by chef Troy Corbett.
Blue by Eric Ripert, Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands’ destination eatery is a culinary tour de force and one of the greatest meals you’ll ever eat in the Caribbean — this Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman restaurant is worth the trip all by itself. The wine-pairing tasting menu is one of the region’s great indulgences.
Vianda, Puerto Rico In what has long been an impressive dining scene in Puerto Rico, a San Francisco couple have turned a Santurce eatery into Puerto Rico’s best restaurant, where a minimalist decor belies truly breathtaking food.
The Stone Barn, St Kitts The Park Hyatt St Kitts has created the island’s signature place to eat in a recreated stone barn that uncannily marries historic and modern sensibilities — and the food delivers the goods — notably, with arguably the best vegan tasting menu in the Caribbean as a bonus.
Fish by Jose Andres, The Bahamas Jose Andres’ second restaurant in the Caribbean is a winner, from his signature deep-fried lionfish to several lovely tasting menus, with an overarching focus on locally-sourced seafood.
Le Tamarin, St Barth The hottest table in St Barth, set at the edge of Grande Saline, is the essence of what makes St Barth’s cuisine so outsatnding: it’s breezy, chic and laid-back — but packs a gastronomic wallop, with head-turning dishes like foie gras in rhum vieux and even an accras entree.
Baoase Culinary Beach Restaurant, Curaçao It’s perhaps no surprise that the best hotel in Curaçao is also home to the island’s best restaurant. In a setting on the edge of the beach, Chef Rene Klop continues to produce memorable meals featuring truly exquisite food.
The Landing, The Bahamas Few restaurants anywhere in the world can conjure up such a combination of glamor, mystery, elegance and culinary perfection. Harbour Island’s flagship restaurant is a bucket-list Caribbean meal.
Le Tropicana, St Martin Hidden away in Marigot’s Marina Royale is the exquisite Tropicana, where for lunch or dinner you can find out-of-this-world dishes sitting right on the edge of the water.
Flying Fish GastroBar, The Bahamas Long one of the greatest places to eat in The Bahamas, star Chef Tim Tibbitts has developed a very cool take on the gastropub with a menu that straddles comfort food and molecular gastronomy on the waterfront in Grand Bahama.
Le Temps de Cerises, St Martin Hidden away at the edge of Grand Case is this spectacular spot right on Grand Case Beach, with a funky, bright decor, regular live music and an inventive but authentic Saint Martin menu that regularly wows (the plateau de la terre is one of the Caribbean’s greatest dishes. Period).
Uptown Eatery, St Croix This tiny eatery in the heart of Christiansted is a full-fledged delight, with the husband-and-wife team of Jane and Dave Kendrick cultivating a lovable eatery that instantly makes you smile, with the culinary chops to match. The signature Mahi Picatta might be the best fish dish you’ve ever tasted.
The Cliff at Cap, Saint Lucia The Cap Maison hotel is set at the far north of Saint Lucia — but this cliffside outpost is more than worth the journey. Longtime Chef Craig Jones continues to wow with a menu for the bon vivant, with a jaw-dropping setting.
Chaud, Trinidad If you haven’t taken a culinary vacation to Trinidad, it’s time to do it. Port of Spain is an exciting, adventurous gastronomic destination (with the Caribbean’s best street food) and celebrated Chef Khalid Khalid Mohammed has taken Trinidad’s diverse, wonderful cuisine and imagined it with a contemporary, fine-dining spin.
The Cliff, Barbados The grande dame of Barbados restaurants. No trip to Barbados is complete without a stop at this Platinum Coast legend, stewarded remarkably by longtime Chef Paul Owens with one of the region’s best wine lists.
Le Petibonum, Martinique Chef Guy Ferdinand single-handedly turned Le Carbet into a destination with his Le Petibonum beach bar, and his culinary brilliance has turned it into Martinique’s toes-i-the-sand destination dining experience.
Parallel 23, Turks and Caicos There’s no more romantic place to dine in Turks and Caicos than the gorgeous Parallel 23 at the Palms, Turks and Caicos, where a marvelous wine list joins Lauren Callighen’s impressive menu, from an outstanding, original caesar saiad to perfect steaks and seafood.
Emilio’s, St Maarten This is St Maarten’s destination restaurant, a stone-walled eatery perched at the foot hills of the Rainforest Adventure park. Norman and Su Wathey have created an elegant, creative dining spot with an even more impressive wine list.
Orlando’s, Saint Lucia Chef Orlando Satchell, one of the world’s leading advocates for Caribbean cuisine, put Soufriere on the dining map with hits eponymous eatery, and it’s still Saint Lucia’s most authentic, inspired fine-dining eatery. (Satchell also just added another Orlandos’s in Rodney Bay).
Le Zandoli, Martinique The celebrated restaurant at Trois-Ilet’s art-focused La Suite Villa hotel is a wonder — now even more impressive under the stewardship of the Michelin-starred Bordeau chef Nicolas Magie for 2020.
La Savane, Guadeloupe The town of Deshaies in Basse-Terre, best known as the filming location of Death in Paradise, is an under-the-radar culinary outpost, and its African-themed La Savane serves up delightful seafood and French-Caribbean fare in a setting right on the water.
Cocovan, Turks and Caicos The Caribbean’s most original eatery somehow turned an old airstream trailer into a dreamy, hip, creative sit-down food truck, one that’s as playful as it is impressive.
The Sugar Mill, Jamaica Montego Bay’s signature place to eat is the flagship eatery at the Half Moon resort, a romantic, magical fine-dining spot where Chef de Cuisine Christopher Golding serves up a culinary “story” of Jamaica in an old estate at Rose Hall.
Le Cottage, St Martin Of course, the food is wonderful (as is the wine and spirits selection), but Le Cottage stands out in the hyper-competitive Grand Case with its welcoming ambience — it’s like having a five-star meal at your friend’s home.
Quarter Kitchen and Cocktail Lab, St Barth St Barth’s coolest bar is also a marvelous restaurant, with an Asian-fusion menu that continues to turn heads with the service and ambience to match.
Bistrot Caraibes, St Martin If there’s a quintessential Grand Case restaurant, it’s this, with the kind of creative French Caribbean fusion food that first put Saint Martin on the gastronomic map.
La Table de Marcel, Martinique The Michelin-starred Marcel Ravin returned to his homeland with this tiny eatery in the Simon hotel in Fort-de-France, where Michelin-quality preparation, technique and plating have created a new destination restaurant in what is one of the Caribbean’s hottest culinary capitals.
Cin Cin by the Sea, Barbados Barbados is the region’s most elegant dining destination, and this west coast signature continues to be a favorite of celebs and the gastronomically inclined, with a bright decor and a menu of Italian-Caribbean fusion.
Braata, St Croix It’s hard to think of a buzzier chef in the Caribbean than St Croix’s own Digby Stridiron, whose expanding culinary empire is led by the Braata, a modern take on the classic West Indian kitchen, with awe-inspiring, authentic, innovative Caribbean fare. And, oh yes, there’s rum, too. It’s also yet another sign of the buzzing comeback of Frederiksted.
Pearl Beach, St Barth The best beach eatery in St Barth, set on glamorous St Jean beach, is consistently a wonder, from amazing local tartares to an outstanding magret de canard. By day, it’s a bustling lunch spot, and by night it’s an uber-romantic dining spot.
Le Pressoir, St Martin Set at the far edge of Grand Case in a reconstructed old creole house, Le Pressoir is one of the French Caribbean’s finest places to eat, with an intimate, elegant setting and a revolving prix-fixe menu that’s always outstanding. It doesn’t hurt that the island’s greatest rum bar is in the next room.
Veya, Anguilla Anguilla has long occupied a rarefied perch in the Caribbean culinary scene, but one restaurant stands above the rest: Veya, the brainchild of the husband and wife team of Carrie and Jerry Bogar of set in an old Caribbean home with elegant and always lively food. Plainly, it’s Anguilla’s most unforgettable meal.
Eating House 1503, Cayman Islands Renowned Hawaiian Chef Roy Yamaguchi’s first restaurant in the Caribbean is a fun, creative culinary destination in the Margaritaville Beach Resort where clever cocktails marry some of the Caribbean’s most innovative — and delicious — seafood, in an unpretentious, energetic environment.
Brandywine Estate Restaurant, BVI Tortola’s fine-dining institution is back and better than ever, helmed by talented Chef Regis Bourdon and blessed with some of the BVI’s most breathtaking scenery. The menu is a welcome mix of old and new world fare, with some inspiring reimaginations like salmon Wellington and vegan meat balls.
Upstairs at Kaibo, Cayman Islands Those who journey out to Cayman Kai for dinner are rewarded with the always lovely Kaibo, where barefoot chic meets fine dining with a creative, playful twist (and a selection of rare rums to boot).
Le Telegraphe, Saint Martin The new Orient Bay is better than ever, and Le Telegraph, from the team behind Grand Case’s legendary Calmos Cafe, is right at the forefront, with a classic French Caribbean menu that also boasts the best tartare dishes on the island.
Roxxy, St Maarten The Caribbean’s coolest new beach bar is also one of its best new restaurants, where a hip beachfront scene meets incredibly good French and international fare, from sushi to fresh fish, all in a setting where you can spend all day right on the sand.
Barranco, St Martin Saint Tropez meets the Caribbean in this inspired Latin American-Caribbean fusion kitchen that hangs over the sand in Grand Case. The decor is cutting edge and the food seamlessly moves across continents.
La Table de Poisson Rouge, Guadeloupe The restaurant at Guadeloupe’s chic Tendacayou eco-lodge serves up dazzling French-Caribbean food with an eclectic decor and an ethereal spot high in the rainforest.
Rhodes Restaurant, Grenada The late celebrity chef Gary Rhodes gave his name and culinary personality to what remains Grenada’s signature place to eat, set at the lovely Calabash boutique hotel with a dreamy ambience and outstanding seafood.
The Restaurant at Round Hill, Jamaica It’s something of a closely-guarded secret, but Round HIll’s eponymous restaurant is a stunner, with a complete, reverential take on Jamaica’s world of flavors, with out-of-this-world produce and sourcing.
L’Auberge Gourmande, St Martin The venerable Grand Case Boulevard institution is back, and it continues to serve up indulgent, wonderful meals in a setting that makes you feel like you’re journeyed back in time.
Catherine’s Cafe, Antigua Another buzzy eatery from the Rocks Group (behind Sheer Rocks) is a French-Caribbean beach restaurant that’s one of Antigua’s places to see and be seen — and, of course, to eat.
Mahogany House, The Bahamas Nassau’s hottest boutique hotel at the edge of Lyford Cay is home to the superb Mahogany House, a modern, sleek eatery with an impressive Italian-focused menu and a hard-to-beat wine selection.