Travel writer Eileen Ogintz gives us dining recommendations in
Nassau- from the most upscale of experiences to the more casual comfort
food offerings. Try a little bit of everything this island has to offer!
Local lobster or grouper?
Maybe
you want to try some conch fritters. (They’re delicious!) But if a
burger or pasta is what you are in the mood for, you can find that too.
The restaurants of Nassau offer virtually every type of cuisine—Chinese,
South American, Italian, Steaks, Mediterranean, Sushi, even Indian (at
the appropriately named and popular Taj Mahal).
Nassau, after all, is a city of 170,000-plus people—the capitol of the Bahamas and one of the most popular cruise ports in the world less than 200 miles from Florida.
The Fish Fry at Arawak Cay
is famous for Bahamian delicacies like conch salad and fried fish as
well as the traditional drink of coconut and rum, while the stalls at
Potter’s Cay dock serve up scorched conch – all made in front of you.
One night we ate overlooking the sea at the terrific Dune at the One&Only Ocean Club
where Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten developed the menu. Think pumpkin
soup, roasted grouper, sweet rice in a banana leaf. How about banana
cake with salted caramel ice cream for dessert?
- Dine in style at Nobu Paradise Island
The island’s famed Atlantis Paradise Island,
of course, boasts 21 different restaurants, including the famous
Japanese restaurant Nobu. We loved Bobby Flay’s Southwestern cuisine
with a Bahamian twist at Mesa Grill with dishes available only here.
(How about Bahamian spiced chicken Crispy Squid and Cracked Conch Salad
with Orange-Chipotle Vinaigrette, Bahamian Lobster Tail with Red
Chile-Coconut Sauce and Green Chile Rice.)
The Bahamian Club at
Atlantis is considered one of the Bahama’s leading restaurants. (You’ll
think you’ve time traveled back to British Colonial times.)
At Atlantis We also loved Virgil’s Real BBQ and Carmine’s—both welcome imports from NYC.
- The gardens of the Graycliff Hotel
Another night we were treated to a gourmet feast at the historic mansion hotel Graycliff
that has become Nassau’s first five star restaurant known for one of
the most extensive private wine cellars in the Caribbean—from escargots
to tenderloin to cappuccino cake. I loved the dining rooms set with
candles and overlooking the gardens. There is also a cigar factory here
where you can make your own or buy one for after dinner.
While you
are in Nassau, sample peas and rice, a Sunday dinner staple, with peas,
bacon, celery hot peppers and rice. Remember that beyond Nassau, the
outer islands like the Abacos, Exuma and Bimini boast some of the best
fishing sites in the world, delivering fresh fish to restaurants and
hotels there and on Nassau and Paradise Island. Have you ever tried
grouper fingers? (Think fish sticks but a whole lot better!)
One of the most memorable meals I’ve ever had was a beach barbeque
on a deserted island off of Green Turtle Cay where our host free-dived
for spiny lobsters and conch, cooked the lobsters over an open fire and
prepared a fresh conch salad. Yum!
Frommer’s recommends Sun and…
originally built in the 1930s as a private home and now serving
international cuisine in Red Mill House in upscale residential
neighborhood. Have you ever tried grilled octopus? Go for the Bahamian
fisher’s platter—all local fish.
Other foodies suggest Café Matisse,
an Italian restaurant in a century-old Nassau house. Eat in dining
rooms decorated with Matisse prints or outside at tables with candles.
This may be the place to splurge on local lobster.
For down-home Bahamian food at modest prices, you can’t beat Bahamian Kitchen
located next to Trinity Church in downtown Nassau. This is the place
to try fried red snapper, curried chicken, okra soup and peas and rice.
You can get take out here for a picnic.
- Looking for a fresh catch at Cable Beach!
If you’d rather have lunch with a view of Nassau’s famous harbor, try The Poop Deck,
a fixture here since 1972 just across the bridge from Atlantis and
Paradise Island. (There is a second location SandyPort on the beach with
ocean views just west of the Cable Beach
hotels. Here’s the place to eat fish or Bahamian lobster caught the
same day you are eating it. Try conch fritters, cracked conch and conch
chowder. But you can also get a grilled cheese sandwich, burger or
fried chicken here. This is also a great spot for dinner.
Pass the grouper fingers please.
EILEEN OGINTZ
Eileen Ogintz is a leading national travel expert, syndicated columnist of the weekly column Taking the Kids and the creator of TakingTheKids.com whose special sections including the latest 50-plus places to Light Up the Holidays and Fun in the Snow have become a go-to resource for families planning getaways.
She
is regularly quoted and featured as a family travel expert in
newspapers, magazines and websites across the country. Eileen is the
author of nine travel books, including the most recent The Kid’s Guide to New York City, and The Kid’s Guide to Orlando. Find Eileen on Google+
Follow @takingthekids