This is the fourth installment in the Green Turtle Cay 101 series. Previous sections include: GTC 101: An Introduction, GTC 101: Getting Here and GTC 101: Staying Here.

Chicken wrap with fried plantain and coleslaw at the Lizard Bar & Grill

For an island its size, Green Turtle Cay offers a relatively wide range of dining options. They include:

McIntosh Restaurant and Bakery – Serving breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week, McIntosh is located on the right as you come down the hill into the settlement. Daily specials are posted outside and a full menu is also available. Denise McIntosh makes some of the best desserts on the cay — our favourites are her key lime pie and guava cheesecake. Friday night at McIntosh is Lobster Fest, with Bahamian lobster cooked more than a dozen different ways.

Two Shortys

Two Shortys – On the western end of Crown Street, which runs parallel to the settlement’s south shore, Two Shortys offers great Bahamian takeout food. They also have a few picnic tables if you’d prefer to eat in.

Sundowners Bar & Grill – Further west on Crown Street, Sundowners opens daily at 5pm and serves up a selection of pub-type food, along with the best sunset views in town.

Plymouth Rock Liquors and Cafe

Plymouth Rock – You have to get there early to get a seat in this tiny cafe, but it’s worth it. Breakfast and lunch are served daily except Sunday. Friday and Saturday nights, visitors and locals gather at Plymouth Rock for cocktails and conversation. The restaurant is near the freight dock at the western end of Parliament Street.

Dining on the beach at Harvey’s

Harvey’s Island Grill – Situated on the shore of Settlement Creek, Harvey’s serves lunch and dinner daily. Specials are posted on a board out front, with a surprisingly varied menu also available. Mondays are pizza and wing night and they occasionally offer Italian, steak and rib, and sushi nights. You can dine inside the air-conditioned restaurant or outside on the beach.

Papa Pete’s Bakery & Takeaway – Just a few steps from the main ferry dock in town, Papa Pete’s serves up traditional Bahamian breakfasts, as well as lunch and dinner most days and a variety of fresh-made baked goods.

Violet Smith, daughter of the legendary Miss Emily Miss Emily’s Restaurant

Miss Emily’s Blue Bee Bar – Though many Bahamian establishments have attempted to recreate the Goombay Smash cocktail, only its inventor, the late Emily Cooper and her family members know the real recipe. Since Miss Emily’s passing, her daughter, Violet, and granddaughter, Misty, operate her world-famous Blue Bee Bar, serving up authentic Goombay Smashes, along with pizza and other pub-type food. Miss Emily’s is located across from the basketball court in town.

Wrecking Tree – Just a few minutes’ walk east of the town ferry dock, the Wrecking Tree offers Bahamian fare for dining in or takeout. Their screened dining porch offers a terrific view of Settlement Creek.

Poolside at Pineapples

Pineapples Bar & Grill – One of the best spots from which to watch tropical sunsets, Pineapples offers casual dining beside a saltwater pool. On Friday nights, there’s live music. To get to Pineapples, turn north (left) at the Wrecking Tree and follow the signs.

Live music by the Island Boyz at the Lizard Bar and Grill

Just a few minutes north of the settlement is the Lizard Bar and Grill at the Leeward Yacht Club. Perched on a rise overlooking Black Sound, the Lizard is a lovely, breezy spot to enjoy a casual lunch or sunset dinner. There’s a great pool for swimming and lounging, and some evenings, they offer live music.

Further north, on White Sound, you’ll find the Green Turtle Club and, further along the west side of the sound, Bluff House.

Green Turtle Club Dining Porch

The Green Turtle Club offers a large, screened dining porch plus a slightly more formal indoor dining room. I’m especially partial to their tuna sashimi appetizer and their black and white tuna entrée. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are served seven days a week.

Also serving three meals daily is Bluff House’s Ballyhoo Bar & Grill, located on the White Sound side of the property. Over the hill, on the shore of the Sea of Abaco, is the Tranquil Turtle Beach Bar.

Tranquil Turtle Beach Bar at Bluff House (photo: http://www.bluffhouse.com)

A few notes about dining in Green Turtle Cay:

Some restaurants automatically add a 15% gratuity, others don’t. Even within the same restaurant, some servers add the tip while others don’t, so best to make a habit of checking the bill.

As of 2015, restaurant meals in the Bahamas are subject to a 12% Value Added Tax (VAT).

The dress code for most places on the cay is fairly casual, though the Green Turtle Club tends to be slightly more formal. At a minimum, most require shoes and some sort of cover up.

Most restaurants use either rain water or city water. Theoretically, both are safe to drink, though most locals don’t recommend drinking the city water and local wisdom says rain water can cause stomach upset if you’re not used to drinking it. Long story short, best to err on the side of caution and ask for bottled water.

The above descriptions reflect current restaurant operating hours and offerings. These are subject to change, depending on the season.

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