North Caicos & Middle Caicos Restaurants & Dining
Our islands of North Caicos and Middle Caicos, due to both their agriculture and fishing heritages, offer some of the best authentic Turks and Caicos food available. Due to their limited population, there’s not a wide selection of restaurants, especially when compared to Providenciales, yet regardless of this fact, some excellent local dishes can be had.
Authentic Island Cuisine
The Turks and Caicos has had an interesting culinary past, and our dishes today reflect the bygone industries and hardships of the islands.
To eke out an existence on small and dry tropical islands wasn’t easy, and fishing, farming, and imports had to be assembled to put meals on the table.
One of the favorite dishes of the past and today is pan-poached fish, peas and rice, and a side of greens salad. Local corn and maize would be ground for grits and rice (before the commonality of international trade allowed for rice imports) or cornbread journey cakes (known locally as johnny cake).
Like so many other cases throughout the world, dishes that formed through necessity have developed and become appreciated in their own right.
Fresh Seafood and Vegetables
As the Garden Islands of the Turks and Caicos, North Caicos and Middle Caicos serve some of the freshest food available in the country. The seafood is freshly-caught and typically served the same day, and vegetables, fruits, and greens are raised on local farm patches or at the Government Farm.
When the fishing seasons are open, there’s a wide selection of seafood to choose from, including Nassau grouper, red snapper, mutton snapper, pot snapper, yellowtail, spiny lobster, and of course conch.
On land, tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, squash, beans and maize are the vegetables raised, and papayas, key limes, sugar apples, and bananas sweeten the menu.
Reservations and Dining on Sunday
North and Middle Caicos tend to see quite a few day trip visitors, so most restaurants are open for lunch Monday through Saturday.
Overnight guests may find the dining options to be a bit more limited. We advise making reservations for such times.