GRAND CAYMAN DINING

Grand Cayman is filled with restaurants of every description, from fast food joints to fine dining. Check your bill before paying as some restaurants automatically add a 15 percent gratuity to the total.

Casa Havana Restaurant
Westin Casuarina
345-945-3800
Dress code: casually elegant
Reservations: suggested
$$$
The Casa Havana is the signature restaurant of the Westin, complete with white glove service and a romantic atmosphere. Reservations are suggested for this restaurant. Look for favorite menu items like glazed swordfish, roast pork tenderloin, and filet mignon.

Grand Old House
South Church St.
George Town
345-949-9333
Dress Code: dressy
Reservations: required
$$$
The Grand Old House is one of Grand Cayman's most lauded restaurants, and with good reason. We dined here one evening as a wedding reception took place under a huge tent set up on the grounds. The Grand Old House is indeed both grand and old, dating back to 1908 when it was built by a merchant and lawyer from Boston. Once surrounded by a coconut plantation, the house was used for entertaining and lavish parties in its early days; later the structure became a hospital for soldiers wounded in World War II and a storm shelter during hurricanes.

Today the home showcases the work of Chef Kandathil Mathai who has cooked for Prince Charles, Princess Diana, Margaret Thatcher, Princess Anne and the Reagan family. The menu includes entrees such as tenderloin of black Angus beef, New Zealand baby rack of lamp, pork Zurichoise with mushrooms, charonnay cream sauce and roasti potatoes, baked filet of dolphin, potato crust tuna, Caribbean broiled lobster tail and more. Specialties of the house include lobster tail sautéed with shallots, mushrooms, fresh tomatoes and Beurre Blanc, baked shrimp "Grand Old House" baked with fresh local herbs, white wine, and sauce Hollandaise, turtle steak Cayman style, pan-fried crispy duck breast flamed in Cointreau accompanied with a gateau of sweet potato, and wiener schitzel with spatzle and red cabbage. The dishes are accompanied by an extensive wine list.

The restaurant is open for lunch Monday through Friday from 11:45 to 2 and dinner Monday through Saturday from 6 to 10. Reservations are required.

Lantanas
West Bay Rd.
345-945-5595
Dress code: casually elegant
Reservations: suggested
$$
This elegant restaurant has an excellent menu featuring spicy Cuban black bean soup, jerk pork tenderloin, grilled yellow fin tuna with cilantro linguine, and more, followed by tropical coconut cream pie with white chocolate shavings and mango sauce or frozen Cayman lime pie with raspberry sauce and whipped cream. Need we say more?

Lighthouse at Breakers
345-947-2047
Dress code: casual
Reservations: optional
$$

On the south shore about 25 minutes from George Town, this picturesque restaurant offers good seafood and Italian cuisine and an even better view. We dined on the open air back deck, a romantic spot for dinner or lunch.

Lobster Pot
George Town
345-949-2736
Dress Code: casually elegant
Reservations: recommended
$$$

Save this restaurant for your most special night out on Grand Cayman, thanks to an excellent view, an attentive staff, a good wine list, and a romantic atmosphere. We enjoyed a romantic dinner of, what else, Caribbean lobster tail at this casually elegant restaurant overlooking the sea. Other popular dishes include cracked conch, island seafood curry with shrimp, fish, scallops, and lobster, Cayman turtle steak, and steak. Call for reservations.

Lone Star Bar
West Bay Rd.
Seven Mile Beach
345-945-5175
Dress code: casual
Reservations: no
$
This ba was named one of the "World's Top 100 Bars" by Newsweek magazine. The atmosphere is rollicking and fun, a mix of both locals and vacationers who come to enjoy a drink and some conversation in this T-shirt decorated bar. The restaurant specializes in Tex-Mex food. Monday and Thursday are all you can eat fajita nights; on Thursday lobster is the specialty of the house. Wednesday brings in steak lovers, Friday is a favorite with Prime Rib buffs and Saturday is barbecue night.

Rum Point Restaurant
Rum Point
345-947-9412
Dress code: casually elegant
Reservations: optional
$$-$$$
Open for dinner only, this eatery features island favorites like shrimp, lobster, and conch as well as pasta dishes, prime rib, and chicken

The Wharf
West Bay Rd.
345-949-2231
http://wharf.ky
Dress code: casually elegant
Reservations: suggested
$$$
Just past George Town at the start of the beach, The Wharf is a favorite with couples. This seaside restaurant and bar is open for lunch on weekdays and dinner nightly with a menu featuring continental and Caribbean cuisine, but the Wharf is best experienced as a sunset spot. Located right on the water's edge, the open-air bar offers an uninterrupted view of the setting sun. A school of huge tarpon linger below the deck, waiting for scheduled handouts, and live music is offered most evenings.