11 Best Restaurants in Grand Bahama Island, Bahamas

Directly on Fortune Beach, Banana Bay is a great place for lunch or daytime cocktails, whether you sit on the restaurant's shaded deck or on a lounger in the sand. In addition to daily fresh fish specials, the kitchen serves up homemade warm loaves of banana bread along with salads, sandwiches, wraps, and seafood appetizers like conch fritters and crab cakes. On windy days, you will have a front-row seat to kite surfers in action. A few times a week, cruise ships drop off tourists en masse, so you can expect service to get a little slow—but that just gives you more time to enjoy your Bahama Mama. As the tide rolls out, the beach grows, creating a wonderful shallow lagoon and sandbar, perfect for wading and for frolicking kids. 

Located in the Port Lucaya Marketplace along the water, Big Daddy Brown's offers fresh conch salad and authentic Bahamian staples. Watch this family team put on a show as they prepare the salad right in front of you; they also serve conch fritters, fried fish, and fried lobster in this little, brightly painted shack. Grab a cold Sands beer at any of the open-air bars surrounding the stand and enjoy sipping and munching while people-watching in Market Square.

This cozy little café offers strong gourmet coffees, delicious pastries, and creative and delicious chocolates, handcrafted in-store. It's also a great spot to cool off with handmade ice-cream treats. Try inventive flavors, such as black tea and ginger, goat pepper and balsamic caramel, or Bahamian sea salt and hibiscus caramel—a unique taste of The Bahamas to take home. Large windows allow you to peek into the kitchen to watch the chocolates being made.

At this cozy, toes-in-the-sand bar, the bartender treats you like an old friend. Party photos adorn the walls along with velvet paintings of Elvis. Menu favorites include fish-and-chips, conch burgers and fries, Greek salads, and Philly cheesesteaks, among other Bahamian and American comfort foods. It's the place to be for Sunday football games (especially Miami Dolphins fans).

For the most authentic Bahamian food, head to Smith's Point for the famous weekly fish fry. Every Wednesday night, this little settlement by Taino Beach comes to life when the open-air beach shacks along the street serve fried fish (with the head and tail still on), cracked conch (pounded and fried), lobster tail, fried grouper, and barbecue chicken down-home style. Outriggers Beach Club is the generational property of an old island family, and the most popular, but you'll often find long lines. Try any of the other stands, including Da Bus Stop, Gully Wash Beach Bar, Snapper Shoal, and Penny's Fish Fry for similar menus. Restaurants start serving around 6 pm. Come early for the food; stay late for the party. Occasional beach bonfires add to the fun and festive atmosphere.

For a taste of the local beach scene, follow the music to this weathered, thatch-roof shack at Taino Beach and get your fill of mouthwatering roast conch, the specialty of the "house." Operated by local personality Anthony "Tony Macaroni" Hanna, the popular eatery also sells conch salad, roast lobster and shrimp, and Gully Wash cocktails (fresh coconut water, sweetened condensed milk, a healthy dose of gin, and a sprinkle of nutmeg) for noshing alfresco on a stilted deck overlooking pristine sands and sea.

Enjoy a great cup of coffee or specialty boba tea any time of day or night at this quaint café immediately adjacent to Zorba's Greek Restaurant. Try fresh-baked croissants, chocolate eclairs, and tiramisu, as well as a variety of other sweet and savory treats. An homage to the owner's Greek roots, they serve specialties like baklava and a selection of Greek coffees. There's a small bar behind the pastry counter. Cocktails are available all day.

Besides Greek favorites, this longtime Port Lucaya restaurant serves popular Bahamian dishes. Join the port's yacht-in clientele, shoppers, and locals for breakfast, lunch, or dinner on the white-and-blue-trimmed sidewalk porch. Specialties include gyros, moussaka, Greek salad, pizza, conch fritters, fried snapper, and roasted leg of lamb. Dishes are reasonably priced, and the service is consistently friendly and efficient.

A longtime favorite of locals and visitors who venture out to Lucayan National Park (about 6 miles away) and into the East End's settlements, Bishop's serves all the fried Bahamian favorites with a view of the sea. The beach bar itself doesn't sell food, so you'll have to make the short walk across the parking lot to order in the restaurant and they will bring it out to you. Conch fritters, cracked conch, fish fingers, burgers, and crab salad are a few of the menu choices, but the food isn't what makes this place special. Bishop himself mans this kick-back beach bar along with his dog, and plays great music that adds to the ambience. Come for a cold drink and stay for the beach.

Offering the healthiest food option on the island, this little shop (located in a shabby strip mall) doesn't look like much, but the quality of the food tells a different story. Livity blends up fresh fruit and vegetable juices and smoothies with names like Flu Shot, Pressure Reliever, and Incredible Hulk. Lunch includes daily specials such as chickpea stew, sautéed green beans, and mushrooms served on quinoa or wild rice, in addition to barbecued tofu and Rasta pasta. Fruit and vegetable salads, veggie fritters, soups, veggie burgers, and salmon burgers are staples on the menu.

This Mexican-themed party place fills with cruise-ship passengers in port for the day and sends them back to the boat happy, fed, and full of rum drinks. The location at the Freeport Harbour is open-air and full of life, complete with a dance stage, large flat-screen TVs, a wraparound bar, and seating for more than 100 people. The music is loud, the crowd is lively, especially around spring break months, and the Mexican menu has fun Bahamian and tropical twists. Watch out for waiters who run around blowing whistles and pouring tequila down your throat, and if your party endurance is ready for a challenge, try your luck at a musical chairs game that includes two shots with every circle.