Last updated on April 25th, 2018 at 12:56 am
One of the main reasons Luke and I travel is for the food. It is our obsession; we love to make it, eat it, and try new things. Before traveling to Placencia (read more about my trip here), I heard the food was amazing and I was not disappointed!
The food is simple. Everything we ate seemed to be something grown or made there. Things in the grocery store said “Made in Belize.” The locals sold fruits and vegetables they harvested on the street. Restaurants served mainly seafood and almost every alcoholic drink contained Belizean coconut rum. Coming from a country where I never feel like I know where my food comes from or what is in it, this was astonishing to me.
The restaurants in Placencia Village were all great and I was disappointed we weren’t able to try them all. Since it was off season, several of the restaurants were closed or closing very soon after we left. Tipsy Tunas, Tutti Fruiti (gelato – this was truly heartbreaking to me, they closed a day before we got there), and Tranquilo were all closed.
Many of the menus we saw advertised conch dishes, which Luke and I really wanted to try. Unfortunately, conch season is generally October through June, so plan accordingly. Mid-June through February is Lobster season.
If you are ever in Placencia Village, check out these places!
Barefoot Beach Bar:
Amazing! Perfect beach bar, complete with multicolored wooden chairs and live music several nights of the week. Huge food and drink menu, with daily specials. My favorite dish was the salbutes, a Belizean dish, kind of like a tostada, but better. The crazy coconut (coconut water and coconut rum) was a nice refreshing drink and the margaritas were also great.
Above Grounds Coffee House:
I gotta have my coffee, even on vacation. This place was great! The menu was fairly diverse, the normal variations of coffee and espresso, plus fresh pressed juices. They also had Honduran donuts and some yummy carrot bread. Oh, and it’s in a tree house.
De’tach Seafood Restaurant:
This was the only other restaurant that we ate at that was right on the beach, giving us a little relief from the humidity (Cozy Corner is also on the beach, but we didn’t try it). The food is great! I got a huge lobster tail here for 22 US dollars. We also tried the deep fried shrimp, shrimp stir fry, and shrimp fried rice (not all in one night, I swear.). Dinner came with a side of coconut rice or mashed potatoes (coconut rice is the way to go), watermelon, and a side salad. The breakfast burrito and the stuffed fry jack made a yummy breakfast as well. Everything was great. However, we did hear that they were closing the week after we left (late August) for the off season.
Rum Fish y Vino:
I was excited to try this restaurant and though it was very good, it definitely did not make my top five. It was a little more expensive than the other restaurants and it seemed less authentic. I got shrimp linguine and Luke got creole style snapper. We also tried the lobster ceviche which was very big so I didn’t finish my meal.
Wendy’s Creole Restaurant and Bar:
Also very good! We ordered shakes with dinner, to mix it up, and they were good. For dinner, I ordered the special, which was Caribbean Jerk Shrimp (super good). Luke got more snapper, which was good. Both came with coconut rice.
Dawn’s Grill:
Dawn’s Grill was probably my favorite restaurant in Placencia Village (between that and De’tach). Here we got a deep fried shrimp appetizer, deep fried lion fish, and creole snapper. The lion fish was amazing, white and flakey. Dinner was served with coconut rice and a side salad. We also got a Mayan Chocolate mousse. Mmm.
Brewed Awakenings:
More coffee, blended drinks, and seaweed shakes! Not as cute as Above Grounds, but I still recommend it because of the variety of choices! And did I mention seaweed shakes? (You don’t taste it).
The Shak:
Breakfast and lunch place with an even larger selection of shakes (with and without seaweed) near the pier. They do not take cards. We both got Huevos Rancheros the first time, which was great. The last day we came back and ordered some fry jack with jam to go. SO GOOD.
What did you think of the food in Belize? What was the best thing you ate?
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