Where the locals eat: 7 spots tourists never find

Prices in this guide are the writer's notes from when it was written. Baha Buddy has not checked them with the businesses named, and they may have changed. Confirm current prices directly before you go.

Every Bahamas restaurant guide lists the same dozen places. They're not bad. They're just not where Bahamians actually eat on a Tuesday night.

This is a deliberately incomplete list. Some of the best spots get a sentence; some get a paragraph. You'll have to do some of the work yourself — and that's the whole point.

Nassau: Goldie's at Arawak Cay

Fish Fry at Arawak Cay has fifteen stalls. Goldie's is the one with the line. Order the snapper, fried, with peas-and-rice, plantains, and macaroni. Get a Kalik. Stand. Eat. It costs $18.

Go on a Friday or Saturday night when the live band is playing. The vibe is what makes it; the food just confirms it.

Nassau: Tay Hong on East Street

Tiny Chinese-Bahamian restaurant a few blocks south of downtown. Nobody who isn't local knows it. The kitchen does Chinese classics with Bahamian seafood — stir-fried conch, fried fish with garlic black bean sauce, the lunch special soup. $12 lunch, takeaway only.

Eleuthera: 1648 Bar & Grille

Governor's Harbour. Local-owned, sunset views off the back deck, the bartender knows everyone. The lobster (when it's in season) is split, grilled with butter and Old Sour, and worth the trip. Off-season the cracked conch is the move.

Harbour Island: Sip Sip

Open lunch only. Pink building on the bluff above Pink Sands Beach. The lobster quesadilla is the famous order, but the conch chowder is better. Show up at 12:00 sharp or the wait is an hour.

Exuma: Santanna's Bar & Grille

Little Exuma, on the road to Tropic of Cancer Beach. Open-air, sand floor, run by a family. The grouper fingers are the best in the country. Cash only. Closed Sunday.

Bimini: Joe's Conch Shack

Right on the beach in Alice Town. Conch salad made in front of you with onion, tomato, pepper, lime, orange juice, and the conch he scrubbed and trimmed thirty seconds before you walked up. $12. Bring a beer; they don't sell alcohol.

Andros: The Big Yard

Outside Behring Point. No sign, no menu, no website. You ask around in Behring Point for the Big Yard and someone walks you over. The owner cooks one fish a night, whatever was good that morning. About $20 with two sides. Don't ask for substitutions.

Buddy's tip

The best test of a Bahamian restaurant is whether the menu changes day to day. If it's the same menu every visit, the kitchen isn't sourcing the catch — they're using freezers. The places where the menu shifts with the boats are the ones to trust.