Top 6 places to get a quick lunch in Barbados for under $20

Cuz:

A small wooden shack in the parking lot of the Barbados Cruising Club is home to Cuz, purveyor of the finest fish cutters (sandwiches) in Barbados. They’re made to order, with your choice of cheese or egg toppings. And it’s real fish, not some machine-pureed and assembled fish facsimile.

Cuz defines informal. The ‘dining area’ is a wooden bench on which you will find office workers sitting next to surfers and construction workers.

The location is sublime - 50 feet from Pebbles’ Beach, a popular spot for swimmers, paddle-boarders and beginner surfers.

For $6 - $8 US for a fish cutter and a drink, you can’t go wrong at Cuz.

Ackee Tree:

Owned and operated by Gina (de Cook) and Martyn (de Proprietor) Field, The Ackee Tree is a great place to get a roti for lunch. Their menu features many Caribbean dishes, but they’re famous for their ‘one-pound rotis’

The flavours are sublime without overwhelming, and you won’t find friendlier staff or owners anywhere. There is an air-conditioned dining area, but you’ll find a few patrons on the balcony of the restored mid-century coral-stone residence, checking out the scenery of the busy South Coast of Barbados.

$8 - $13 US will get you a truly tasty and filling roti and a drink.

Chefette:

Loosely modeled on North American fast-food chains, Chefette is really “medium-speed food”.

Founded and operated by the Haloute family, Chefette has 14 branches across Barbados.

The menu is varied, from pizza slices to rotis and burgers, and you can get a meal with drink starting around $8 - $9 US.

Dirty Harry:

Owned and operated by a retired Policeman, Dirty Harry (and his mobile BBQ emporium, The B52 Bomber) offers one of the tastiest burgers you will find anywhere.

Harry can be found Monday to Friday parked opposite the Porsche / Mercedes showroom in Warrens area of Barbados, but he’s also to be found at any motorsports event in Barbados, such as Rally Barbados.

A “Danny Burger” with cheese and cole slaw toppings, with fries or wedges and a drink, is around $8 - $9US.

Black Bess canteen:

Owned and operated by Wayne Headley, the Black Bess canteen is on the grounds of a construction company and rock quarry business, so is a bit of a local secret, although Bajans are quite happy to share this local gem with visitors.

It’s a lunch-only concern, and around mid-day you will be rubbing shoulders with salesmen, boat mechanics, truck drivers and sometimes even Chinese engineers.

With a commanding view of the West Coast of Barbados, you can watch sailboats leaving from and returning to the Port St Charles Marina, and watch the occasional summer rainstorm come onshore.

$8 - $9 US will get you a full plate of (fresh) fried or grilled fish, baked or fried pork chops, chicken and rice or chow mein and a small side of salad and a drink.

Wayne also makes his own hot sauce and chopped pepper condiments. Listen to him when he tells you “this one is hot, be careful”.  

Brighton Farmers’ Market:

For early risers only!

Open from 6-9AM on Saturdays, Brighton Farmers’ Market is a good place to stock up on vegetables and to get a coffee and some breakfast pies or home-cured ham and bacon sandwiches.

Run by Mike and Alison Pile, the Farmers Market gets it’s vegetables from the Brighton Plantation, also run by the Piles.

There are various venders to be found in addition to the vegetables and gourmet coffee stand. You can have some turkey souse (a Bajan Saturday lunch tradition, often made with pork instead of turkey), home-cured bacon sandwiches, watermelon gelato and much more.