Whenever I visit a new country, one of the first things I do is a walking food tour. Why? Well … why not?! I get to see the city on foot and learn about the best restaurants/food spots to devour and avoid from a local perspective. So, when I visited Belize, I couldn’t wait to dig into their cuisine.
I chose Belize Food Tour, who offered a “Savor Belize Dinner Tour” for $72USD per person, visiting 8 local stops with 12 food tastings.
We met at 6:00 pm at the San Pedro Town Central Park (next to the Catholic Church and in front of the town clock) for our three-hour walking tour. Ironically, four other girls also from Miami were on the tour. Our guide Keiron greeted us wearing a bright orange shirt and a straw hat. I loved Keiron! He was fun, knowledgeable and easy-going.
ELVI’S KITCHEN
We started off walking through the town, discussing Belizean eating habits, traditions and history. Our first stop was at Elvi’s Kitchen, established in 1976 and known as one of the best restaurants on the island!
As soon as we entered the restaurant, they greeted us with “garrapos”, a Belizean drink made of sugar cane, lime juice and rum – very refreshing. Then we indulged in their most popular dish, the Mayan stew, which was fried ripe plantains, Mayan pan seared fish wrapped in banana leaves in a chipotle sauce with rice and beans.
The flavors exploded in my mouth and I devoured my meal.
2. LILY’S TREASURE CHEST
We then walked to Lily’s Treasure Chest where we tried fresh shrimp ceviche. This was right up my alley because it was spicy and I loved every bit of it. Adorned with peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, cilantro and carrots, this ceviche was one of the best I’ve ever had. We also had the island’s famous drink, “Panty Rippa” which man oh man, you better hold on to ya undies cuz that drink was super strong!
3. SAN PEDRANOS STORE
The next stop on our tour was the San Pedranos Store where we had las paletas fruit popsicles. This was the perfect stop because we got a chance to cool down our palates after that spicy shrimp ceviche. Here, we chose between mango, coconut, strawberry, piña colada, tamarind and lemon flavors. I went with mango because it’s my favorite fruit and it did not disappoint.
4. KIRY’S TAKEOUT
Our next stop was at Kiry’s Takeout for a quick bite. We had the rellena tostada, which at first I didn’t want to try because it had onions. I hate onions! But the owner made one for me without and I was so happy I didn’t miss out. Similar to a taco, it was crunchy and had lettuce, tomato, jalapenos, cheese and pork. Delish!
5. BRIANNA’S FOOD PLACE
After walking for about 10 minutes exploring the neighborhood, we made it to our 5th stop on the tour, Brianna’s Food Place. A very small, mom and pop shop that I probably would not have noticed on my own, offered us a few different traditional delicacies to try.
We ate garnaches, chicken salbutes, fish panadas and fry jacks and washed it all down with local Belizean beer, Belikini.
6. RUM, COFFEE AND CIGAR HOUSE
At this point, we were pretty much full but kept it moving because we had three more stops to go! So, we rolled out of Brianna’s, moving at a much slower pace and headed over to Rum, Coffee and Cigar House for rum cream shots where we tried coconut, coffee and chocolate flavors. My favorite was definitely the coconut! Mr. Saul, the owner loved us and even gave us extra shots … needless to say, we were loving this tour!
7. PUPUSERIA EL SALVADORENO
Stuffed and by this point feeling quite niiiiice from all the Belizean drinks, we walked over to Pupuseria El Salvadoreno, which was cuisine from El Salvador. Here, we had pupusas which are corn tortillas stuffed with either chicken, pork, lobster, shrimp, pumpkin, spinach or beans. I tried the chicken which was good but I wasn’t a fan of the tortilla.
8. CAPRICE BAR & GRILL
Our final stop for the night brought us to a beautiful restaurant called Caprice Bar and Grill, inside the San Pedro Holiday Hotel, overlooking the ocean. We indulged in caramel flan, a sweet and delicious dessert plus a final round of shots to end an incredible food tour!
If you’re ever in San Pedro, make sure to check out Belize Food Tours. I promise you won’t regret it. Not only will you get to learn about the city and its history, you’ll discover plenty of great spots to eat, recommended by a local. But most importantly, you’ll leave with a tummy full of yummy food and a nice buzz!
Walking Food Tour Details
Company: Belize Food Tour
Location: San Pedro, Belize
Price Range: $45-$100
“Eat like a local!”