I’m not a huge fan of seafood but it doesn’t mean the food whipped up by the chefs and cooks in the Caribbean isn’t worth the trip. The Taste of the Carribean competition highlights the culinary inventiveness of the region’s best chefs and remind the rest of the world the Carribean isn’t just beaches and clear water.

The Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) provides a space for the best of the Caribbean culinary world to shine. A dozen teams participated in the Taste of the Caribbean culinary competition in Miami from June 22 to 26. The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bonaire, Cayman Islands, Curaçao, Jamaica, St. Lucia, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, and Turks and Caicos selected their best chefs and mixologists for this year’s event.  Jamall Small from the Bahamas was crowned Caribbean Chef of the Year while teammate Hazen Rolle was named Caribbean Junior Chef of the Year. The Turks and Caicos won the Caribbean Pastry Chef competition and the British Virgin Islands topped the Seafood competition. The team from Trinidad and Tobago won top honors in the finale of the 2018 Taste of the Caribbean culinary competition after also winning the Bartender, Best Non-Alcoholic Drink and Beef categories. The Best Rum Drink went to Bonaire and St. Lucia topped the vodka drink category.

“CHTA applauds this year’s Taste of the Caribbean participants, their national hotel and tourism associations, team managers and sponsors for another incredible demonstration of passion, purpose and performance,” said Frank Comito, Director General and CEO of CHTA. “These participants are the future of tourism and the teamwork and camaraderie on display augurs well for a united Caribbean.”

Courtesy: Margot Jordan

Check out the full list of winners; maybe you’ll be inspired to visit one of the teams on your next Caribbean trip!