Whenever traveling, I make a point not to eat food from any chain restaurant or eatery. During a recent trip to Bimini, which is the closest Bahamian island to the United States, I did not have that problem. Due to the fact that there are not any chain food places on the island, I was not left with much of a choice. The closest thing to anything that resembled a chain was Amicci’s, the coffee shop, which served a limited Starbucks menu. Staying at the Hilton Resorts World Bimini, which is one of the only two resorts on the island, turned out to be an excellent choice for a foodie like myself. Overall the resort has six restaurants on property as well as being located relatively close to some of the islands most popular off resort food spots.
I’m sure that most people enjoy the luxury of sleeping in on vacation and I am no different. With that being said, lunch not breakfast is the more often than not, my first meal of the day. The lunch options at the Bimini resort were not only acceptable but affordable. As with most resorts, guest are charged an additional service fee of 18% when dining at any of the resorts restaurants. Even with that fee, the lunch menu is still reasonably priced and guests have an opportunity to get the best bang for the buck.
The Salad – Heirloom Tomato & Caesar
Photo: Tomeka Allgood
This salad kicked off a long line of first time food experiences on this trip. I had never tried burrata cheese, basil pesto or balsamic caramel dressing on any salad ever that I can recall. The salad can be described as an elevated Caesar. It did not come with meat and for once in my meat loving life, I did not miss it. The good thing about the simplicity of this salad is that it can be recreated at home by nearly anyone.
The Burger – Signature Beef & Pastrami
Photo: Tomeka Allgood
Oddly, this was the only burger listed on the limited lunch menu at the lobby restaurant. After ordering it, all doubts were erased as to why it was the only burger on the menu. The clue should have come from the menu itself which said “This Thing is a Monster”. When it was placed on the table the first thought in my head was how in the world can one eat this thing? It was served on an open faced sesame bun, piled high with Swiss and cheddar cheese, grilled onions, heirloom tomatoes, applewood smoked bacon, bibb lettuce and crispy fried onions. The burger was not only satisfying, it lived up to its name in every way because it was indeed a monster.
The Small Plate – Chef’s Loaded Jerk Chicken Fries
Photo: Tomeka Allgood
There are no words to describe the foodgasm that came after eating one bite of this dish. Perhaps even more amazing was that this dish was listed as a side item on the menu. If it were not for the server who recommended it, I would have never tried it. He assured me that it was large enough to eat as a meal or to share with the table. To give you some idea of how good this dish was, the group that was with me ended up sharing two rounds one day, ordering one to go the same day and then the following day ordered their own individually. Yes, it is that good. Another first time experience for me too since I never had the combination of diced jerk chicken with pepper jack cheese and pablano crema on anything before. To combine them and put them over one of the world’s all-time favorite foods “fries” was genius.
I’ve been looking forward to visiting for years. Now I finally have a reason 🙂