The Best Restaurants in Anguilla

Meads Bay

Blanchards is the most celebrated restaurant on the island and has been for decades. Run by husband-and-wife team Bob and Melinda Blanchard, it sits at the far end of Meads Bay with an open-air setting that makes the most of the sea breeze. The menu leans Caribbean with strong American influence — think perfectly executed fish, creative sauces, and a wine list that takes the food seriously.

This is the restaurant most guests put on their list before they even arrive. Reservations are essential and should be made as early as possible in high season. The dress code is smart casual. If you go once, it will likely be more than once before your trip ends.

Meads Bay

Jacala sits right on the sand at Meads Bay and is one of those rare restaurants where the setting and the food are equally good. The menu is French-inspired with a strong Caribbean influence and centres on whatever is freshest that day. The grilled fish, lobster, and ceviche are consistently outstanding.

The atmosphere is relaxed but the cooking is serious. Tables are close to the water and the lighting in the evening is exactly what a beach dinner should be. Jacala is a favourite among returning visitors who have already worked through the obvious options and know what they want.

Meads Bay

Straw Hat occupies a relaxed spot on Meads Bay and does something that sounds simple but is surprisingly rare: it serves excellent food in a completely unpretentious setting. The menu moves between salads, fresh fish, burgers, and pasta, and everything is well executed. The frozen cocktails are genuinely good.

This is where you go when you want a proper meal without the formality of a reservation-only dinner. It works for lunch, early evening drinks, and dinner equally well. Families, couples, and groups all feel comfortable here.

Sandy Ground

Veya is different from everything else on this list. Chef Carrie Bogar runs one of the most creative kitchens on the island out of a small, intimate space near Sandy Ground. The menu changes with what is available locally and what she feels like cooking — which sounds vague but in practice means every dish is deliberate and interesting.

This is not a safe, crowd-pleasing menu. It is the kind of cooking that has a point of view. Guests who appreciate food tend to love it. It is also one of the most romantic settings on the island — small, candlelit, and genuinely personal.

The Valley

KoalKeel is set inside a restored 18th-century plantation greathouse in The Valley and has an atmosphere unlike anything else on the island. The building itself — stone walls, wooden beams, courtyard dining — does most of the work before the food even arrives. The menu is Caribbean with European touches and the rum cellar in the historic sugar mill is worth seeing on its own.

This is the restaurant for a special occasion dinner or for guests who want to experience something that feels distinctly Anguillan rather than generically Caribbean. The history of the place is visible in every corner.

South Hill

Every island has a place where locals eat and Tasty's is that place in Anguilla. It is casual, cheerful, and serves some of the best breakfast on the island. Salt fish, johnnycakes, eggs, and fresh juice in the morning. Rotis, stewed fish, and rice and peas for lunch. The prices are a fraction of what you pay at resort restaurants and the food is better.

If you want to understand what Anguillans actually eat rather than what is served to tourists, Tasty's is where you start. It is also genuinely good. This is not a novelty stop — it is a meal.

Sandy Ground

Dolce Vita sits on the Sandy Ground waterfront and is exactly what it sounds like: an Italian restaurant on a Caribbean beach, done well. The pasta is made properly, the pizza is worth ordering, and the setting with boats in the bay and the salt pond behind you is genuinely beautiful.

Sandy Ground has a local, lived-in atmosphere that the resort beaches do not, and Dolce Vita captures that energy without trying too hard. This is one of the most relaxed evenings you can have in Anguilla — good food, good wine, boats on the water, and no pressure to be anywhere.

West End

Picante is a Mexican restaurant near the West End that has a loyal following among both residents and repeat visitors. It is the least formal restaurant on this list and is better for it. The margaritas are strong, the portions are generous, and everything on the menu is made to order from scratch.

This is where you go when you have had two or three resort dinners in a row and want something different. It is loud, fun, and completely relaxed. The owner runs the place with real personality and it shows in how the evening feels.