4 Best Restaurants in Belize City, Belize

One of the city’s best vegan/vegetarian restaurants holds court in an early-20th-century colonial waterfront building with great views of the harbor. Begin your day with a fruit bowl, accompanied by avocado toast or a spinach and cheddar quiche. Lunch and dinner might give way to an Open Face No Tuna—really curried chickpeas with a balsamic guava vinaigrette or a Buddha Bowl, homemade hummus with veggies and brown rice. The entire production comes courtesy of the relaxing, slightly trendy Harbour View Cottages across the street. Two notes: it’s a climb of several steps to get up to the second-floor restaurant; and shoes are left at the door if you dine inside, but not if you eat out on the wraparound veranda.

The large dining courtyard here is shaded by breadfruit, mango, and sapodilla trees—you’ll see the staff cutting down those fruits to put in your dish—and big turquoise umbrellas. The solid Belizean menu contains dishes with whimsical names like “Not your mamma’s waffles, unless she’s vegan,” which designates plantain waffles with scrambled tofu. Service is attentive: 501 doubles as a training facility for workers in the hospitality industry. The proceedings all take place on the ground floor of The Great House hotel, although it’s a separate business. (Belize’s international telephone code is 501, hence the name.)

Long a fixture near the Belize Zoo, Cheers has a good open-air restaurant that attracts local farmers and lots of zoo visitors. You won't go wrong with any of the local dishes, such as stew chicken with rice and beans, but it has good breakfasts and, for lunch, burgers, sandwiches, and daily specials. If you want to stay in the area longer, there are three simple cabins for rent on the property's 37 acres. Book ahead to get the lowest rates on lodging; walk-in rates are a little higher.

Often packed, Nerie's is the vox populi of dining in Belize City. The many traditional dishes on the menu include fry jacks for breakfast and cow-foot soup for lunch. Stew chicken with rice and beans and a soft drink is always an economical choice. There's another location on Douglas Jones Street.

You're in the heart of the Commercial District, so a taxi to and from is a must if you come here for dinner.