This post was originally published on March 16, 2015.
After a weeklong vacation to the Cayman Islands, I am back in Colorado and ready to share bits of my adventures through the Bloody Marys I drank, along with a great recipe I created (this will probably be unleashed in a few days- hold tight!). Today, I am going to review Macabuca’s Bloody Mary. Macabuca is tiki bar located right on the ocean with 270 degree views of the water in West Bay on the island of Grand Cayman. On my lucky day, aka my Friday the 13th birthday, I went to Macabuca with my family to enjoy a quick lunch and some cocktails overlooking the gorgeous aqua waters and captivating rock structures. Not only does Macabuca have a great atmosphere and a true island vibe to it, but it is also one of the best shore diving and snorkeling locations on Grand Cayman. I, unfortunately, did not dive or snorkel there because I got to spend an eerie afternoon later that day snorkeling at Cemetery Beach (one of Grand Cayman’s best snorkel spots located directly in line with a beachside cemetery that is deep in white hues and silk flowers) where I literally became a part of a school of fish.That’s what being a Pisces is all about!
Macabuca is located next to the Cracked Conch, which is a fine dining restaurant specializing in delicious Caribbean dishes focusing on local seafood and intricate flavors. We dined here a few days prior and had a wonderful time, so we wanted to come back to the area. Anyways, I of course ordered a birthday Bloody at Macabuca to cool myself down while under the hot island sun. We shared the conch ceviche appetizer (conch is AWESOME!) and I had the jerk chicken panini for my entree. All in all, although Macabuca’s Bloody Mary was nothing out of the ordinary, I highly recommend stopping by to enjoy one because the views are unreal and the vibes are incomparable to any other place!
AT A GLANCE 15/20
When Macabuca’s Bloody Mary arrived at our oceanside table, it looked pretty simple and was garnished with solely a lime and salt on the rim. It looked enticing, though, as it was a hot, humid day on the island. It was served in a plastic cup, which I am guessing is due to safety concerns of broken glass landing in the ocean. Therefore, I can’t dock points for safety reasons, even though I like my drinks in an actual glass. The red of the Bloody Mary was a nice, bright hue and had a clean appearance.
GARNISH 13/20
The garnish was quite simplistic, as mentioned before. I am not sure if the Cayman Islands have seen our crazy garnishes here in the U.S. (or other crazy garnishes in Canada, the UK, and all of the other Bloody Mary lovin’ countries!), but a lime is… just a lime. No bacon? No olives? Not even a damn pickle? I guess it was an attractive garnish for a lime……
SPICE 17/20
I ordered my Bloody Mary spicy and it ended up being a little less spicy than I thought, but it was still tasty. The cocktail had a nice flavor, although I couldn’t see many spices floating around, which left a small number of sips tasting similar to plain ol’ tomato juice. There was a kick at the end of each sip. It definitely wasn’t the most complex in spice terms, but I would still say it was damn good!
TEXTURE AND ACIDITY 19/20
Macabuca’s Bloody Mary had a wonderful texture- the happy medium between thick and diluted. It was not very acidic and served its purpose of cooling me down and getting me (a little) drunk. There was a little burn after some of the sips I took, but I didn’t get the true heartburn feeling when the drink is way too acidic.
UNIQUENESS 17/20
I would say this Bloody Mary is a typical bar Bloody, but I gotta give creativity points for the atmosphere while drinking the Bloody. The garnish was nothing special nor the spices, but it tasted good, refreshing, and had a desirable amount of alcohol in it. You really can’t find a better place to have a Bloody Mary than RIGHT over the ocean among the fish in the sea.
FINAL SCORE 81/100
Check Macabuca out here. Macabuca is located at:
857 North West Point Road, West Bay, Grand Cayman