TORONTO — The Cayman Islands Department of Tourism debuted its brand new Culinary Guide with an intimate cooking and mixology demonstration at the LCBO Summerhill this week in Toronto.

In celebration of the launch, Cayman culinary all-stars Chef Massimo De Francesa of Kimpton Seafire Resort + Spa, and James Beard Award-winning Master Mixologist Charles Joly prepared a menu of Caymanian dishes and cocktails representing the destination’s world-class epicurean offerings.

“Foodies flock to the Cayman Islands and we wanted to give visitors a resource to help navigate the Culinary Capital of the Caribbean with ease,” said Oneisha Richards, Deputy Director International Marketing & Promotions for the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism.

“Canadian travel to the Cayman Islands continues to increase steadily and we hope that the Cayman Culinary Guide will help visitors discover the plethora of offerings and help create an even better vacation experience.”

The Cayman Culinary Guide was developed to give travellers insight into how to best explore and experience the tiny trio of islands offering over 200 restaurants and myriad gourmet delicacies.

Visitors can use the guide to learn about native ingredients and cuisine, local food events such as Restaurant Month and Cocktail Week, top restaurant picks from notable Canadian chefs, recommended epicurean attractions, recipes, not to be missed restaurants and farmers’ markets.

The event kicked off with a ‘Caymankind’ welcome to invited guests and an introduction to the Cayman Culinary Guide.

Chef Massimo De Francesa and Charles Joly then hosted an interactive program in which they prepared modern Caymanian dishes and cocktails including traditional ingredients.

The menu included a ‘Seven Mile’ smoked ahi crudo with citrus and Cayman sea salt, Caribbean snapper filet with star fruit relish and guava glaze. Dessert was vegan coconut panna cotta with toasted white chocolate and mango gel. Cocktails included Cayman twists on the classic daiquiri and old fashioned with Caribbean flavours such as grapefruit and papaya.

For more information about the Cayman Islands see visitcaymanislands.ca.