Cuzz’s Fish Stand Barbados: 90+ Years of the Best Fish Cutters
Where there are long lines of people and black flies, you’re guaranteed to find excellent local seafood in the Caribbean…most of the time. I wasn’t so sure about Cuzz’s Fish Stand Barbados at first.
To be sure, my skepticism was much more rooted in a long-held aversion to Bajan cuisine that I had developed over the years than anything else. Remember my sour encounter with “sweet roti,” or the affront to my Trini sensibilities that is Chefette?
Yeah, Barbados had burned me before.
Cuzz’s, though, appeared legit when I happened upon it while exploring the touristy surrounds of Carlisle Bay.
The Waiting is The Hardest Part
You had your long line of hungry patrons patiently sweating out the wait under a hot October sun. A line so long, in fact, that it snarled the traffic attempting to enter the beach parking lot where Cuzz’s Shack famously operates.
Peppering the scene was a mess of black flies, the thickness of which only intensified the closer you got to Cuzz’s.
Also intensifying as the line to Cuzz’s shortened in front of me: my hunger. Savory smells spewed from the shack amidst the smoke forcing the most tumultuous of tummy rumblings.
Next door, though, a makeshift bar peddling in plebeian cocktails threatened to ruin things. The worst of mainstream rock music blared from an old, crackling boom box; veritable nails on the Cuzz’s chalkboard.
No matter.
The incredible fish cutters at Cuzz’s Fish Stand Barbados were well worth the effort.
(Editor’s note: For the full backstory on what exactly is a Barbados fish cutter sandwich, check out this post from our archives.)
Perfectly-seasoned, lightly fried, and served with lettuce between a pillow-soft salt bun, this fish cutter sandwich is simply incredible!
Some sauce theirs up with ketchup, pepper sauce, mayo, or other condiments. For me, though, Cuzz’s cutters are perfect just the way they are. Considering how long Cuzz’s Fish Stand Barbados has been serving them up, they ought to be.
Cuzz’s Fish Stand Barbados History
This amazing piece of Caribbean culinary history dates back to 1931. That’s when the original Cuzz’s opened for business. Cuzz Sr. built the humble business into a Barbadian institution over 67 years, often serving hundreds of cutters-a-day!
The party didn’t stop, though, when Cuzz Sr. passed away in 1998. Instead, his son, David (Cuzz Jr.) took up his father’s mantle, keeping the family tradition of producing Barbados’ very best cutters alive.
The location of Cuzz’s Fish Stand is a little different these days. David told me that it used to be on the opposite side of the parking lot. Everything else, though, is very much as incredibly the same as it’s been for nearly a century!
How to Visit Cuzz’s Fish Stand Barbados
To get to Cuzz’s, just head to Pebbles Beach at the far south end of Carlisle Bay. Cuzz sets up shop in the beach parking lot immediately south of the entrance to the Radisson Aquatica. If you go at lunchtime, the line snaking through the parking lot will be impossible to miss.
Oh, and as with many of the very best and most authentic Caribbean eateries, operating hours are somewhat fluid at Cuzz’s. David told me that he usually opens between 11AM and noon. Closing time tends to be when the sun goes down, around 5:30 or 6PM.
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