Photo: Stephen Clarke

Not much happens on the far side of the Island and we residents in the outer districts like it that way. However when word got out that chef Ron Hargrave of Deckers fame had taken over the popular Portofino restaurant news spread quickly from Bodden Town to Breakers to North Side to East End.

As a resident of Breakers I look for any excuse to avoid a trip west- even on our weekly date night when my wife and I continue a long tradition of seeking out and evaluating new restaurants. Not that I’m any kind of fine wine or food connoisseur. I am however a fair judge of cuisine – it’s either good or bad, simple as that.

My experience at Tukka was a delight. A luxuriate menu of Australian and native fare rivalled only by its seaside setting. Chef Ron’s dishes were luscious and certainly out of the ordinary. I started with conch and alligator fritters, then a cheesy topped portabella mushroom and this followed with a hefty helping of kangaroo sausage and mash. I felt like Dundee devouring the national symbol of Australia stuffed inside a beef casing.

What does it taste like? Well imagine beef-meets-venison without the fattiness of a typical European sausage, a salacious melange of flavours! This was coupled with outstanding service and a bottle of Australian Shiraz. My wife, who is never as exploratory as I when it comes to trying new exotic fare kept it simple with a generous helping of Caesars salad and Chef Ron’s award-winning jerk chicken. As a grand finale, we then shared the heavenly Tukka Brochettes, which come on a hanging skewer and is a mix of rib eye beef, free range chicken breast, Caribbean lobster medallions and king prawns.

I was delighted to see that after 12 years at Portofino, Miss B stayed on with Tukka. Her warm Caymanian smile would have been missed by myself and the annual flock of return tourists.
Portofino will be a hard act to follow, but when you fuse unusual, exquisite, delish food with a seaside atmosphere on the island side of the Island, it’s a recipe that can’t miss.

For reservations, call 9472700

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