Conch

The queen conch is a large sea snail that lives on the seagrass flats, and it is to the Bahamas what cod once was to Newfoundland. It is prepared several ways: conch salad, made in front of you by dicing the raw meat with onion, tomato, sweet pepper and a great deal of lime and sour orange, which cures it slightly; cracked conch, pounded flat, battered and fried; conch fritters, scorched and served with a pink dipping sauce; and conch chowder. The shells pile up in enormous middens beside the stands. Conch is also the country's conservation problem: stocks have declined sharply and the fishery is now widely considered to be in trouble.

What you actually see

• Conch salad - diced raw and cured with lime and sour orange in front of you.
• Cracked conch - pounded, battered and fried.
• The shell middens - piles of discarded pink shells beside the stands.
• Potter's Cay - the stands under the bridge in Nassau.

When to go

Year-round. Conch stands work through the day and into the evening, with Potter's Cay in Nassau busiest in the late afternoon. Fish fry nights on the family islands, usually Friday, are the best setting.

Honest expectations

Queen conch stocks are in serious decline across the Bahamas and scientists have warned the fishery could collapse; there is a real argument for eating it sparingly or not at all, and for avoiding immature conch, which is recognisable by a thin unflared lip. Conch salad is raw and stand hygiene varies, so pick busy ones. Exporting conch shells requires a permit under CITES.

Nearby

Potter's Cay in Nassau; Arawak Cay's fish fry is on West Bay Street.