There are places where dinner becomes connected to the setting around it. At The Wharf, that setting has always been the Caribbean Sea.
Since opening in 1988, The Wharf has occupied its waterfront position at the beginning of Seven Mile Beach, welcoming guests for evenings shaped by sunset views, seafood, wine and the sound of the water beside the deck. Grand Cayman has changed considerably during that time, as has its dining scene, but some parts of an evening at The Wharf remain instantly recognisable.
The restaurant's story stretches across different owners, generations of guests and decades of Cayman hospitality. It is also closely connected today with the Grand Old House, whose own history reaches even further back.
The Wharf was opened in 1988 by restaurateur Clemens Guettler, at a time when tourism and hospitality in Grand Cayman were growing quickly.
Seven Mile Beach was already attracting international visitors; new resorts were opening, and Cayman was becoming known to a much wider travelling audience. Against that backdrop, The Wharf began its life as a waterfront Cayman Islands restaurant where the location itself was part of dinner.
The western-facing waterfront made the sunset a natural feature of the evening. Dining took place beside the Caribbean Sea, and over the years the restaurant became known not only for its menu, but for celebrations, dinners and events held at the water's edge.
The view never needed much introduction. Guests arriving today are looking across the same Caribbean horizon that diners came to enjoy decades ago.
The number and variety of restaurants in Cayman have grown enormously since the late 1980s. The Wharf grew with that dining culture rather than standing apart from it.
Its waterfront deck became a setting for more than dinner. Weddings, anniversaries, family occasions, private gatherings, and corporate events became part of the restaurant's story. Inside the kitchen, international culinary influences met Cayman ingredients and Caribbean flavours, while wine developed into another important part of the dining experience.
For guests looking for the best dinner in Grand Cayman, there is often more to the decision than what appears on the menu. The setting, wine, service and traditions surrounding the meal all become part of the evening, and those elements have been part of The Wharf's character for many years.
Then, in 2016, the restaurant entered a new chapter.
After 28 years, Clemens Guettler sold The Wharf in 2016 to the ownership group behind Grand Old House.
The change brought together two long-standing waterfront restaurants with very different histories. The Grand Old House occupies a property whose story dates to 1908, when the Great House of Petra Plantation was built in South Sound. After serving several purposes throughout the decades, the house became a restaurant in 1969.
The Wharf arrived almost two decades later, in 1988, on another part of Grand Cayman's coastline.
When The Wharf changed ownership, the intention was not to turn the two restaurants into versions of one another. The Wharf would remain in The Wharf, with its Seven-Mile Beach setting and established identity, while Grand Old House would continue the story attached to its historic South Sound property.
Today, the relationship connects two restaurants whose combined histories cover very different periods of Cayman's hospitality story.
One of the longest-running threads in The Wharf's more recent history is Executive Chef Christian Reiter.
Born and raised in Styria, Austria, Reiter trained in Austrian kitchens before taking his career to sea aboard the Sea Goddess cruise liner. His route to Cayman was not planned.
Around 1995, after leaving cruise work, he sent more than 50 applications using a typewriter and fax machine. The positive response came from Clemens Guettler at The Wharf, beginning a relationship with the restaurant that has now lasted for decades.
Reiter brought influences from Austria, international kitchens and his years at sea, while working with the Caribbean flavours and ingredients surrounding him in Cayman. His approach has helped shape a menu where seafood, local dishes, and international techniques can share the same table.
Some dishes have remained with him for years. His Basil and Pistachio Nut-Crusted Sea Bass, now one of The Wharf's signature dishes, is a recipe Reiter himself has described as going back almost decades.
The restaurant now houses more than 1,000 wines in what The Wharf identifies as Grand Cayman's only underground wine cellar. Its wine programme has received recognition from Wine Spectator since 2004, with sommeliers available to help guests choose a vintage to complement dinner.
For anyone interested in premium wines in Cayman, the cellar adds another dimension to the restaurant's history. The selection moves from approachable bottles to rare vintages, allowing a dinner by the water to take a very different direction depending on the occasion.
Wine has also moved beyond the traditional dinner list. Tastings, wine and food pairings and Champagne experiences now give guests other ways to explore the collection.
Restaurants change because the people dining in them change. Menus move with seasons, kitchens develop, spaces are refreshed, and new experiences appear.
Yet some of The Wharf's most familiar moments still revolve around very simple things.
There is sunset over the western horizon, viewed from the waterfront deck as evening settles over Seven Mile Beach.
There are the resident tarpon gathering beneath the restaurant, followed by the ring of the seafarer's bell and the nightly feeding. Today, feeding takes place at 7 PM and 9 PM, turning a pause between drinks and dinner into something guests often remember long after the table has been cleared.
And there is still dinner beside the sea, something that has been at the centre of The Wharf since 1988.
The Wharf has responded to different periods in Cayman's dining history in different ways. In 2020, for example, Café Oasis expanded into daytime dining for a period, including breakfast and an all-day menu.
More recently, the restaurant has developed Signature Experiences that take guests beyond a conventional dinner reservation. Chef-led cooking classes, wine and food tastings, Champagne sabering with tapas, and cigar rolling accompanied by rum and bourbon tastings now sit alongside the restaurant's regular dining and event offering.
More than three decades have passed since The Wharf opened its doors.
Cayman has grown. Seven Mile Beach has changed. The number of restaurants in Cayman has expanded, and the way people dine, celebrate and travel has moved with the times.
The Wharf has changed too from ownership and culinary influences on the experiences offered around the table. Yet an evening can still begin with the sun moving towards the horizon, continue over dinner and wine, and pause when the bell rings for the tarpon below.
That connection between the restaurant and its waterfront setting has carried The Wharf from 1988 to today and remains at the heart of its story.
The Wharf Restaurant & Bar opened in Grand Cayman in 1988. The restaurant was founded by Clemens Guettler at its waterfront location at the beginning of Seven Mile Beach.
Yes. The ownership group behind Grand Old House acquired The Wharf in 2016. The restaurants share connected ownership while retaining their own settings, histories, and dining identities. Grand Old House became a restaurant in 1969, while The Wharf opened in 1988.
Christian Reiter is the Executive Chef at The Wharf. Originally from Styria, Austria, he trained in European kitchens and worked aboard the Sea Goddess cruise liner before joining The Wharf around 1995.
The Wharf is closed for its annual
SUMMER BREAK
From Friday, August 30th, 2024
We will reopen,
Wednesday, October 9th. We are available for any information or reservation
please contact us at
We will reply within 12 hours.
Grand Old House, our partner waterfront restaurant, is open throughout the summer, Contact us for reservations at info@grandoldhouse.com