There is a vast variety of restaurants, cafes, bars and taverns to suit all pockets. Service will vary although generally table service can be expected. Hotel cooking is usually international with some Bermudan specialities.
National specialities:
• Bermuda lobster (in season from September to mid-April).
• Mussel pie.
• Conch stew.
• Cassava pie.
• Wahoo steak.
• Hoppin' John (black-eyed peas and rice).
• Fish chowder laced with sherry, peppers, rum and shark.
• Other seafoods include rockfish, red snapper, guinea chick (shiny lobster) and yellowtail.
• Peculiar to Bermuda is the Bermuda onion. Other fine home-grown products include pawpaw and strawberries in January and February, and a variety of local citrus fruit.
• Traditional Sunday breakfast is codfish and potatoes, which are served with red sauce, avocado and banana, while desserts include sweet potato pudding, bay grape jelly and loquat jam.
National drinks:
• National drinks and cocktails have Golsing's Bermuda Black Seal rum as a base, and have colourful names such as Dark and Stormy (traditional local drink) and the famous Rum Swizzle.
• British, European and US beer is available.
Tipping: When not included in the bill, 15 per cent generally for most services. Hotels and guest houses add a set amount per person in lieu of tips to the bill.

Most hotels offer a variety of entertainment. Dancing, barbecues, nightclubs and discos are all available. There are also island cruises such as the Hawkins Island Don't Stop the Carnival Party, which enables exclusive access to Hawkins Island (it is accessible only by boat) for entertainment - even the locals attend. Local music is a mixture of Calypso and Latin American, and steel band music is very popular. All the latest listings can be found in Preview Bermuda and This Week in Bermuda.

The best buys are imported merchandise such as French perfumes, English bone china, Swiss watches, Danish silver, American costume jewellery, German cameras, Scottish tweeds, and various spirits and liqueurs. Bermuda-made articles include handicrafts, pottery, cedar ware, fashions, rum, honey, Bermuda Rum cakes, Sherry Peppers condiments, records and paintings by local artists. Antique shops may have the odd good bargain and shops in the countryside offer many souvenirs. Bathing suits, sports clothes, straw hats and, of course, Bermuda shorts, are other good buys. There is no sales tax or VAT. Shopping hours: Mon-Sat 0900-1700, with some closing early on Thursday. Shops at the Royal Naval Dockyard are open on Sun 1000-1700.