Lionfish were on the menu this weekend as part of the Eat’Um to Beat’Um Lionfish Chowder Competition, held at the Bermuda Aquarium Museum and Zoo.

The event, organised by the Bermuda Zoological Society with the support of Goslings, Outerbridge’s Sherry Pepper Sauce and Butterfield and Vallis, was intended to highlight the use of the invasive fish as an ingredient in Bermuda’s iconic food.

At the end of judging, Chiko and T’s Restaurant managed to claim top honours, winning both the Judge’s Choice and People’s Choice.

The Loren and The Spot were given silver and bronze, respectively, by the judges while the public gave their second and third prizes to The Cloud and Wahoos.

Lionfish are not native to the Atlantic Ocean, but have begun to spread throughout the Caribbean — and the waters around Bermuda — in recent decades after they were introduced to the region.

The species have no natural predators in the Atlantic and are able to reproduce quickly. Their meat is delicious.

Eat’Um to Beat’Um events have been launched in recent years to highlight them as a food source to help to increase demand and better support those who take to Bermuda’s waters to cull the species.