Hideaway Island, off Port Vila, Vanuatu

This is a real retro entry as its still in Vanuatu, where I holidayed almost 3 months ago. 

After scuba diving in the morning, where my wife gained her PADI Open Water certification (well done her), we went to for some snorkelling action at Hideaway Island and took in some lunch as well. 

This resort has a separate restaurant open to non-residents and it was serving a set lunch that consisted of four courses. There was a choice for some of the courses and what I had is noted below.

The first course was Laksa soup. This was a pleasant starter that had a nice creaminess and slight spice to it and contained snapper fish. I could taste the coriander garnish, which was also complimented with the basil.

Laksa Soup

The next course was Tuna sashimi.  This came in slices, which I was slightly disappointed with as I am used to the cuboids of fish meat from a Japanese restaurant. It tasted fine and was garnished with pepper and lemon for some more taste as well as some red onions.

Tuna Sashimi

The red snapper shown below was the main course. This was fried and covered in Hollandaise sauce, giving it a the buttery and zesty taste that I liked. It was served with a decent portion of white rice, a salsa that was quite tasty and some basic salad vegetables to provide some nutrients for me.

Red Snapper

Banana flambé was the dessert, which came with a serving of vanilla ice cream. I did not taste too much alcohol but the banana was still firm and not overcooked. The weather was quite hot and the ice cream started to melt fairly quickly, though.

Banana Flambe (with chocolate milkshake in the background)

The set meal did not come with a drink so I ordered a sprite, with my wife opting for a chocolate milkshake, which is shown above.

Even without the drink it was quite an expensive lunch for one but it was large enough to share between us two so the value for money was not too bad in the end. Taste-wise everything was adequate, with the soup being my favourite out of the four courses. It has to be said that Vanuatu is not a cheap country to visit, even if the locals are not that affluent.

My food was ordered at the bar and it was served at our table in a friendly and timely manner. We dined al fresco on their functional wooden furniture. It actually rained when we ate but they had covered areas to keep us dry.

One gimmick of this venue is that it has the only under water post box in the world where we successfully mailed a postcard back to our home!

Scores:

Food: 3/5

Presentation: 2/5

Service: 3/5

Setting: 3/5

Overall: 11/20

Bill: 2800 Vatu for the set lunch, about 20GBP.

I ate: All of the above.

I drank: Sprite, Chocolate Milkshake.

I wore: Snorkelling gear.