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Port Vila Restaurants

Waterfront Bar & Grill

2 reviews | Write a review

Good for: food, yachties

Not good for: sober people wanting value, music, your sanity

  • Address
    • Nambatu
  • Phone
    • tel, info: 23490
  • Hours
    • 11:00-late

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Lonely Planet review for Waterfront Bar & Grill

It's the place for yachties. The excellent menu has specialities like beef ribs, vegetarian manicotti (pasta shells), Mexican dishes and fab Tahitian fish salad.

 

Traveller reviews for Waterfront Bar & Grill (2)

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    An overpriced tired 80's bar & bistro

    wheelo does not recommend this,

    My wife and I ate dinner there on 10th May 2012. The restaurant was recommended to us by a couple of mini bus drivers. One of the first questions the maitre d' askes was how we were referred to the Restaurant. When I noticed that he collated the answers to this question, I twigged someting was suspect.

    The decor of the Waterfront appears not to have changed in about 30 years. It is basically a tired and crusty looking nautical themed bar with alfresco seating. Its' location right beside the Marina means that a refurbishment would benefit this restaurant immensely.

    The service was very good and it is a shame that the kitchen let down the waitstaff. The guidebooks suggested that the tahitian fish salad is a local specialty (why in Vanuatu and not Tahiti?). The version that arrived for my wife was basically fish with soggy coleslaw in a bowl. I had the salt and pepper calamari to start, and it was good with a lack of elasticity.

    I was impressed when a standard knife was placed in front of me after the plates were cleared thinking that my main course steak would be so tender that it does not need a ssteak knife. Nothing could be further than the truth. What arrived was a tough and well done (I ordered rare) piece of leather that was very difficult to cut and even more difficult to chew. The Grissle was disguised with thick gravy and tinned champignons (referred by the waiter as mushroom sauce). My wife had the Grilled snapper which was OK.

    To think that I had been charged the equivalent of AUD / USD $28 for a terrible steak in a run down establishment that is in a developing country that has its own beef industry infuriated me. The overall bill of AUD / USD $85 would have got me a much better two course dinner for two in Sydney or New York where staff are paid triple what they are in Port Vila.

    Not good for: sober people wanting value

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    Nice food, but the friday night entertainment is appalling

    johncarney does not recommend this,

    As the name suggests, the Waterfront Bar & Grill is situated on the Port Vila waterfront, though the views are somewhat obscured by the yachts moored there. The service is good and the quality of the food about what you'd expect for the price. Unfortunately most restaurants in Port Vila seem to cater for unadventurous tourists and the Waterfront is no exception, so don't expect anything even remotely exotic.

    On the Friday night we were there, the "live entertainment" consisted of a small group of locals playing 70s covers on synthesizers. It was excruciatingly bad.

    Good for: food, yachties

    Not good for: music, your sanity

    report