Bora Bora Restaurant Recommendations

How many times can you eat at the restaurants offered at your hotel? Probably a few times! At least most hotel restaurants change the menu every day. However, there is probably at least a night or two where you are ready to eat somewhere else, right? It is fun go out and experience something new for lunch or dinner. Now, thanks to my awesome travel partners in Tahiti, I have a list of restaurants that we recommend that you check out the next time you are in French Polynesia (aka Tahiti).

St James Restaurant Bora Bora

• LOCATION: Short 5 min taxi ride or 10 min walk from the town of Vaitape
• TRANSFERS: 700 XPF requested for a round trip taxi transfer. For hotels not on the main island of Bora Bora, please check conditions and times with your Hotel Concierge. Possibility to arrive by private boat and complimentary dock directly in front of the restaurant.
• RESERVATIONS: Highly recommended particularly for a lagoon-side table. +689 40 67 64 62
• OPENING TIMES: Open for breakfast, lunch or dinner from 6.30am to 10pm from Monday to Saturday. Closed on Sunday.
• AVERAGE COST: €€ – €€€
• ATMOSPHERE: A restaurant that has a response to every Epicurean’s request! Looking for a great breakfast with Eggs Benedict? It’s here! Searching for a restaurant for a casual, on the lagoon lunch? It’s here! Wanting to invite that gorgeous hunk for a drink? Come to the bar on the water’s edge, feet in the sand with a fantastic sunset too! Celebrating an intimate, romantic moment in a cozy atmosphere on the water’s edge? It’s here too! The restaurant is in fact open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. With an upper terrace and lower deck for the bar, feet in the sand perched over the water, the restaurant is successful in combining different atmospheres all in one place!
• SIGNATURE DISHES: 2 incredible Signature dishes: Lagoon Fish Cooked in Salt Crust, Side of the moment, Shellfish bisque & White lime butter sauce AND The Grand Special, Peppercorn Tenderloin flambéed at your table with Cognac, Red Port reduction based butter sauce
• CUISINE: Subtle, refined cuisine combining French gastronomy with Polynesian ingredients
• WHO TO TALK TO: The fish in the water as you throw bread crumbs! You might get lucky and see a leopard ray or just a normal sting ray too.
• OUR OPINION: The restaurant favors the local economy with supply coming from local fisherman and farmers. For true Epicureans looking for that gourmet answer and sustainable development in Bora Bora!
• WEBSITE: www.saintjamesborabora.com
• FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/stjamesborabora

Yacht Club Bora Bora

• LOCATION: Short 10 min taxi ride from the town of Vaitape
• TRANSFERS: Complimentary round trip taxi transfer starting from 5pm. For hotels not on the main island of Bora Bora, please check conditions and times with your Hotel Concierge. There is the possibility to arrive by private boat and complimentary dock directly in front of the restaurant.
• RESERVATIONS: Highly recommended, particularly for a lagoon-side table. Please call +689 40 67 60 47
• OPENING TIMES: Open daily. The bar is open non-stop from 10.30am to 11pm. The restaurant is open for lunch from 11.30am to 2.30p and for dinner from 5.30pm to 9.30pm.
• AVERAGE COST: €€ – €€€
• ATMOSPHERE: A slightly more relaxed ambiance compared to St James Bora Bora Restaurant. The views are stunning particularly at sunset. The cuisine is authentic and generous incorporating locally produced vegetables and fruits as well as freshly caught local fish.
• SIGNATURE DISHES: Fillet of Mahi Mahi with green lime espuma (mousse) and fork-mashed potatoes
• CUISINE: Generous, convivial French cuisine with Polynesian influences.
• WHO TO TALK TO: Your local “yachtie” for tips on sailing around the islands. With the staff who are all from local families and can give you tips on what to do and see in Bora Bora.
• OUR OPINION: Pure relaxation, chill vibe, incredible views, good, friendly service and good food!
• WEBSITE: www.boraborayachtclub.org
• FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/yachtclubborabora

Villa Mahana

• LOCATION: Short 10 min taxi ride from the town of Vaitape
• TRANSFERS: You are responsible for organizing your own taxi.
• RESERVATIONS: Highly recommended! Only 7 tables available. Please call +689 40 67 50 63 or email damien@villamahana.com
• OPENING TIMES: From Monday to Saturday, closed on Sunday. Open from 6pm to 11pm.
• AVERAGE COST: €€€€
• ATMOSPHERE: Beautiful private home converted into an intimate, gastronomic restaurant. Old world charm straight from Tuscany in Italy, beautiful art work and native vegetation throughout the indoor/outdoor seating in a private courtyard. Only 7 private tables, candlelight, background music, stars overhead… romance and love are calling out to you!
• SIGNATURE DISHES: Let’s talk more about the 2 Signature tasting menus for the full variety of what the Chef and Owner Damien Rinaldi-Dovio can create for you! Choose from the Exotic Menu or the Epicurean Menu and definitely count on Chef Damien’s extensive knowledge to pair the wines with the dishes. In fact, don’t forget to check out the beautifully presented wine cellar encased in glass in the foyer.
• CUISINE: Each offering is perfectly seasoned, thoughtful, purposeful, not overly embellished with unnecessary garnish, and cooked and served at the right temperatures. The cuisine is elegant, simple, comforting and flavorful- you can taste the difference in the quality of the ingredients selected and the expert preparation and cooking techniques complete the dish with excellence.
• WHO TO TALK TO: Chef Damien and his beautiful Polynesian wife! The brilliant Corsican chef has trained with Paul Bocuse in Paris, was the Executive Chef at L’Orangerie in Los Angeles, and the Hotel Bora Bora Pearl Beach Resort and Spa.
• OUR OPINION: An incredible culinary delight comparable to the fine restaurants at the big name resorts on Bora Bora (Four Seasons, St Regis, Conrad, Intercontinental Thalasso) but available to all (AirBnB, guesthouses, smaller hotels) since on the main island of Bora Bora. Perfect for celebrating a milestone event in your life or simply to celebrate life à la “Eat, Pray, Love”!
• WEBSITE: www.villamahana.com
• FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/pages/La%20Villa%20Mahana/219840338045175/

Bora Bora Beach Club

• LOCATION: Right on the gorgeous Matira Beach only a short walk from Intercontinental Le Moana hotel and a little further from Hotel Maitai Bora Bora.
• TRANSFERS: You are responsible for organizing your own taxi.
• RESERVATIONS: Highly recommended if you want a seaside table. Please call +689 40 67 52 50
• OPENING TIMES: From Monday to Sunday. Open from 10am to 11pm.
• AVERAGE COST: €€-€€€
• ATMOSPHERE: Beautiful beach-style décor with natural light, soft blue tones, white walls, colorful pillows, homey bar, oyster shells hung from the ceiling, fishing traps as light fixtures. The highlight being of course the stunning white-sand beach of Matira Point!
• SIGNATURE DISHES: Everything and the menu chalkboard changes regularly.
• CUISINE: French, European, Polynesian! There is something for everyone from home-made fish or beef hamburgers with delicious brioche buns to crusted lamb, grilled mahi mahi, the ubiquitous “poisson cru”, tuna tataki and much more! Without talking about the scrumptious deserts…
• WHO TO TALK TO: To people who are hanging on the beach right in front of you (and they want to be where you are eating and you want to be where they are sun tanning and swimming)
• OUR OPINION: Something for everyone with a generous, quality cuisine often using local products, quite affordable and a comfortable atmosphere so that you can just walk in right from the beach, use their shower and sit down!
• WEBSITE: www.borabora-beachclub.com
• FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/bbbeachclub

Matira Beach Restaurant

• LOCATION: Right on the gorgeous Matira Beach only a short walk from Intercontinental Le Moana hotel and 300 meters down the road from Bora Bora Beach Club.
• TRANSFERS: Complimentary transfers for guests coming for dinner. Not available for lunch.
• RESERVATIONS: Highly recommended if you want a seaside table. Please call +689 87 79 47 04
• OPENING TIMES: From Wednesday to Sunday from 11.30am to 2.30pm for lunch and from 6pm to 9pm for dinner
• AVERAGE COST: €€-€€€
• ATMOSPHERE: A beachside restaurant with a Japanese influence… it’s here! A refined atmosphere with beautiful “aito” wood floors and wall paneling dramatically set off by red gauze curtains at the windows floating on the breeze. White sails are draped from the ceiling highlighting even more an exotic feel all the while reminding you of the importance of the lagoon in the Polynesian culture.
• SIGNATURE DISHES: Sushi, sashimi, the only Teppanyaki cuisine and baked whole local fish
• CUISINE: A unique Japanese-French touch on local Polynesian cuisine! Without forgetting steaks, burgers and foie gras.
• WHO TO TALK TO: Don’t talk at all as this place is so serene and hypnotic that you simply enjoy the feeling of “being there” and the spectacle of light dancing off the lagoon and the blinding white sand beach!
• OUR OPINION: An exceptional, relaxing experience with dining indoors and outdoors on the terrace and endless views of the lagoon and beach of Matira Point. Friendly, efficient service, warm welcome by the couple who owns and do the cooking and a unique Asian twist on Western dishes without extolling enough the outstanding sushi!
• FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/MatiraBeachRestaurant/

Aloé Café

• LOCATION: A short 3 min walk from the center of Vaitape where the small port, the Town Hall, the Tourist Office are located. The café is in a small shopping center called “Le Pahia”. When you are walking, stay on the lagoon side of the road and when you come upon the boutique Sibani Black Pearls, the small shopping center is right there and the café is at the back.
• TRANSFERS: Not available.
• RESERVATIONS: Not required unless it is a day when all the cruise ships have arrived into Bora Bora. Please call +689 40 67 78 88
• OPENING TIMES: From Monday to Saturday from 7am to 6pm for breakfast, lunch and early dinner.
• AVERAGE COST: €€
• ATMOSPHERE: A simple, small, local café which you quickly forget since the service is friendly and the food is delicious. Better than what you would have thought! There is a nice breezy outdoor, covered terrace and also some indoor seating available. The perfect stop after shopping in Vaitape when you are hot and thirsty!
• SIGNATURE DISHES: I personally have always gotten the same dish for lunch for the past 3 years every time I’m in Bora Bora: The fresh Mozzarella di Bufala Campana perched on sliced local tomatoes covered in a fresh Gazpacho soup! Served ice cold and very refreshing! And you’ll probably get the coldest Hinano beer on the island! If this doesn’t entice you, the menu features a wide variety of dishes from hamburgers to poisson cru to delicious salads, duos of local shrimp and chicken in curry sauce and grilled steak and fries.
• CUISINE: French with a Polynesian touch. Generous portions and there is even an all-American breakfast available with eggs, bacon and… the French croissant bien sûr!
• WHO TO TALK TO: There might be a vague hen or rooster hanging around just on the edge of the terrace begging for you to give them a scrap!
• OUR OPINION: A sure thing for breakfast and lunch with good value for money, friendly service, a nice variety of items to choose from and a place to escape from the roadside hustle and bustle.
• FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/aloecafebora

Bloody Mary’s Restaurant

• LOCATION: 10 min taxi drive from the town of Vaitape or from Intercontinental Le Moana or Le Maitai Bora Bora hotels.
• TRANSFERS: Not available. Please organize a taxi or transfer with the hotel concierge.
• RESERVATIONS: Not required unless it is a day when all the cruise ships have arrived into Bora Bora. Please call +689 40 67 69 10
• OPENING TIMES: From Tuesday to Saturday from 11.30am to 2.30pm for lunch and from 5.30pm to 9pm for dinner. Happy Hour from 6pm to 7pm.Closed on Sunday and Monday.
• AVERAGE COST: €€-€€€
• ATMOSPHERE: This is the old Tahiti right here, as you admire the restaurant’s thatched roof, open sides, white sand floor, wooden slab tables and stools made of coconut stumps. It can also be reminiscent of a set décor straight out of a Hollywood film! And yes many stars have eaten here and you can admire the “Honor Role” engraved on a beautiful plank of wood at the entrance to Bloody Mary’s. As the saying goes: “On any given night, anything can happen!” Be on the look-out for nights when there is live entertainment since you are then guaranteed to have a great night out!
• SIGNATURE DISHES: The daily catch of fish on display! Each evening the daily catch of the local fishermen from Bora Bora is displayed on ice, where after an explanation of exactly what’s available on your particular evening, the host takes your order directly with the chef. You can choose from the vast selection, pick one of our combination plates, or create your own particular combination. Crab, shrimp, steak, chicken, and a vegetarian plate are also available. And don’t forget about the lunches! A delicious menu of burgers, sandwiches, and local specialties make us a favorite among visitors and locals alike.
• CUISINE: Definitely American with a French-Polynesian touch.
• WHO TO TALK TO: Everyone around you: The musicians playing, people sitting at the bar, your neighbors at other tables and more!
• OUR OPINION: You’ll have a great night out particularly if there is live music!
• WEBSITE: www.bloodymarys.com
• FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/bloodymarysbora

The Lucky House – Fare Manuia

• LOCATION: On Matira Point and Beach, just around the corner, very short walk from Intercontinental Le Moana hotel and 10mn leisurely walk from Hotel Maitai Bora Bora.
• TRANSFERS: Not available. Please organize a taxi or transfer with the hotel concierge.
• RESERVATIONS: Not required unless it is a day when all the cruise ships have arrived into Bora Bora. Please call +689 40 67 68 08
• OPENING TIMES: Open everyday from 11.30am to 11pm. Happy Hour everyday from 4pm to 6pm.
• AVERAGE COST: €€
• ATMOSPHERE: Restaurant, bar, poolside lounge all rolled into one! Quite the local hangout with a nice, chill vibe and a 2-in-1 ambience! Choose between the street-side open terrace to watch the local scene or go further inside into the restaurant and the back where you can actually hang at the swimming pool all day and take advantage of the poolside bar! Very different from the usual chic resort, beach scene!
• SIGNATURE DISHES: The fire-baked pizza of course!
• CUISINE: From American (pizza, hamburgers) to Mexican (burritos, nachos) to French with a Polynesian influence (steaks, salads, fish and French deserts). On one hand, fabulous pizzas baked in an authentic wood-fire brick pizza oven (take-away or in-house) and on the other a very extensive menu covering everything from all the different red tuna preparations (sashimi, poisson cru, carpaccio, seared) to beef, steaks and even Mexican with burritos and nachos!
• WHO TO TALK TO: The locals or international tourists from around the world who have discovered this local hang-out.
• OUR OPINION: Something for everyone from take-away pizza to just chilling by the pool with a cool drink in hand, to having a great meal!
• WEBSITE: www.luckyhouseborabora.com
• FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/Theluckyhouse-Fare-Manuia-599894947051692

Finally, here is a handy interactive map to explore exactly where these recommendations are located:

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Originally Published Sep 4, 2021