EatInEatOut Winter 2015 | Page 48

Les Roulottes: Papeete’s famed food night market is located by the city’s cruise terminal and features a bustling al fresco dining rooms dotted with food trucks. The diversity of food here was what impressed me most: French creperie, American burger joint, Italian pizza pie and Polynesian roast pig, which I found rotating over a spit. Locals will tell you that the most iconic Tahitian street food can be found at the food trucks owned by Chinese immigrants. Les Roulottes is open until the wee hours of the morning and the classic “must try” dish is best enjoyed after dancing yourself silly on the weekend: a sizzling plate of beef and bok choy tossed chow mein. Le Ohiri at Relais & Chateaux Le Taha’a Resort: Six tables sit in the fine dining room at Le Ohiri, offering an intimate setting for those looking to romance themselves over pretty on the plate. Chef Julien Roux got his start in Nice and spent time honing his craft in the kitchens of Chef Jacques Maimin and Joel Robuchon. Le Mahi Mahi is served as ceviche muddled in local Taha’a vanilla and tart lime, which is grown in Marquesas. L’Agneau is served a la roasted canon and paired with zucchini cannelloni stuffed with fresh goat cheese and sharp black garlic confit. A playful pavlovla offers a sweet finish featuring essence of strawberry and jasmine with floral lychee sorbet. Arii Moana at the Four Seasons Bora Bora Resort: My journey through Chef Frederic Angevin’s Polynesian modern begins with a refreshing chilled cucumber and coconut soup quickly followed by 48 36 WWW.EATINEATOUT.CA WWW.EATINEATOUT.CA glistening carpaccio of Mahi Mahi adorned with citrus, pink pepper served alongside a petite glass of iced lemon vanilla granite. I encounter a marvelous muddling of flavours while spooning through a bowl of sweet potato gnocchi which arrives at the table tossed in wilted arugula, confit tomato, shaved parmesan and sweet Taha’a vanilla sauce. Milk chocolate is the feast’s finale, a perfect cocoa sphere filled with caramelized banana and ice cream which melts before your eyes as a petite pot of molten chocolate drizzles from above. Polynesian BBQ on Private Motu: Circumnavigate Bora Bora in a day via outrigger boat while making three splashy stops: feed a few friendly manta ray (they eat through their nose you know!), swim with a school of sharks where the reef and ocean meet and snorkel across a lush coral garden where a multi-coloured aquatic community waved hello with tiny fish fins. The unforgettable sun-soaked adventure ends on a high-note: a traditional Polynesian BBQ lunch served as pretty picnic on a private motu. I poured a glass of oaky Chardonnay from New Zealand before nibbling through a feast served on a traditional plate which locals weave together using fronds of palm. I sat on the dock, my legs dangling over colourful coral while devouring a BBQ trilogy (steak, chicken and Mahi Mahi) served alongside raw tuna coconut salad, roasted sweet potato, sticky banana poe and sweet slices of pineapple. Andrew John Virtue Dobson @dobbernation www.dobbernationloves.com