Regional highlights
Poisson cru à la tahitienne
Tahiti's signature dish — fresh raw tuna (thon, typically yellowfin) cubed and marinated briefly (5-10 minutes) in lime juice with thinly sliced cucumber, tomato, sweet onion, scallion and a generous pour of fresh coconut milk. The lime briefly cures the fish (like a ceviche), the coconut milk softens the acidity, and the result is light, creamy, fragrant and unmistakably Polynesian. Served at every restaurant on Bora Bora, from beachside snack stand to luxury resort. The most iconic French Polynesian dish.
Pua roti / Tahitian luau pig
Tahitian roast suckling pig — a whole pig is rubbed with sea salt, wrapped in banana and ti leaves, lowered into a himaa (earth oven of hot lava stones, the Tahitian cousin of the Hawaiian imu), and steamed for 4-6 hours until the meat falls off the bone and absorbs a deep smoky character. Served at traditional Tahitian luaus (called "tamaaraa" in Tahitian) and at resort buffets. The pig is shredded and served with fafa, breadfruit, taro and poisson cru as the full traditional Tahitian feast.
Fafa de poulet
Chicken stewed with taro leaves (fafa) in coconut milk, garlic and onion until the leaves cook down to a deep-green spinach-like vegetable layer and the chicken absorbs the flavours. The taro leaves take a long time to cook safely (raw taro leaves are toxic) so this is a slow dish. Served at every Tahitian-style restaurant on Bora Bora. The flavour is mild, slightly bitter from the taro leaves, rich from the coconut.
Mahi-mahi à la vanille
Pan-seared mahi-mahi (or thon — yellowfin tuna) finished with a vanilla-and-coconut-cream sauce — a classic Tahitian fusion that uses the islands' two most famous ingredients. The vanilla used is Tahitian Bourbon vanilla (Vanilla tahitensis, a different species from the more common Madagascar Vanilla planifolia), with a more aromatic, slightly cherry-like character. Served at almost every Bora Bora resort restaurant.
Poisson au lait de coco
Whole fish (sea bream, parrotfish, wahoo) wrapped in banana leaves, brushed with lime juice and a coconut-and-ginger marinade, and steamed in the himaa (earth oven) or grilled over coals. The coconut milk is poured over before serving. A traditional Polynesian preparation, less famous than poisson cru but a fixed feature of any tamaaraa (Tahitian feast).
Uru (breadfruit)
Breadfruit — a starchy tropical fruit (technically a relative of figs and mulberries) that has been a Polynesian staple for thousands of years. Roasted whole in the himaa or sliced and pan-fried. The flavour is somewhere between potato and chestnut; the texture is firm and slightly stringy. Served at every Tahitian feast as a side, often alongside taro and sweet potato.
Po'e
Tahitian pudding — a sweet, gelatinous pudding made from grated banana, papaya, mango or pumpkin (each version is a different colour) cooked with arrowroot or cornstarch, sweetened with sugar, and topped with coconut milk. Eaten chilled, sliced into wedges, with the coconut milk poured over. The original Polynesian dessert; each colour (yellow banana, orange papaya, green pandan-leaf-flavoured) is a different fruit but all share the same template. Served at every Tahitian feast.
Pain coco
Tahitian coconut bread — a soft, slightly sweet bread enriched with coconut milk and grated coconut, baked in a wood oven (or modern conventional oven) into long flat loaves. Eaten warm at breakfast with butter, or as a side to fish dishes. A daily staple of the Bora Bora baker scene; resort breakfast tables always have a basket alongside the French pastries.
Ipo / ta'iōro
Fermented grated coconut (or fermented breadfruit) — a traditional Tahitian preserved food made by burying grated fresh coconut in banana leaves until it ferments to a strong, pungent paste. Eaten in small quantities as a flavouring or accompaniment to the more contemporary Tahitian dishes. Less common in everyday Bora Bora dining but found at the most traditional roulottes and at the larger tamaaraa.
French pastries (croissants, baguettes, pain au chocolat)
The French DOM influence is most visible in the bakeries — every Bora Bora breakfast table has a basket of croissants, pain au chocolat, baguettes and brioches alongside the local pain coco. The pastries are made to French standards (most bakers are French-trained); the croissants are particularly good. Sold from the bakeries on Vaitape's main street and at every resort breakfast.
Taro (tāro)
Taro corm (tāro) is one of the foundational Polynesian root crops — boiled, mashed or roasted in the himaa as a side. The Tahitian version is similar to the Hawaiian poi but typically not fermented; it's served as a starchy side, often alongside breadfruit and sweet potato at a tamaaraa. The leaves (fafa) are also used in chicken stew.
Pomelo & tropical fruit
French Polynesian pomelo (a large, sweet citrus, distinct from typical grapefruit), banana, papaya, mango, pineapple and the famous Tahitian pamplemousse — all grown locally and served fresh at every resort breakfast and in tropical fruit salads. The tropical fruit selection in Bora Bora is among the best in the South Pacific.