With a penchant for trying Palau cuisine I ended up at MJ Restaurant in Koror. Was it a truly local restaurant? Not really, but it was the closest thing I could find in downtown.
This was as part of my trip to Palau as part of the YPT Least Visited Countries Tour, as well as for me to indulge my own Street Food Guy tendencies!
What the Palau Cuisine?
Palauan cuisine? Let’s just say it’s an “acquired taste”—if you can find it. While Palau boasts stunning islands and rich culture, its local food scene feels like an afterthought. Traditional dishes are overshadowed by the dominance of Chinese food, Filipino influences, and American burgers.
Craving something uniquely Palauan? Good luck. Palau’s culinary landscape caters more to expats and tourists than showcasing its own flavors. It’s not bad, per se, but you can’t help but feel the culture’s been sidelined by chow mein, adobo, and greasy fries. Palau, you deserve better.
Yes it is not as bad as Nauru, but that is probably because they also have burgers due to the American influence.
MJ Restaurant
Quite literally next to the Palacia Hotel (which is nice) is this restaurant which also doubles as a late night takeaway/street food destination. Essentially there are 4 main food groups here. Firstly the burgers, then there is at the Palau style fish burgers, Chinese food and food. The later of these being Chinese-Filipino food.
Regardless what they do here seems to be popular with the staff from the Philippines eagerly preparing take away meals while Alsop dealing with a dull restaurant.
What did I have at MJ Restaurant?
The burgers, particularly the bacon and cheese one for $9 looked epic, but as I said I wanted something local. This led to me ordering a spam ramen. For those in the know spam – a kind of processed pork is synonymous with everything Pacific islands.
And I have to say that a great meal was had with the spam being done perfectly and tasting like the region. Yes it needed Tabasco to make it bearable, but it was local at least.
So, while you might not travel the end of the earth just for MJ Restaurant, if you are in Koror it beats the overpriced bars scene of the nightlife.
