If you’re heading to Bougainville, you’re in for a culinary experience that’s as raw and real as the island itself. This isn’t some fancy food destination with Michelin stars and overpriced tasting menus.
Nope, this is about eating the way locals have for generations—straight from the land and sea. The food here is a blend of traditional flavors and the kind of fresh ingredients that’ll make you wonder why you’ve been eating anything else.
Table of Contents
Bougainville Cuisine – Mumu
Let’s start with the big one: mumu! Certainly more famous and readily available in Papua New Guinea, proximity means it also has a place in Bougainville.
Picture this: a bunch of locals get together, dig a pit, and line it with hot stones. Then they pile in everything from pork and fish to taro and sweet potatoes, wrap it all up in banana leaves, and let it cook for hours underground. When it’s finally done, the food is smoky, tender, and packed with flavor. Again very similar to how things are done over the water, but with some local flair.
This is a whole day event and for all intents a bit of a party that will be part of our trip in 2025.
Bougainville Cuisine – The seafood
Being an island, Bougainville is swimming in seafood, and trust me, you’ll want to dive right in. The locals here know how to treat their fish, whether it’s grilling up some fresh tuna or simmering it in coconut milk. Coconut is everywhere in Bougainvillean cooking, and when it’s paired with seafood, it’s a match made in heaven.
One dish you’ve got to try is the local kaikai. It’s a mix of whatever the ocean’s offering that day—maybe some octopus, maybe some crab—all cooked in banana leaves with a good splash of coconut cream. It’s the kind of meal that makes you appreciate the simple things: fresh ingredients and no unnecessary fuss. It’s very similar to the stuff you’d find in Papua New Guinea, just with that Bougainvillean twist.
Another must and one that can be found even in bar specials is lobster, that for me at least has and is some of the best and cheapest that I have ever tried.
Surprisingly though and one thing that shocked me is that fish is not always on the menu despite fishermen being out every day. This though could be linked to the need for money and the Bougainville crisis.
Fruit and vegetables in Bougainville Cuisine
If you’ve got a sweet tooth, Bougainville’s got you covered. The island is loaded with tropical fruits, and they don’t come any fresher than this. Bananas are a big deal here—they’re everywhere, and they show up in all kinds of dishes. You’ll find them boiled, fried, or just eaten straight up. They’re not like the bland bananas you get in a supermarket; these are sweet, creamy, and packed with flavor.
And then there’s coconut, the other big player in Bougainvillean food. Coconut milk is used to cook everything from fish to veggies, giving it all a rich, creamy flavor that you’ll start craving after a few days on the island. If you’re into desserts, try something with grated coconut—whether it’s sprinkled on top of something sweet or mixed into a pudding, it’s always a winner.
Another gem that I found was Cacao, or the plant that you make chocolate from. This can be eaten raw with a fleshy outside being met with a dark chocolate twinge when you bite into it. This was honestly epic and something that really supersede me.
In fact when you simply stroll around the home stays we visit when you walk around you see just how much is grown and can be eaten. Bougainville is honestly one of the most self-sufficient places I have ever been.
Modern Bougainville Cusine
OK, so Bougainville is not yet at least New York and you will not find a plethora of restaurants here. There are though some such as the one at Bovotel that serve not just Australian fare, but randomly Chinese and Filipino cuisine – as well as slightly ropey steak.
Then there is Gold Dust Inn also in Arawa that serves some decent western food, which included the lobster special we also so loved. And lastly Reasons Cafe probably offers the best western food on the island.
Generally though the best feasts always come with the fresh produce produced in the home stays and the beach bungalows of Bougainville.
Street Food Bougainville
Another key element of Bougainville cuisine, although not nearly as much as in PNG mainland. They do though have Kai Bar’s here, as well as stuff being cooked in the markets.
This of course includes local stuff like your sweet potatoes, but also PNG and Bougainville classics like chicken and saveloy.
You can read a more in depth take on street food in Bougainville here.
Drinking in Bougainville
Drinking in Bougainville is another subset of Bougainville cuisine that can be simply split into a a few parts.And these are beers, legal liquor and Paiawara. From a beer point of view this gives you SP and Bird of Paradise.
The real popular thing though with Bougainville cuisine and drinking is with Paiawara, or fire water! This is the indigenous product that is made from rotting fruit and is like rocket fuel!!! Also popular in Papua New Guinea, they say that the best of the best is in Bougainville and I have to largely concur.
Final Thoughts on Bougainville cuisine
Bougainville’s food isn’t about fancy presentation or gourmet ingredients; it’s about fresh, local flavors that tell the story of the island.
This means that when you do visit it is important to have realistic expectations and make the most of what there is. And if all else fails do as Bougainvillaeans do when it comes to Bougainville cuisine, buy a Maggi chicken stock cube, or some chicken salt and add it to every meal.