RESTAURANTS

Hotels and bungalows almost always serve food and will be happy if you take all your meals at them. If you want to mix it up, or they’re charging an unreasonable 5000D ($0.30) for a spoonful dollop of condensed milk in your ice coffee, you can beach-browse other hotel restaurants (eg Sea Star’s restaurant is more shady and inviting than Tropicana’s next door) or head toward a few stand-alone restaurants.

As to be expected, sea food is a big deal on Phu Quoc. Look out for the island specialty ca chien sot tieu (a crispy, fried whole fish covered in onions and Phu Quoc pepper sauce) as well as very fresh, very big plates of grilled squid (left).

Long Beach

PALM TREE
Next to the chic Veranda hotel, the thatch-roof Palm Tree is a sand-floor, family-run restaurant with a sign made from a broken slab of concrete that’s right on the beach. Most of the Vietnamese dishes are $1 to $2.15 – making it about half the price of the hotels. I enjoyed the ca chien sot tieu, which is priced by size from $1.85 to $3.10.
Between Tropicana & Veranda resorts

RAINBOX BEACH BAR
Also amidst the bungalows, a few minutes north of Palm Tree by foot, this simple open-air bar/restaurant plays Nirvana and the Rolling Stones and serves good seafood in nice setting a few feet from the water. There’s some western items on the menu – burgers etc – I went with the barbecue tuna with bread roll. It’s part of the Rainbow diving operation, so you can get some inside info on snorkel/diving conditions too.
Between Tropicana & Veranda resorts

CAROLE RESTAURANT
On the main road between most of the Long Beach bungalows and Duong Dong town, this cheerful restaurant cooks up seafood ($2.50 to $3.15) and pizzas ($3.15 to $5) for a little less than the hotels. And they deliver up to 5km! They also rent motorbikes for $4.40 per day, and jeeps with driver for $19/31 for half/full day.
Tel 077-848-884; 88 Tran Hung Dao St

EDEN
A little lame, but fun at times, the neon-lit themed-DJ beach bar has themed nights and bonfire dance parties that start at 9pm. It’s next to the Veranda hotel. They also make expensive burgers and Vietnamese food.
Tel 0773-994-028

Around the Island

Beaches around have a restaurant or two, where you can set up your things, eat fish, sit in the shade, swim and sleep in a hammock. Good for a day’s base if you’re beach-hopping around the island on a motorbike. In clockwise direction around the island, beginning from Duong Dong town, they are:

VUNG BAU
Mai Phuong (tel 0918-288-647) has $10 bungalows and palm-shaded eating areas on a narrow bridge, about 5km north of Cua Can village. From that village, cross the arched wood bridge, turn left and follow it as it loops north and over a tiny wood-plank bridge motorbikes can cross only. The road passes Mai Phuong.

BAI DAI
Duong Vien restaurant is a family-run restaurant on long Bai Dai beach. It’s named for the trees that lean over the golden-sand. In all, my favorite place on the island. It’s a couple kilometers north of Mai Phuong (see above).

BAI SAO (Star Beach)
Ai Xiem (tel 0773-990-510) is a restaurant on the white-sand beach on the southeastern side of Phu Quoc. From Duong Dong, take the road south towards An Thoi village, turning left a couple kilometers before he southern tip, then turn left on the paved highway near the east coast. The turn off is marked ‘Quan An My Lai,’ just before the Cau Sau village bridge. Follow it a bumpy 2km.

You can also set up at Mango Bay Resort or Bo Resort. The latter has the better beach. (See Accommodations/North Phu Quoc.)

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