A bold new menu and an extensive wine list have taken Papua New Guinea’s leading fine-dining venue to the next level.

Seared duck breast with truffle mash and tangy orange sauce.

Bacchus Restaurant at Airways Hotel in Port Moresby has long billed itself as PNG’s leading fine-dining venue, but a major overhaul of the menu has taken the food to another level, making it the perfect spot for both business and pleasure.

Bacchus’s famous crépes Suzette are our favourite dish.
Credit: Airways Hotel

Thankfully some old favourites have been retained, and I could not resist the sublime fresh local tuna sashimi and crépes Suzette, Bacchus’s signature dessert that is satisfyingly flambéed at your table.

The new menu includes a wider range of seafood, such as Hokkaido scallops (served with cauliflower cream, butter sauce and truffle oil) and fricasée of lobster, as well as the award-winning Master Kobe wagyu beef. Slightly less ambitiously, I opted for the seared duck breast confit as a main course, with a side of truffle mash. Served with a tangy orange sauce (‘gastrique’), it did not disappoint.

Although the food takes centre stage, there is also a huge wine list, live pianist, and the service remains as attentive as ever.

Bacchus avoids having that ‘hotel restaurant’ feel thanks to being located in an entirely separate building.

Where: Jacksons Parade, Six Mile, Port Moresby
Phone: +675 324 5200
Web: airways.com.pg
Style: Fine dining
Typical price: Mains PGK89–99
BYO: No
In a word: Classy

This article originally appeared in the January/February 2019 edition of Paradise, the inflight magazine of Air Niugini. See airniuginiparadise.com