The food of Rarotonga, Samoa and Tonga is sturdy and filling: don’t expect to scale back the calories here! And don’t worry about the indignity of piling your plate too high or going back for seconds – the more you eat, the more the islanders will love you for it. Expect lots of fish, chicken and pork, plus tropical fruit and some excellent South Seas beers to sluice it all down.
With a temperate climate and often rich volcanic soil, things grow easily across the Pacific. On Rarotonga, look forward to papayas, mangoes and oranges. In Samoa, locally grown tropical fruit includes bananas, papayas, guavas, passion fruit, pineapples and vi (Tahitian apples); mangoes are available from late September. Across the islands of Tonga, seasonal fruit includes bananas, bush oranges, almonds, papayas, pineapples, guavas, passion fruit and watermelons. Across the region, starchy staples include breadfruit, and root vegetables such as yams, sweet potatoes and cassavas.
The Cook Islands offers a huge variety of seafood, and most Rarotongan restaurants offer a ‘catch of the day’, usually a deep-sea fish such as mahimahi, wahoo, swordfish or tuna. In Samoa, marine delicacies include tuna and shark, and lagoon species including parrotfish, perch, lobster, squid, octopus, crabs and limu (a crunchy seaweed). Tongan seafood highlights include local lobster, snapper, tuna and mahimahi.
One of the best ways to sample local Pacific cuisine is to stay in a village, be invited into a home or take part in an umu feast (known as an umukai in the Cook Islands). An umu is a traditional Polynesian earth oven harnessing hot rocks to steam the food. It's used for feasts and celebrations or the weekly community get-together for a leisurely Sunday lunch after church. Typical umu foods include chicken and fish, or more prestigious roast suckling pig.
Accompanying dishes include cooked green bananas, taro and yams, and corned beef fried with onions. Other dishes incorporate coconut cream, including the tasty Samoan delicacies palusami (young taro leaves baked in coconut cream), oka (marinated raw fish, known as ika mata in the Cook Islands), supo esi (papaya pudding) and fa’ausi talo (taro in coconut cream). In Tonga, a popular umu dish is lu. Infused with a smoky flavour, taro leaves are wrapped around corned beef, sipi (mutton), fish or chicken, and then mixed with coconut milk and onion. In the Cook Islands, other local specialities include firi firi (Tahitian-style doughnuts), rukau (steamed taro leaves), poke (banana with arrowroot and coconut) and mitiore (fermented coconut with onion and seafood).
You’ll usually find all of these dishes at Rarotonga’s weekly Punanga Nui Market. Inexpensive Tongan market foods include faikakai (pudding with a coconut syrup) and keke (deep-fried cakes flavoured with banana).
ATipping is not customary in the Cook Islands, Samoa or Tonga.
AMeals are often preceded by a short grace.
AFood is seen as something to be shared: village families are hospitable and may invite you home for a meal.
AIf you stay with a village family, reciprocate by buying a sack of rice or tins of corned beef at the local store.
AOn outer islands, meals are sometimes eaten in the traditional way – ie without cutlery – but most people will understand if you prefer to use a knife and fork.
ABe wary of dishes marinated in coconut cream, especially in markets and at village meals. Dishes are often prepared the day before and coconut cream can spoil quickly.
ABe wary of eating reef fish (parrotfish, snapper etc), as some islands have a problem with ciguatera poisoning. Stick to deep-sea fish (tuna, mahimahi, wahoo). These are generally the only fish served in restaurants.
Across the Pacific you can often buy green coconuts from the roadside or at local markets. Fresh fruit juices and smoothies are another refreshing tropical treat.
In the Cook Islands, coffee is grown and roasted on Rarotonga and ‘Atiu, and on Tonga, locally produced Royal coffee is popular. But the quality of the brew can be questionable: interpretations of Italian-style espresso are sometimes rather abstract – weak and milky is the norm. For a stiff double shot, head for the resort restaurants or expat-run cafes in urban areas. The further you get from the major towns, the more likely it is that it’ll be instant coffee in your cup.
In Samoa, local beverages include koko Samoa (a chocolate drink made with locally grown and roasted cocoa beans) and creamy vaisalo (made from fresh coconuts and thickened with starch).
Local beers to look for include Popoa in Tonga, Vailima in Samoa and Matutu in the Cook Islands. Liqueurs, wine and vodka made from local fruit are sold on Rarotonga, and visitors to ‘Atiu should check out a tumunu (bush-beer drinking session), the Cook Islands equivalent of kava-drinking ceremonies in Tonga and Samoa. Wine – mostly imported from NZ or Australia – is available in most large towns, but it's usually expensive.
Known as kava in Tonga and ‘ava in Samoa, the muddy and peppery drink made from the dried root of the kava plant is popular across the South Pacific. Although not alcoholic, kava is both anaesthetic and analgesic, high in fibre, low in calories, and serves as a mild tranquiliser, antibacterial agent and diuretic. Unfortunate side effects for committed drinkers are yellowing skin, excessive fatigue and a decreased red blood cell count.
In Samoa, ‘ava is usually reserved for special occasions and restricted to matai (chiefs), but a big wooden bowl of the drink is often available at the market in Apia.
Tongans prefer to drink home-grown kava. The best kava is said to come from the volcanic islands of Tofua in Ha’apai and Tafahi in the Niuas.
Kava is used in both formal and informal settings in Tonga. It is drunk before and after church on a Sunday, during the conferment of nobility, at village meetings and in the negotiations of contracts and other agreements. Most villages have at least one kava club (kava kulupu), and big, intervillage kava parties are a common fundraiser.
Locally, only men visit kava clubs, but male and female visitors are usually welcome. You may be formally invited, or just ask a local taxi driver to take you. If you're lucky, you might be invited to join kava circles, which sometimes happen at local bars.
The Cook Islands – especially Rarotonga – has a diverse and cosmopolitan dining scene. Most Rarotongan restaurants prepare food to a high standard, courtesy of the tourist industry and the large number of local chefs trained overseas. Regular 'island nights' at Cook Islands resorts are a good opportunity to try local flavours. Aitutaki also features island nights and a couple of decent restaurants, but on other islands in the Cooks, dining options are more limited.
In Samoa and American Samoa, Apia and Pago Pago respectively have a range of restaurants, but outside these towns options for dining out are limited. Samoans don’t eat out much, so most menus cater for Western tastes, with seafood, steak, pizza and pasta, and some Apia hotels put on island-style buffets.
In Tonga there are Western-style cafes, restaurants and bars on Tongatapu and Vava’u, but options are limited (or nonexistent) on Ha’apai, ‘Eua and the Niuas.
Supermarkets on Rarotonga are well stocked, but outer-island grocery stores are more limited. Rarotonga’s Saturday-morning Punanga Nui Market is excellent for fresh produce, traditional foods and an expanding range of local gourmet goodies. Informal stalls around the island also sell fresh fruit and vegetables. Fresh seafood is easily purchased on Rarotonga, and Aitutaki has a weekly market. Fish and seafood are sold in most Rarotongan supermarkets, but on the outer islands you’ll have to catch your own or buy from local fishers.
In Tonga, markets can be found in Nuku’alofa, Pangai and Neiafu, but on outer islands the availability and diversity of fresh produce can be erratic. Most villages have fale koloa (corner shops) and major towns have supermarkets.
Apia in Samoa has a small fish market (go as early as possible), but elsewhere it’s difficult to buy fresh fish and seafood to cook up yourself. Supermarkets in Apia and Pago Pago (American Samoa) are well stocked, but high transport costs to the islands can make some items more expensive than you might expect. Every village has a store, but they only stock the basics.
Outside of supermarkets on Rarotonga and in Nuku’alofa, Apia and Pago Pago, it’s always worth checking the use-by dates on packaged or canned food, especially in smaller village shops with a low turnover of goods. Prices on outer islands are high, so it’s worth stocking up at main-island supermarkets (but be aware that weight limits for baggage on short flights to smaller islands can be restrictive).
Restaurant menus on Rarotonga are dominated by fish, seafood and meat dishes, though there are usually a few meat-free salad and pasta options.
Vegetarians may struggle with traditional Tongan food, where nearly every dish involves meat. Even if you request meat-free food from stalls, takeaway stands and locally run restaurants, your food is likely to be cooked alongside meat products.
In Samoa, you can buy palusami (taro leaves and coconut cream) and fresh fruit and vegetables in the Apia market. If you’re accommodated in a homestay, tell your hosts you’re vegetarian to avoid any awkward moments later on.