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Why go? Noumea is a tropical destination that promises an authentic French cuisine immersion without the need to fly across the world to La République Française.
The cuisine of New Caledonia, a French territory, is a diverse mix of local produce, indigenous Kanak traditions, Melanesian flavours and European inspirations. However, the country’s capital is where French fare is the most pronounced. Just like in France, bread is king in Noumea. Boulangeries open early each day to sell fresh baguettes to locals. Extensive French cheese selections feature on every restaurant menu. Local supermarkets stock pate, fresh tuna tartare, foie gras and terrines as a normal part of the culinary fabric.
To eat in Noumea is to eat French food with authenticity, passion and style – whether it’s a DIY baguette with supermarket-bought pate and jamon blanc, or a five-course meal with amuse bouche and a cheese platter to finish. In anyone’s language, that’s a culinary experience worth traveling for.
To eat in Noumea is to eat French food with authenticity, passion and style...
Must eats: Start your day with breakfast at the boulangerie-patisserie, in Anse Vata. Opt for a chouquette (French sugar puff) filled with light praline cream or a chocolate brioche. Or go all out and try a mille feuille, coffee éclair, banana tartlet or opera cake for breakfast. Takeaway options are also available in case you want to secure a hot dog gratine (brioche bread, smoked Toulouse sausage, pickled onions, Emmental and mozzarella) or Alsacian quiche for lunch.
To sample one of the best croissants you'll ever taste, visit a . The two standouts here were the raspberry and chocolate croissants – each filled with their feature ingredient and topped with flavoured stripes woven into the design of the croissant. All the croissants were made with pure butter and by hand.
A plate of take-away pastries from Saint Honore Boulangerie Pattisserie in Noumea. Source: Yasmin Noone
For lunch, it’s worth taking a 10-minute car trip beyond the city to : a new French café with a modern spin, situated on the Nouville peninsula. This is the place to enjoy tuna tartare presented on top of a circular bed of finely chopped Granny Smith apples. The pork trotter terrine is another outstanding starter, served with black garlic aioli and vegetable pickles. For main, order the old school French classic, chicken supreme with carrots and chanterelle mushrooms that the cafe pairs with a prawn bisque-style sauce.
After lunch, most of the restaurants and shops close. So it’s time for a sieste and a stroll along the bay, followed by an ice cream at on Anse Vata.
Moist, chunky, gelatinous and meaty: when you're in Noumea, don't forget to order the pork terrine at Cafe Del Pap's. Source: Yasmin Noone
By night fall, Noumea will come alive again. So for dinner, visit at Chateau Royale Hotel for a decadent French feast. Dine on semi-cooked foie gras infused with rum vanilla or local blue prawns (they are bigger and sweeter than Australian prawns) for entrée. For main, take the opportunity to sample the restaurant’s interpretation of bougna - the famed dish of the Kanak peoples - as it's not widely available in the capital. This bougna offers local tuna with sweet potato gratin, yams and poingo bananas. The dish is dressed in a vanilla beurre blanc sauce. Finish the meal by making room for profiteroles made with choux pastry and vanilla ice cream, drizzled with hot chocolate.
is the place to go for experimental French food fused with local cuisine. Start your evening with a gratin dish that’s crunchy on top and filled with a local mangrove crab and fish underneath. The bouillabaisse-style main is innovative and unique – it features prawns with accompanying saffron potatoes croquettes, vegetables, croutons and small mounds of French Rouille sauce. Wind up the night with a ‘Havana’ cigar crisp tuille, initially presented in a cigar box for kicks. It's filled with dark chocolate mousse and flavoured with smoke. Wash it all down with a cocktail, a glass of imported French wine or go for the more affordable and refreshing option: a pint of locally produced Number One beer.
If you only eat one dish: When holidaying in a French territory like Noumea, eating a French-styled galette by the water is a must. , a restaurant overlooking the Baie des Citrons (Bay of Lemons), is a top choice for a memorable galette experience. There are so many galette varieties to choose from but to indulge in creamy cheese goodness, go for the galette raclette. The perfectly thin buckwheat galette was topped with a bed of lettuce that supported the weight of the other ingredients - country ham, potato, cream, and raclette cheese. The enormous meal was the definitive plate of food to remind you just how important cheese and cream combos are in French cuisine.
Must visit: Be surrounded by a smorgasbord of bread, preserves, honey, fruits and vegetables at New Caledonia's biggest market, . Visit the seafood hall to see locally caught mangrove crabs, prawns, octopus, lobsters, red mullet and mahi-mahi. Listen to a chorus of French accents over the hum of gentle music, as shoppers order everything from traditional baguettes to pastries.
Feel your way around the different kinds of yams, taros, tomatoes and lettuce available, before you smell the pineapples, plantain bananas and lemons to see which ones to buy. Finish your morning at the market by visiting the French-inspired café/bar on-site. Buy a coffee and order a croque madame or monsieur. Take a seat and watch life at the morning market unfold at an escargot’s pace.
Best food souvenirs Bring home the sweet taste of Noumea with a vanilla pod souvenir, grown in (one hour from Noumea) or on the islands of Lifou, Maré or Tiga. You can pick up vanilla pods at the city's markets and at various shops throughout the capital. To make sure your vanilla souvenirs make it through customs, opt for pods sold in sealed glass containers. Don't leave Noumea without handmade chocolates from in Quartier Latin or in the city. If you're into spirits, check out the New Caledonian clear brandy, derived from two local trees. Eau de vie de bois noir (black wood brandy) or Eau de vie fleur de niaouli (flower of a niaouli tree) are both made at and sold at throughout Noumea.
There's always room for dessert if the profiteroles are drizzled with hot chocolate. Source: Yasmin Noone
Note: this is not a real cigar. It's a smoked 'Havana’ cigar crisp tuille, filled with dark chocolate mousse from Marmite et Tire-Bouchon. Source: Yasmin Noone
Feast your eyes on this giant galette topped with green salad, potato, cream, raclette cheese and country ham. Source: Yasmin Noone
Fruits and vegetables sold at Port Moselle Market. Source: Yasmin Noone
Breakfast is served at Port Moselle Market. Source: Yasmin Noone
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