You have just landed on Santo, dropped your bags at Deco Stop Lodge, and the question is dinner. Here are four easy options for your first night, ordered by how far you have to walk from our front gate: our own restaurant, a woodfire pizza place, a seafood favourite in town, and a casual waterfront bar. Nothing is more than a short stroll downhill.
Club Narcosis: dinner without leaving the Lodge
On your first night, the simplest plan is not to go anywhere at all. Club Narcosis Restaurant and Bar sits on site, a few steps from your room, with the infinity pool and the Segond Channel below. There is no booking needed and no taxi to arrange, which is exactly what you want after a travel day. Order the famous Santo beef, which many guests rate as the best steak they have eaten, or go for fresh local seafood or lobster. It is relaxed and family friendly early, with a proper cocktail list for later. If your flight lands late, tell us ahead and the kitchen will try to keep something ready.
Santo Sand Bar and Grill: where do you go for woodfire pizza?
About a ten minute walk down the hill and along the waterfront, the Santo Sand Bar and Grill is the town’s go to for woodfire pizza and easy finger food. This is our pick for a first night with kids, or for a late arrival, because the pizza travels: takeaway is available, so you can carry it back up the hill and eat by the pool. There is a kava bar attached if you want to try Santo’s national drink on night one. No booking is needed for a quiet weekday, though hours shift with the season, so it is worth a quick look at their Facebook page before you head down.
Smugglers Seafood: worth the short walk?
Yes, if seafood is what you are after. Smugglers Seafood Restaurant and Bar sits down on the Luganville waterfront, roughly a ten to twelve minute walk from our front gate, and it is a long standing local favourite for fresh local fish and seafood. This is the one place on our first night list where booking helps: it can get busy on weekends and wait times run long, so either reserve a table or arrive before 7pm. It leans a little more towards adults than the pizza places, which makes it a good second night option too if the kids are worn out from the flight.
Starfish Beach Bar: the casual waterfront fallback
If you just want somewhere relaxed with your feet almost in the sand, the Starfish Beach Bar is an easy first night fallback. It sits on the waterfront a little further along, about a twelve to fifteen minute walk from the Lodge, and serves casual crowd pleasers: fish and chips, pizza and cold beer, with kava on hand too. No booking, no fuss, and enough space for children to move about while you watch the light go off the channel. It is the sort of low key dinner that suits a night when you are too tired to think about it too hard.
FAQs
Where should we eat on our first night in Luganville?
The easiest first night dinner is right here at Deco Stop Lodge. Club Narcosis is on site, needs no booking, and serves famous Santo beef and fresh seafood while you settle in. If you would rather head into town, the Santo Sand Bar and Grill for woodfire pizza is about a ten minute walk down the hill from our front gate.
Do Luganville restaurants take walk ins, or should we book?
Most are relaxed about walk ins, especially early in the week. Smugglers can get busy on weekends, so it pays to book ahead or arrive before 7pm. Club Narcosis at the Lodge and the Santo Sand Bar rarely need a booking, which makes them the safe choice on a first night when your plans are still loose.
Can we get dinner if we arrive late on Santo?
Yes. The Santo Sand Bar and Grill does takeaway woodfire pizza and finger food, so you can grab something on the way up the hill and eat by the pool. If your flight lands late, let us know in advance and the Club Narcosis kitchen will do its best to keep something ready for you back at the Lodge.
Are Luganville restaurants good for families with kids?
Many are. Club Narcosis and the Santo Sand Bar both suit families, with pizza and simple mains that go down well with younger travellers and an early, relaxed atmosphere. Starfish is casual and waterfront, so children have a bit of room to move. Later in the evening the town’s bars lean more towards adults.
Is it easy to walk into town for dinner from Deco Stop Lodge?
Yes. Main Street is about a five minute walk downhill from our front gate, and the waterfront restaurants sit a few minutes beyond that, so most dinners are a ten to fifteen minute stroll each way. For a late night or a big group we are happy to help arrange a taxi, but on a warm evening the walk down the hill is part of the fun.
First nights are not for big plans, they are for a good feed and an early night, and Luganville makes that easy from our front gate. Settle in at Club Narcosis or wander down for pizza by the water, and dinner is sorted. When you are ready to plan the rest of the trip, take a look at our rooms and rates and the on site dining and Lodge facilities.
Image credit: Michael Coghlan, CC BY-SA 2.0
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