It’s said that 52 languages are spoken around Broome – which translates to a lot of different flavours in its restaurants and cafes.
Breakfast
The Aarli
Broome’s historic pearling boom fuelled a mass migration in the late 1800s that was almost as epic as the Australian gold rush. Japanese, Filipino, Chinese and Malay pearl divers arrived in droves seeking their fortune – and they brought the cuisines of their homelands with them. To this day, restaurants and diners alike are reaping the benefits of this Asian-fusion influence on the culinary scene in Broome. One such restaurant is The Aarli.
Located in the heart of Chinatown, The Aarli is the perfect place to learn about the diversity of Broome’s flavours over an alfresco breakfast. The Asian-inspired menu provides an oriental twist to your usual breakfast suspects – think wok tossed Asian mushrooms, panko crumbed eggs and sriracha hollandaise. Delicious.
The Aarli boasts modern Australian fare in tropical surrounds.
Zookeepers Café
This café derives its name from its location on the site of a former zoo. While the animals have since moved on, what remains is a family-run jaunt that slings house-made pastries, breakfast classics and small-batch roasted coffee blends at all hours of the day.
Coffee is provided by Micrology coffee roasters, and nothing is too much trouble for the friendly staff. They’re happy to provide decaf and alternative milks, as well as healthy juices and smoothies. Recyclable coffee cups are decorated in beautiful designs, as well as a friendly indoor/outdoor setting to enjoy it in.
The Zookeepers Cafe serves up quality breakfast food and coffee on the site of a former zoo.
Town Beach Café
This café is out on its own at Town Beach, so if you were staying at Cable Beach you’d miss it. But it has a beautiful ambience, an amazing beach view and great coffee. You can’t go past it for a classic breaky.
Choose your own adventure with eggs Florentine, eggs benedict or eggs royale. Top it off with a side of smoked salmon, chipolata sausage, baked beans, grilled tomato, hash browns and more.
Broome Courthouse Markets
For those wanting a more casual affair, you can’t go wrong at the Broome Courthouse Markets. It’s a popular, low-key option for breakfast with fresh fruit, doughnuts and even Filipino-style empanadas on offer.
You can’t go wrong with a meal at the Broome Courthouse Markets.
Lunch
The Mango Place
At first, it doesn’t look like much – a ramshackle collection of plastic chairs and wooden tables in the red dirt, beneath a canopy of fringed palms and multi-coloured lanterns – but this mango farm (which makes its own mango wine, port, jam and more) does the best woodfired pizza in Broome, or technically just outside of it.
To get to the Mango Place, drive north from Broome towards Derby, until you come to a sign called ‘12 Mile’ – it’s a satellite suburb 12 miles north of Broome.
Mango Place packs a tropical punch.
Little Indian Restaurant
This is the new kid on the block in Broome and Little Indian is quickly becoming a regular for the locals – the food is absolutely phenomenal.
Not only do they proudly boast the best authentic Indian food in Broome, but they also claim the best quality ingredients, best preparation and quality, friendly service. Homemade masalas and home grown fresh herbs are just par for the course.
Little Indian also offers catering services for all function types. Pimp your next event with some International flavour. Your guests will thank you.
Little Indian is the new kid on the block in Broome but they’ve shot to the top of the must-dine list.
Cichetti Club Restaurant
Handmade pasta, fresh seafood, unexpected flavour twangs from around the world – Cichetti Club is the Cable Beach Club Resort’s answer to modern European dining fare.
Come together to bond over small share plates, a glass of wine and modern Italian food big on both heart and flavour.
The Boardwalk Café at Club is also open daily for lunch, coffee and delicious pastries.
Enjoy aperitivo and share plates at Cichetti Club.
Dinner
Zanders at Cable Beach
If you go to Broome and don’t take a sunset photo at Zanders, did you really go to Broome? The beachfront location makes it a spectacle for both tourists and locals alike as they all crowd to watch the sun sink into the ocean.
Once the sun goes down, the excitement turns to the menu. Expect a wide-ranging offering to suit all palates, emphasised by plenty of locally caught seafood and produce. However, many insiders say the tip at Zanders is to grab some take away, then head to a secluded spot on the beach to enjoy it.
Zanders draws a crowd for their beachfront location and top notch food.
Zensai Japanese
It’s not really visible from the street, but step inside the Cable Beach Club Resort and follow the inviting scent of Japanese flavours until it leads you to Zensai.
The Club Resort’s Executive Chef will take you on a culinary journey to Japan at Zensai, which translates to ‘small pretty things’. And is a concept that is also reflected in the menu; find sample-sized portions of traditional Japanese favourites, from fresh sashimi to tempura, yaki-tori and yaki-ton.
Select an array of dishes that tickle your fancy, or order ‘Omakase’ – meaning ‘leave it to us’.
Runway Bar and Restaurant
Situated right in the heart of Broome, Runway Bar and Restaurant is the kind of local institution you’ll hear about time and time again.
The atmosphere is bustling and unpretentious: a theme that extends to the swiftness and pleasantness of both the service, and food. Just prepare for the sounds of a few planes flying overhead.
We’ve heard good things about the burger and the steak, however it’s hard to look past the extensive seafood menu in a beach-centric town like this…
Drinks
Matso’s Broome Brewery
Visiting the most remote brewery in Australia is certainly a bucket-list experience. Matso’s Broome outfit began in 2000 when Martin and Kim Peirson-Jones took over a microbrewery cum café cum art gallery.
Following a 2004 renovation, Matso’s is now famous for its ginger beer, mango beer and ice-hot chilli beer. Live music in the courtyard can be heard on Friday, Saturday and Sunday afternoons with a variety of visiting artists along with performances from great local talent.
The adjoining Curry Hut is open seven days a week in the courtyard during the dry season. It offers authentic Indian cuisine sometimes cooked with Matso’s beers (dare to try one with the chilli beer!)
Visit the most remote brewery in Australia.
The Bay Club
Hidden at the back of the Mangrove Hotel, the Bay Club is a stylish outdoor restaurant reminiscent of Bali’s famed beach clubs. Overlooking Roebuck Bay, lounge in a day bed, curl up in a Cabana or grab a table and wile away the hours in tropical surrounds.
Listen to live music, indulge in cocktails, have a cold beer and sample the Kimberley’s best produce.
The Bay Club is reminiscent of Bali’s famed beach clubs.
Broome SLSC
Grab a good ol’ fashioned sundowner at the Broome Surf Life Saving Club.
Strap in for a sundowner at the Broome Surf Life Saving Club.
Founded in 1987, this piece of Broome history provides a volunteer beach safety service to the thousands of visitors who frequent Cable Beach each year. While humble in execution (white plastic chairs flank a one-storey shed with attached kiosk) it does the job by providing plenty of vibes for an afternoon drink.
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