Honeymoon Week 2: Maldives - Food

Our package at the resort only included bed & breakfast. We are not fans of eating the same thing in the same restaurant more than once so we opted out of the half board option which included a buffet meal in the main restaurant every night . Since we ended up having a buffet almost every night in Sri Lanka, we were so glad we had made that decision.

The breakfast, served in the main restaurant, was a massive buffet spread with loads of different options whether you wanted fruit, bread, cereals or a full cooked breakfast. There were also two food stations where the chefs could make you an omelette or eggs on one and the other was for either pancakes or waffles, depending which day it was. I absolutely love pancakes so I had loads of them!

After such a big breakfast, we didn't really need much for lunch, so we often bought snacks back from the shop. We did eat lunch once, at Stars, on what should have been our last day and enjoyed the burger & sandwich we had but it wasn't necessary every day.

There were four restaurants at the resort; Stars, Aqua, Air & Breeze, then you also had the option of eating in your villa. Breeze was a barbecue on the beach which we never fancied trying for the price, but we tried the other three. In all of the restaurants there was a dress code which for men meant no vests at breakfast & no shorts at dinner. Everyone we saw was always dressed for dinner but we did see a couple of guys being asked to change at breakfast, one who had no shirt on & another with just a vest. Knowing this in advance we had taken plenty of evening wear with us; I don't think I've ever had to get dressed for dinner so often.

During the week we ate four times at Stars, which was for the exclusive use of guests at the residences and not far from our villa. This meant you would also always get a table if you hadn't thought to book and we had most of our meals there since it was so close.

Stars Restaurant

(Image from here)

The food, described as Asian fusion, was delicious and always started with an amuse-bouche. We only had the full 3 course a couple of times as you got plenty for each course. The first night we arrived it was quite stormy so we had to eat inside. We then ate again at Stars for the last 3 nights of our first week. The menu changed every day so we could always try something new and I was able to have plenty of fish including tuna, lobster & calamari, while Graham stuck to reef fish or beef fillet, along with some gorgeous desserts.

We ate twice at Aqua, which was set over the water. Since it was quite far from our villa, we were able to use the golf buggy to get there.

Aqua Restaurant

(Image from here)

They served mainly seafood & Asian cuisine, and the first night I had reef fish with red curry sauce while Graham tried steamed reef fish. The meal always started with an amuse-bouche, similar to Stars.

The second time we ate at Aqua was for our complimentary honeymoon dinner where the menu was set. They gave us a copy of the menu to keep which is the only reason I know what we had! After starting with a glass of champagne and a king prawn amuse bouche, we were served a chargrilled beef tenderloin salad with a mint, coriander & lime dressing; followed by our main of king prawns, grilled squid, tempura reef fish, tempura vegetables & rice; finishing with a chocolate pistachio bavarian cream, all of which were lovely.

Then we had the buffet in Air, the main restaurant, just once, and even then it was only because Aqua was too busy when we arrived on our second night. Although it was all lovely food, it was nothing compared to Stars or Aqua where you at least got your food served.

Air Restaurant
(Image from here)

All of the food & drinks were expensive at the resort, which we knew before we went and had accounted for. The food in the two individual restaurants, Aqua & Stars, was worth every penny, however the buffet in the main restaurant, Air, wasn't really! It was a whopping $88 per person for buffet and by the time you added a bottle of wine, a bottle of water & the compulsory 10% service charge, our buffet meal cost us $245! {All prices were in US Dollars in the resort.}

Once a week the resort manager hosted a cocktail party at the main bar and all of the guests were invited. This took place on the Sunday evening, which should have been our second last night, and never wanting to refuse a free drink we went along for some delicious canapes & cocktails. We had met another couple who had got married in Edinburgh on 3rd April 2010 at the night we ate at the buffet. He went to school the year above me & Graham {which is why we got talking to them} and then discovered they had got married on the same day as us. While we were chatting at the cocktail party, we also discovered that she was the other bride at the same hairdressers as me on the morning of our weddings, such a small world! She did comment that I was the one with all the bridesmaids!

There were a couple of bars at the resort as well, one beside Stars and the other, called Latitude, which was beside the main restaurant and pool. We enjoyed a few cocktails and wine occasionally either before or after dinner. The bar in Stars had the biggest wine glasses I've ever seen and I'm very surprised I didn't spill it everywhere! There was a massive selection of wine at each of the restaurants, with the most expensive bottle at $2900!

Latitude Bar

(Image from here)

Then of course there was also the mini bar in our residence, which was ridiculously well stocked but also very expensive for any alcohol!

We were supposed to go home after a week, however the ash cloud had other ideas...