La Trattoria

This is the most casual, and cheapest, restaurant available for guests on Hayman Island, but it was also one with the best user reviews, so I was looking forward to it. And by cheap I am talking about mains in the low $30s instead of something in the 40s for the other restaurants.

Food

We were not that hungry, and mostly tired, after our delayed flight, but we couldn’t resist ordering an entrée and a main, as everything on the menu sound really delicious. If I had more time on the island I would definitely come back.

Anyway, back to the food. We started with some foccacia with balsamic oil and tomato salsa. The foccacia was quite soft, the oil was average but the tomato salsa was sweet and had a real zing. It was a tasty dish all around but instead of whetting my appetite I think it really filled me up, so when our entrée of zuppa minestrone ($17) – traditional minestrone soup with clear grilled ciabatta arrived, I was already feeling quite satisfied. The minestrone was excellent, with a heady tomato note, paired with a bit of heat. The little pasta in the soup was really al dente, and I used the grilled ciabatta to mob up all the last drops.

For the main, we decided to forgo the meaty option and went for a pasta and pizza. The pappardelle allo scoglio ($34) – market fresh seafood, scorched tomato, garlic, basil and wide ribbon pasta was generous with the seafood. There were crab, squid, scallots, prawns, mussels, which, we were to learn later, were all shipped fresh daily from Sydney. There was a bit too much sauce, but that’s typical Aussie style, but the pasta was beautiful. The tuscan pizza ($27) – prosciutto, porcini mushroom, kipfler potato, boccocini and herbs was not as good as the pasta. The crust was a bit too doughy for my liking, and I think the potatoes didn’t quite match the topping. That being said, it was a pretty nice pizza. We were just so full and so tired we actually couldn’t finish our meals!

Rating - 7.5

Atmosphere

We had the best spot in the restaurant, right next to the central atrium where the antipasto are displayed and right in front of the Great band. There are the traditional Italian touch, like the red and white chequered tablecloth, the mural on the wall against yellow walls, wooden furnishing and the daily specials displayed.

The guests were obviously enjoying themselves, a few were regulars and some were even dancing along with the band.

All the bowls were the lopsided uneven variety that I always feel like the food is going to spill out.

Rating - 3

Service

Since this was our first night, I didn’t know what to expect. Amy, our waiter, turned out to be the best we had on all occasions on the island. She was friendly and actually genuine and understanding, that’s more, she really anticipated our needs. We ordered the entrée to share and the kitchen actually split it into two servings for us, and even gave us an extra piece of bread.

Rating - 5

C-factor

Not too bad for Hayman Island, expensive for anywhere else.

Rating - 1

Brownie Points - 16.5

Info

Hayman Island Resort
Hayman Island
Great Barrier Reef
QLD 4801
Phone (07) 4940 1234
Website