Spotted In
A PNG hotelier in Germany
“Our pizzas are so good that we know people take them on the flights out of Buka,” says Sister Hilda of the Convent of Nazarene and a staff member in a unique Papua New Guinean restaurant, the AroB Pizza Inn.
Located in a lush glade on Buka’s outskirts, the little inn is a livelihoods project of the Catholic diocese. There are 26 pizzas on the menu, ranging from old favourites like margherita and Hawaiian, to more edgy offerings such as a spicy diavolo. As much as possible, the ingredients come from Bougainville.
What the team is producing out of the tiny little ovens is little short of a culinary miracle. The pizzas are as divine as anything you would find in an Italian piazza.
The base – kneaded from a secret recipe – feels the right mid-point between spongy and firm. The toppings are consistent in their quality. Washed down with a soft drink, cold beer or wine, these pizzas are a perfect way to end the week.
The restaurant has become a popular destination for Bougainvilleans, expats, and visitors since opening last year. The most popular pizza is the Hawaiian, reputedly a favourite of the region’s president, whose wife calls in for takeaway.
The venture employs 20 people, providing transferable skills in cooking and hospitality management. It is a place that shows what mixing ingredients of hope, imagination and hard work can create.
The team behind the Pizza Inn isn’t resting on its laurels, with plans to expand to Arawa and Buin. But its next venture in Buka is an upmarket steakhouse. Scotch fillet, beef kebabs, and crocodile will be on the menu. The location – on a crag overlooking the Buka passage – is dreamy.
Sticking a pizza into a suitcase and checking it onto a plane is a pretty radical move. But once you taste the quality of these pizzas, you might not think it is a crazy one after all. — GORDON PEAKE