Press PLAY to listen to Emilia Fuller’s full review

Bang Bang

18 Vista Place

Cape Woolamai

After a hike from San Remo to Kilcunda (highly recommend if you’re heading this way) I found the perfect, cute foodie joint just near Phillip Island at Cape Woolamai.

Bang Bang is located on the corner of Vista Drive & Phillip Island Tourist Road and as soon as you walk inside, the surf moves from the shoreline to the ceiling.

Boards, stories and salt-stained history hang above you, setting the scene before a single dish hits the table.

Longboards and shortboards hang from the roof like a floating lineup, each one looking like it’s seen more than a few decent sets roll through Cape Woolamai.

The boards aren’t just decor; they’re a quiet nod to Phillip Island’s status as a serious surf destination, and they give the room this warm, slightly nostalgic glow, like a beach shack that’s grown up into a bar.

The collection has been curated with help and passion from owner Pat O’Garey and other local surf identities over time, turning the venue into a kind of ‘mini surf museum’ woven into a bar and dining room.

The boards span different eras and styles, and while each has its own backstory in the local surf scene, not every board’s individual owner or exact timeline is documented in detail for diners, which actually adds to the sense that you’re eating under a living, evolving piece of community history.

We started simple with the corn fritters, which don’t quite resemble what you might conjure in your mind as corn fritters but rather golden balls.

Inside, the batter is studded with juicy kernels that pop with sweetness, lifted by herbs and seasoning so they never feel heavy or greasy. Paired with an asian gazpacho and shredded lettuce for freshness.

Next, we tried the half-serve of pork ribs that arrived in two towers ready to fall off the bone, lacquered in a glossy, deeply caramelised sauce that clings to the meat.

The first bite is all about texture and balance – the hot tamarind glaze leans into sweet, salty and a little smoky, with an undercurrent of Asian spice that keeps you coming back for more.

Seeing as we’re seaside, I thought it only fitting to try the market fish – whole snapper, and it lands on the table like a centrepiece.

Skin blistered and crisp, fins slightly charred, the flesh underneath is pearly, moist and delicately sweet.

The kitchen treats it with a light hand; aromatics, citrus and Asian-leaning seasoning, so the snapper still tastes like the ocean rather than a sauce delivery system.

Picking through the fish, finding those perfect pockets of cheek meat and fillet, feels communal and a bit ritualistic, the kind of dish that slows the table down and gets everyone talking, sharing and passing plates around.

The Asian greens are the quiet achiever of the meal, wok-tossed, they hold onto their snap, with a savoury, garlicky slick of sauce that pools just enough at the base of the plate.

Against the richness of the ribs and the snapper, the greens bring freshness and a gentle bitterness, cutting through the fat and resetting the palate so the bigger flavours can keep landing without ever becoming too much.

Bang Bang feels like a post-surf feed that grew up into a proper night out: a place where you can walk in sandy and sun-tired or dressed for dinner and feel equally at home.

Eating pork ribs and whole snapper under a ceiling of surfboards connects the food to the coastline just down the road, turning a meal into a little slice of Phillip Island culture.

It’s beachside dining with proper flavour, a sense of fun and just enough grit to feel real – the kind of spot you mentally bookmark as “definitely coming back here next time the swell’s up.”

Image: Supplied