Behind the pink wall and the red Coca-Cola sign is Lucas Restaurant, a simple, laid-back and thoroughly Mozambican joint on the beautiful island of Inhaca. Like all the best restaurants, Lucas sticks to what it does best: home-cooked seafood and Mozambican dishes, served with a smile and a generous dollop of Inhaca sunshine. Far from fancy or pretentious, it’s appeal lies in its simplicity. This is beachside Mozambican chow at its best.
We don’t blame Lucas Restaurant for setting their prices on the high side, since there are certainly tourist dollars to be had on Inhaca. But if we’re ordering simple food, we expect simple prices, and the $27 seafood platter, although big, seemed pricey to us. Other dishes are more reasonably priced; we liked the giant Mozambican shrimp, chargrilled to perfection, and the grilled lulas. Most plates come with fat fries and a simple side salad. You can wash down the seafood with an ice-cold bottle of Mozambican Laurentina or 2M beer. The Portuguese prego rolls (a Maputo staple) are also pretty good.
The Mozambican dishes on the menu change as often as the tides, but the hot peri-peri sauce here is pretty good, as are the curried dishes and the cassava leaf stew — if the chef is still making it. Breakfast is a bit of a let-down; think soggy eggs and sugary bread, so we recommend heading here for (preferably) lunch, or (if not) dinner. Service can be slow, but that’s the case at local restaurants all over Mozambique. If you’re not eating at your guesthouse or a hotel on Inhaca, you’ll surely pass through here at some point. Bom apetite, as they say.
Expert Review
Behind the pink wall and the red Coca-Cola sign is Lucas Restaurant, a simple, laid-back and thoroughly Mozambican joint on...
Behind the pink wall and the red Coca-Cola sign is Lucas Restaurant, a simple, laid-back and thoroughly Mozambican joint on the beautiful island of Inhaca. Like all the best restaurants, Lucas sticks to what it does best: home-cooked seafood and Mozambican dishes, served with a smile and a generous dollop of Inhaca sunshine. Far from fancy or pretentious, it’s appeal lies in its simplicity. This is beachside Mozambican chow at its best.
We don’t blame Lucas Restaurant for setting their prices on the high side, since there are certainly tourist dollars to be had on Inhaca. But if we’re ordering simple food, we expect simple prices, and the $27 seafood platter, although big, seemed pricey to us. Other dishes are more reasonably priced; we liked the giant Mozambican shrimp, chargrilled to perfection, and the grilled lulas. Most plates come with fat fries and a simple side salad. You can wash down the seafood with an ice-cold bottle of Mozambican Laurentina or 2M beer. The Portuguese prego rolls (a Maputo staple) are also pretty good.
The Mozambican dishes on the menu change as often as the tides, but the hot peri-peri sauce here is pretty good, as are the curried dishes and the cassava leaf stew — if the chef is still making it. Breakfast is a bit of a let-down; think soggy eggs and sugary bread, so we recommend heading here for (preferably) lunch, or (if not) dinner. Service can be slow, but that’s the case at local restaurants all over Mozambique. If you’re not eating at your guesthouse or a hotel on Inhaca, you’ll surely pass through here at some point. Bom apetite, as they say.