October 12th, 2026Catalina Restaurant & Bar
Catalina Restaurant & Bar has one of the best views around, with diners able to sit back and enjoy the glistening Broadwater while feasting on some of the best seafood around – with much more on offer.
Owner Charlie Whitcombe is someone who used to be described as “a man of the world” -raised in Dunedin, New Zealand and having worked in a host of roles around both his former home and Australia. He’s been a professional fisherman, jumped onto oil rigs and is now at home in hospitality with a great team behind him. He’s old school and knows what works.
We headed to Catalina on a Wednesday for lunch. The day was heating up but there was a lovely cool breeze, and plenty of people – from couples and families, to workplace friends -were enjoying this fantastic dining spot.
Staffer Nick showed us to our restaurant table with menus and specials at the ready. There are two dining areas – the restaurant and the more casual cafe. Both are well staffed with plenty of smiles – so you know these guys are happy campers.
The menu is perfect, not too long but not so short you are looking for other options. As I said seafood seemed like the right choice, looking out over the water, so we decided to share a Kingfish carpaccio with a mandarin miso reduction and black tobiko ($33) and the Scallop Croquettes with chives and hollandaise ($29). (I lived in Japan for three years in my 20s but only learnt now that tobiko is the Japanese word for flying fish roe.)
Both were amazing. The carpaccio was melt-in-your-mouth delicious and the mix of mandarin, miso and fish row was exquisite – we loved this dish and would have it over and over. Charlie told me later the kingfish was hung for a week before it was served. Amazing.
The croquettes, you get three, were a really generous size, full of scallops and creamy potato with a crisp crumb and wonderful sauce for dipping. A great start to the meal. Oh, I was enjoying a glass of Catalina Sounds Sound of White chardonnay from the Marlborough Sounds in New Zealand ($18). This is a really full-bodied chardy with beautiful oaky flavours – perfect for old-fashioned wine drinkers like me. Kyle opted for a ginger beer. Boring.
We deliberated over the mains and I finally chose the NT Wild Caught Grilled Barramundi with warm caponata, and a lemon and caper beurre blanc ($48). This was a stand-out. A really decent piece of fish, perfectly prepared and sitting on loads of added flavour. Coming from the Northern Territory was just an added bonus.
Kyle chose the Marinara Linguine with prawns, mussels, scallops, NZ clams and barra in a rich Napoli sauce ($48). Again, a fantastic seafood dish teeming with a bit of everything and all coming together in a flavoursome sauce. Whoever is in the kitchen is very good.
Of course, there are plenty of other choices. Burgers, poke bowls, salads, bao buns, steaks, tacos. It’s a cliché but there really is something for everyone.
Catalina is also open for breakfast and dinner and there is also live sunset music, Friday to Sunday, if you prefer just a drink while soaking in that view. And the drinks list is huge. Wines, beers, margaritas, cocktails, mocktails, tequilas…
Jump online for a look or just head to the Broadwater Parklands. Say hi to Charlie.
