Set menus feature imported premium meats, ocean-fresh local seafood, and fire-cooked desserts.

Guests bedding down at Vakkaru Maldives over the year-end holidays will find two new experiences to savor. This 113-villa private-island resort occupying a former coconut plantation in the Baa Atoll recently unveiled its Anguru Teppanyaki restaurant and Jungle Cinema; the latter takes up a secluded clearing in the center of the island. It seats up to 10 people and offers two screenings each night, at 7:30 pm and then from 9:30 pm onward. A private movie screening in the Jungle Cinema includes free-flow soft drinks and popcorn, while those wanting a proper meal can add on a set dinner.

The resort’s sixth drinking and dining venue, Anguru takes its name from the Dhivehi word for coconut shell charcoal, which is used in barbecues and starts off as a byproduct of cooking in the traditional Maldivian kitchen. Guests are seated in a thatched-roof gazebo near the main pool where teppanyaki chefs slice, dice, and sear ingredients right before their eyes. Anguru accommodates up to 10 diners and serves à la carte lunches and set menus for dinner.

The daytime appetizer selection includes maki rolls, nigiri sushi, and sashimi, while mains encompass premium meats such as Australian wagyu and angus beef, as well as Maldivian Grade A tuna, Scottish salmon, and Maldivian lobster. These are accompanied with sides of miso soup, grilled vegetables, pickles, and Japanese fried rice. Dessert options range from pineapple flambé to ice cream stuffed with battered profiteroles. After dark, diners have several set menus to choose from; the decadent Surf & Turf set begins with starters of lobster popcorn and seafood soup, and for entrees, it pairs pan-seared foie gras and Tajima wagyu beef with locally caught lobster. Orange-macerated crepes flambé bring the meal to a sweet finish.

vakkarumaldives.com