The BOX on the Water

Great location right on the water. We had the grazing box set menu. All the food was delicious and the courses were well paced. The cocktails were great too. The service was good, staff were capable and friendly. They have a mirror on the wall so my sister on the table facing the wall still got a great view of the water.

Great restaurant overlooking the water. Recommend to book ahead as we didn’t book and got the table at the back of restaurant. Food was fantastic, however we didn’t like the seafood paella, it was a bit too dry for us. Everything else was perfectly cooked.

Ordered pale ale fish n chip, steamed muscles, paella, salt n pepper squid, gin cured salmon and for dessert we had Elton Mess which was super delicious (raspberry meringue with beetroot sauce and sorbets).

Also note two courses minimum per person on the weekend.

Absolutely lovely place for lunch, dinner of a nice cocktail in the arvo. Great outdoor spaces to sit down, dine, enjoy the views along with your fur baby. Staff were outstanding and knew us by name on the 2nd visit. Definitely recommend the seafood dishes

Exciting atmosphere on Australia Day at Ettalong. Friendly and helpful service from the Box. For first timers like us did, the restaurant is NOT at the street front (that's the cafe), but walk around to the back of said cafe and it is water fronted. Love the menu and how the food were prepared and presented. Those cured olives from Entree side were irresistible.
They're plenty of street parking available.

I'll admit that when I saw that it really is a box on the water, I was somewhat amused. Then, I followed up with the thought how could it have atmosphere or decent food.

I'm glad to say I was happily surprised with the food and atmosphere. Sometimes, good things do come in small packages.

Except for the food that was plentiful. I had planned on a "light lunch." Well, I failed at that part, but I didn't fail to enjoy the food.

We had a fabulous girls night out at the Box. The evening was still with a lovely moon rising over the water and the moored boats setting a lovely outlook.
Starting with Cocktails that tasted great, not the watered down type. We shared the hot and cold seafood platter, muscles and the trout, between the 4 of us it was more than enough but soo delicious. The wines paired beautifully with our meals.
The staff were very friendly and attentive to our needs. We all loved our night out and would highly recommend a visit to tjhe box.

It’s our favourite place to stop and eat on the water. The staff are friendly, the food is amazing and the location works perfectly when arriving via Jetskis 🥳🥳

We had satisfying group lunch when we visited Ettalong Beach on recent Sunday. We ordered some of their entree, main and dessert dishes to enjoy. The highlight were the baked camembert cheese, fish & chips, and the Goan fish curry with biryani rice. The dessert chocolate lava cake was quite nice as well. Please note that you have to order at least 2 courses for each person at weekend lunch / dinner time.

The atmosphere / ambience of the restaurant is very nice since you got to enjoy water-view of the Ettalong Beach in front of you while having your meal. The place is quite spacious and nicely decorated as well. The customer service from staff members were good as well since they would try their best to accommodate our reasonable request. Prices on the menu are quite premium but expected from such fine-dining experience in a premium tourism spot like Ettalong Beach. You can pay with all credit cards with no additional surcharge - top customer service policy.

What a great location! Right on the water at Ettalong. Beautiful food, reasonable wine prices. Fantastic staff. Amazing views. Only let down by interior noise. Needs baffles or similar. But highly recommend dining there!!

Fabulous restaurant, friendly and polite staff, great location and views!! Food came out fast, was well presented and tasted amazing. Cocktails were great! Would highly recommend and would definitely come back

Beautiful location with parking close by. Service was good...young staff who were all very attentive and professional. Meal was good quality. Mussels and creme brulee were highlights. Two courses each plus 4 drinks was just under $200 so really good value for a special lunch.

We had a wonderful dinner at The BOX on the Water. Great location overlooking the water. Getting there early means you can enjoy the view.

Three scallops for entree were very tasty and Paella for main. For the first few mouthfuls of the Paella I was slightly underwhelmed by the taste but as I ate more the flavour appeared.

Desert we shared the Dark chocolate Crème brûlée which was amazing. We had a margarita and cab sav... both good :-).

Definitely going back.

Update.... back for lunch and again excellent. Heaps of gluten free options. Best location overlooking the water. Outstanding service from the waitress.

Great afternoon at The Box. Excellent food, 5 atmosphere. Good variety of reasonably priced wines. Only issue is that the place is too popular on a sunny afternoon

Fabulous restaurant based on the foreshore overlooking Botany Bay! The A la carte menu is a must, food is delicious and well presented! Food menu is limited but has a good drinks menu. You can dine inside or outside! It can be windy outside. Awesome service! Fine dining & waterfront, simply the best to celebrate any occasion! Booking is essential, as it’s not a big restaurant!

Arrived 2pm on a pleasant, sunny, still day - wasn’t too busy. Got a phenomenal table overlooking the bay and the people facing us also got the same view as the wall behind us was a mirror. Simple gorgeous.

Ordered the seafood platter for 2, lamb shank and fish-n-chips. Food was to-die-for.

- Seafood Platter:
Prawns were large and succulent; the cured trout was unique - never had anything like this outside Japan; l
The white anchovies had a mild sweet flavor just like they should and
The tuna tartare had a blend of seasonings and accoutrements including diced radish, red onions, and cucumber that set it off just right;
Mussels conveyed subtle flavours ginger, lemongrass, ginger, chilli, white wine which took us to another place.
Seared scallops prepared with dill, wasabi, leek were delectable.
The pièce de résistance of the platter was the Grilled Barramundi - a definite cannot-miss. There is an entrée of this on the menu too. Highly recommended.

- Pale Ale Fish was perfectly prepared. It was firm and flaky, succulent, free of bones, not too oily, and crispy on the outside.

- The Moroccan lamb shank was served with pistachios, pomegranate, chick peas, and couscous salad in with mint yoghurt on a bed of tomato sauce; tender and cooked just right. A smorgasbord of flavours and aromas that came together very well indeed.

Crawled out of the place 3hrs later…

Highly recommended. We were lucky to get seats as walk-ins but strongly suggest making reservations if you decide you want the experience. They can get awfully busy.

Food was amazing. We had the calamari followed by the special salmon and seafood paella. All 3 dishes were superb. Seafood awesomely fresh and perfectly cooked. Flavour was also amazing. Service was a bit hit and miss with staff repeatedly staring at us and walking past us on arrival but the table service and manager/owner attention at the table was great. Beautiful views straight out over the beach and water. All up the food was exceptional and the star of the show even above the beautiful views. Very enjoyable lunch, good value and highly recommended.

If you enjoy good food and good wine and good company this is the place to go. The sunset was turned on which we jokingly thanked the waitress, Jess, for! The Seafood Paella was a favorite for us which paired well with the house Chardonnay.

We had mothers day lunch here. Lovely atmosphere with a perfect view for the day. The staff were very friendly and helpful. They had a set menu which had loads of delicious options. I had dietary restrictions and they were very accommodating with them. Great options for kids meals as well.

Have been here quite a few times now - every time the service @ The Box is always consistently great. Ben was amazing !!! Couldn't be more helpful - attentive/great knowledge of the menu/understood nuances of a lunch with kids and provided an exceptional overall customer experience. We came for a late lunch - very reasonable with three starters, two mains, a kids meal, bottle of wine and a cocktail for a little over $200. Location/food & service all on point. Def recommend!

Really enjoy eating here everything we visit the central coast. High quality food and service.