Family Friendly Restaurants in Cairns - Prawn Star Cairns Seafood Restaurant

Explore FNQCairns

Aug 3

The first thing you’ll notice about Prawn Star Cairns, the fleet of fishing trawlers down at the Marlin Marina, is that there’s always a crowd close-by – whether its people up on the Boardwalk snapping photos or a huddle down at the boards checking out the prices - most are standing by sampling and purchasing some delicious seafood bounty. There’s no mistaking the magnetic attraction this quaint little fishing trawler has on passers-by….

Prawn Star Cairns Marina @adventuremumma.jpg

CoVid19 Update: Prawn Star Cairns is offering FREE DELIVERY!10% off SEAFOOD, BEER, WINE, AND SOFT DRINKS! 🍤🦞🦀🐟🍺🍷🥤Check out their FACEBOOK Page for more details.....

Every week we try to get down to the Cairns Esplanade for a family night out - even if it’s simply a case of throwing a few ‘snags’ on one of the free BBQ's (our No.1 choice for family friendly restaurants in Cairns). The breeze is always a little cooler down on the Esplanade and the kids always seem a bit more manageable outdoors. Plus there’s invariably something happening that catches our attention – a busker, zumba in the lagoon, a groovy sunset – things that remind you why you choose to be up in the Far North.

Prawn Star Marlin Marina @adventuremumma.jpg

It was the kids who spotted the Prawn Star Cairns at the Marlin Marina first. How could you miss it! Bright lights, bright colours, funky name (thankfully the kids didn’t quite catch on) and a freshness about the little fishing boat that really catches your attention. Before we knew it we were being dragged down the Marina ramp for a closer look.

Prawn Star Cairns is basically a floating restaurant for fresh, locally caught seafood. In its former years it ploughed the Queensland coast as a fishing trawler under the name ‘Lewis Venture’. Even now the odd fisherman walks past and reminds the owners that this little boat was once known as the ‘Pride of Moreton Bay’. For now though, it sits tight in the Cairns Marina with a fresh coat of paint and a shipment of trawler goodies for anyone who is keen.

Prawn Star - fresh seafood @adventuremumma.jpg

The highlight for our kids was the opportunity to taste a prawn straight off the boat (I’m sure that they thought it had come straight from a fishing expedition). Half the novelty lay in the fact that they could throw the scraps straight into the water to the fish below. "More please, more please!" they kept asking to our embarrassment. It was obvious we were going to have to "Throw a Prawn on the Barbie" that night just to pay for their enthusiasm.

Eventually we decided on a kilo of uncooked tiger prawns and a handful of Moreton Bay Bugs for our barbecue that night. There was more up on the board, all fresh seafood supplied by local fishing boats. One young group of travellers made off with 4 live mudcrabs – we thought we’d save that for another night…..when we had stronger cutlery :) .

Prawn Star - seafood @adventuremumma.jpg

Back on the Cairns Esplanade it didn’t take us long to find a FREE BBQ to cook up our seafood delights. One thing about covering your barbie plate with prawns and bugs is that you soon find a crowd of people enquiring about your ‘catch’. I tried to convince them it was our own fishing skills but I think most people had worked out the ‘Prawn Star Cairns’ was selling fresh seafood down at the Cairns Marina.

Of course there were no arguments when the time came to sit down and eat. And there were no problems with leftovers either, but admittedly the sausages didn’t get much of a look in that night……..

Prawn Star - Cairns Esplanade BBQ @adventuremumma.jpg

Good Things to Know:

Prawn Star Cairns is situated at Berth E31, Cairns Marlin Marina (next to the Salt House)
Prawn Star is open 7 days a week from 11am – 9pm
Seafood prices are comparable to the local seafood shops around the region.
Prices and seafood are dependent to seasonal fluctuations.
There’s a good selection of seafood available – cooked prawns, oysters, salmon sashimi, Moreton Bay bugs, mud crabs and crayfish BUT remember it’s all dependent on availability.
Prawn Star Cairns now has a fleet of boats and plenty of space onboard to sit - share tables are the norm.
All BBQ's along the Cairns Esplanade are FREE to use and undergo regular cleans and maintenance.

Prawn Star supplied us with our seafood for free on this particular night.

If you would like to learn more about Prawn Star Cairns click HERE.

Are you a lover of fresh, locally caught Seafood? Have you spotted the fishing trawler along the Cairns Marina yet?