The Good, The Better and the Absolutely Fabulous
Kim Knight reflects on a year of restaurant reviews
Once I went to a restaurant and my boyfriend nearly broke his tooth on a rock. He popped a smooth, dark river pebble in his mouth and bit hard. In the low light, that pebble looked exactly like the smooth, dark chocolate-covered ball of chicken liver paté that had been carefully placed on a base of baby boulders.
That won’t happen again.
In 2019, the kind of restaurant that used to place its food on rocks switched to cereal. This year, I ate three amuse-bouches served on beds of barley. I suppose it was one way of using up all the carbohydrates we’ve stopped ordering.
Other observable trends: Nduja is a spreadable salami that restaurants are spreading on everything (especially pizza). Makrut lime is what menus used to call “kaffir” lime. If it could be wrapped in a nasturtium leaf there were probably 11 more courses to go. And yuzu koshu is the insanely delicious fermented love child of fresh green chillies and a citrus fruit that looks like a knobbly lemon. Step away from the sriracha and be three steps ahead of everyone else.
In Auckland, 2019 was the year food courts went flash. Everyone in hospitality held their breath for the impact of 10 new eateries on top of Westfield Newmarket — and they’re still watching this shopping centre dining space — downtown’s Commercial Bay will reportedly open in March.
The city’s sexiest restaurant (Clooney) closed and new openings were big and gastro-pubby (The Brit) or small and perfectly formed (Bar Celeste). According to the Restaurant Association of New Zealand’s latest report, the industry grew 4.2 per cent between 201819, reaching $11.7 billion in annual sales. It now employs 133,100 people and (think about this next time you’re wondering whether to tip) wages range from an average $18.38 an hour for wait staff to $33.74 for an executive chef.
Another thing to think about: latest data shows that in Auckland in 2018, some 1116 hospitality businesses opened — and 930 closed.
Wondering what to eat and where? Here are a few highlights from the Canvas restaurant-reviewing year.
MEAT AND NO VEGE
It was a beefy stained glass window. Thick meat, transparent interconnecting tissue. Slow-cooked with five spice (and possibly even six or seven), cooled to set the gelatinous tendon firm and precisely sliced. A modest dish of beef shin that punched above its $10 price tag at Dominion Rd newcomer, Huai Yang. huaiyang.co.nz
MEAT AND THREE VEGE
The perfect spring roast came in a perfect little frying pan. Pink lamb, tender peas, elegant asparagus and a hasselback potato. Kingsland Social is the more family wallet-friendly offering from Phil of Phil’s Kitchen. Go for brunch (the house-baked bread is excellent) and stay for dinner (the hasselback is the carb comeback you didn’t know you were waiting for). facebook.com/kingslandsocial
CONSIDER THE OYSTER
The best way to serve an oyster is raw, alongside 11 more raw oysters. The other best way is deep-fried with a side of black garlic aioli in something the folks at Saint Alice call an Oyster Mcmuffin. saintalice.co.nz
WASTE NOT, WANT NOT
Remember when everything was artisanal? Or deconstructed. Or kombucha. Anyway, now the buzz word is “spent”. As in “spent espresso cacao brownie” (Emos) and “spent grain crackers” (Copia) and “spent more than I should have” (anywhere that serves oysters).
BEST WITH SUNSCREEN
(AND A DOG) Summer is stone fruit and ricotta and prosciutto as thin as a nylon pup tent at an outdoor table on a wind-free day at Wynyard Pavilion. The year’s waterfront surprise has a delightful small plates menu and those outside seats are pet-friendly. wynyardpavilion.co.nz
BREAKFAST AT DINNER
Arepas are maize flour flatbreads with a clumpy crumb that really give your mouth something to work with. At Conch Kitchen and Bar a key attraction appears to be a $7 happy hour but line your stomach with the chorizo sausage, smoked cheese and fried egg arepa, because breakfast is the most important meal of a drinking day. conch.co.nz
RULE BRITANNIA
You grew up in the provinces and on Sundays you ate yorkshire pudding or maybe a scotch egg. Then you moved to Auckland for work and it was all quinoa and kombucha and gravy was a sin. Go to The Brit. The yorkshire pud comes with sausage and gravy and mashed butter masquerading as potato. (The scotch egg is stupendous.) thebrit.co.nz
BEST BURNT FOOD
In 2019, no broccoli was left uncharred. Food was woodfired, singed or literally reduced to ash. But until I went to Ozone, I’d never seen a menu deliberately describe something as “burnt”. The half-shell mussels were dusted with burnt tomato powder and doused in a whey emulsion. There was a salty anchovy mayo and, in its entirety, the dish was a savoury triumph. ozonecoffee.co.nz
SERVICE SUPREME
It’s the little things that make or break a restaurant experience. Genuine warmth. Efficient service. A dessert menu you didn’t have to beg for. A waitperson who knows the menu well enough to tell you that three of your four dishes come with the same side salad and that you may want to rethink extra rice. Canvas scores across several metrics (including food and ambience) but eight restaurants we visited this year left us 100 per cent happy with the service. Top marks to Saint Alice, General Kai, Udon Works, Khao San, Free Bird, Ginger, Conch and Bar Celeste. Snapping at their heels were the waitstaff at Puha & Pakeha, Bang Bang China, Epicer, Mike’s Seafood, Oyster & Chop, Izzy and Haru No Yume.
YUMMY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS
In Sicily, the ultimate roly-poly comfort food is called a “baduzzi”. When you’re at a restaurant that translates as “meatball”, order it. Specifically, the Baduzzi venison meatball that is rich and gamey with a hit of liver that comes to the party like a rockstar. baduzzi.co.nz
THAT’S AMORE #1
Proper Pizza is not really, because one of the options comes with an entirely improper Nutella, strawberry, banana and kiwifruit topping; and the margarita has cream cheese but go with the madness and get the cheeseburger pizza — meatballs, chopped iceberg lettuce, ketchup and cheese. We loved it (in between the tears of laughter). properpizza.co.nz
THAT’S AMORE #2
The subversion of the pizza continued in late 2019, when the apostrophe-crime that is Elmos opened on Ponsonby Rd. Tomato, mozzarella and slow-cooked brisket in a 24-hour red curry coconut cream? I had my doubts and then I ate my words until there was none of that pizza left. elmos.co.nz
DISH OF THE YEAR?
Forget the flashy purple bao and the crunchy pork crackling (though they are also very good) and get ready to swoon at the Cinderella of Nanam’s tapas menu. The longannisa is a skinless sausage, spiked with lemongrass, pickle and chipotle mayo and wrapped in a grilled wheat tortilla. One of the most unassuming — and best — things we ate this year. nanam.co.nz
PRETTIEST ON PLATE
We live in the time of the dollop, but at Harbour Society they still plate with tweezers. I ordered the octopus. Compressed capsicum, sprigs of ice plant, specks of licorice strap. It was an octopus’ garden and it tasted amazing. so-auckland.com