International fare

Scandinavian tapas and Belgian beer join forces with French and local wines to provide a fine meal

NEWZEALAND attracts immigrants from places all over the world and it has always been something of a disappointment that the range of restaurants drawing their inspiration from overseas does not represent that spread. Our dining out scene is dominated by just a few national cuisines.

I’m not knocking those few but a bit of variety wouldn’t go amiss. So when Gothenburg was brought to our attention the name suggested it might promise a bit of Scandinavian cooking. In fact, the Swedish influence on the food is minimal and, confusingly, among the establishment’s claims are that has the best Belgian beer selection in New Zealand and its main food style is tapas, which once upon a time was Spanish.

But even if it didn’t widen the culinary horizons, it did provide an evening that lifted our spirits after a dreary, rain drenched day. We were quickly and warmly greeted and the relaxed service maintained this high standard throughout. When our waiter couldn’t answer one of our queries, he promptly went to find someone who could.

The setting is Scandinavian enough, simple black and white and with some better-than-usual artwork. We were seated in a comfortable corner booth, able to watch a constant and varied stream of customers at what is clearly a very successful venture.

The tapas selection was good with the usual suspects leavened by some more unusual offerings and I was tempted to stick to it throughout but we decided to test their mains too.

In the hunt for the Gothenburg heritage I chose the skagen rora tapas and this did deliver the right touch with that Swedish favourite herb, dill, playing a starring role in what was a sort of prawn cocktail. Freshly flavoured and delicious was the verdict, and this also applied to our other tapas choice, the applecured kingfish, where the sweetness was balanced by the sharp vinegary edge of the apple gastrique and the crunch of nuts.

In the main course of lamb rump, served in a very generous portion, the mint note came through strongly but not overpoweringly in the fava bean puree. The brulee fennel and anchovy hint in the tomato and vegetable sofrito complemented the meat well.

The highlight of my main course of tasty smoked pork loin was actually the gratin of greens with bits of spicy pork cheek lurking at the bottom of the dish. The mascarpone-stuffed corn bread made a good foil to the saltiness of the main elements in a well-constructed dish.

Grim memories of recipes taken from the back of cereal packets turned me away from what might have been an entertaining brown butter rice crispy with radler gelee, which sounded interesting. The warmly recommended dark chocolate semifreddo was standard but the accompanying chocolate bacon toffee, reminiscent of a nut brittle, was very well received.

I opted for the cheese and had a Masterton blue and a good manchego, both served in larger helpings than I expected. The team member who sorted out the cheese suggested accompanying this with the Hawkes Bay Clearview Sea Red dessert wine. The success of this match underlined the professionalism of the act here.

When we left, it had at last stopped raining but even if it had still been pouring I think the upbeat mood delivered by sound food, amiable service and a cheerful atmosphere would have survived.