August is Auckland Restaurant Month and the menus for the 100 participating restaurants have been posted already. I know it’s a whole month away, but a month is good time to make dates with friends and tick off a few restaurants on the way.
There are some fabulous specials and this is a great way to try out some of Auckland’s best restaurants on a range of budgets.
It was hard (and hungry) work, but I’ve picked out 10 of my favourite specials which range from $25 to $100 per person.
Auckland Restaurant Month top 10 picks:
(In order of budget)
1. Fukuko
Britomart, Cocktail bar
$25 for 2 snack courses and a shochu cocktail of your choice.
Includes a steamed pork bun and 2 tacos (your choice of braised miso short rib, sticky pulled pork, spiced roast duck, sole tempura).
www.fukuko.co.nz
2. Besos Latinos
Elliot Stables, Latin American gourmet
$25 for cornchips, your choice of taco and a classic margarita.
Taco options: Pork, beef, chicken, vegetarian or fish.
www.besoslatinos.com
3. Kushi
Durham St West, Japanese bento
$25 dinner set with entree, main, tempura, rice and fruit.
Options include: Teriyaki chicken, Spicy Chicken, Butterfly prawn, Fish katsu, Spicy salmon, Crispy tofu.
www.kushi.co.nz
4. Faro
Lorne Street, Korean BBQ
$40 for 2 course dinner including wine
Includes: Faro salad, charcoal BBQ, 7 korean side dishes, glass of wine.
Choice of meats: Beef short rib, scotch fillet, pork scotch fillet, marinated boneless chicken, salted tiger prawns.
www.faro.co.nz
5. The Grove
Wyndham Street, Fine dining
$55 for 5 courses
Choose 5 courses from a changing 10 options. Menu unavailable.
www.thegroverestaurant.co.nz
6. Masu
Sky City, Japanese Robata, 2014 Metro Restaurant of the Year
$55 for 3 courses, Available daily between 5.30pm and 6.30pm
Includes: Spicy tuna, jalapeno tempura roll and Sesame elderflower pannacotta, mandarin, milk sake sorbet.
Choice of: Baby back pork ribs or Gurnard fillet.
www.skycityauckland.co.nz/restaurants/masu/
7. Cafe Hanoi
Britomart, Vietnamese street food inspired by Hanoi’s Old Quarter.
$55 per person for an 8 course shared meal
Courses include pho bo (traditional beef noodle soup), braised pork and shrimp summer rolls, seared fish with rice noodles, dried beef and papaya salad, shaking beef, minced beef wraps, Hanoi-style grilled pork and a traditional Vietnamese dessert of sesame dumplings.
Available for groups of 3 or more.
www.cafehanoi.co.nz
8. Ostro and City Terrace
Britomart, International-style brasserie
$65 for a 3 course dinner
Appetisers: Fisherman’s soup, Butternut squash ravioli, Squid ink risotto.
Mains: Steamed snapper, Roast Canterbury lamb rump, Pork chop.
Dessert: Creme brûlée, Violet chocolate fondant, Bombe Alaska.
http://britomart.org/ostro
9. Everybody’s
Queen Street, European bar and eatery (formally Japanese)
$79 for 4 courses including matching wines
Specialty dishes selected by the chef. Menu unavailable.
Minimum 2 people.
www.everybodys.co.nz
10. Clooney
Sale Street, Fine Dining
$100 for a 7 course meal (for groups of 4 only)
- Alpine salmon, pumpkin seed emulsion, charcoal
- House baked bread with whipped brown butter
- Yellowtail kingfish, kombu, diamond clam, rice, cilantro
- Sea scallop, smoked eel, broccoli, fermented garlic
- Flash cured venison, bergamot, cabbage, morcilla, tendon
- Short rib of beef, barbecue, sun choke, onion, walnut
- Mandarin and butternut
For information on Auckland Restaurant Month, visit the event website here: www.heartofthecity.co.nz/restaurant-month
**All image from the Auckland Restaurant Month website.
Bunny Eats Design 
I’ll happily go to a restaurant with you in august. I’ve missed dining with you xxox
Yay! Me too! Just a single restaurant in August? There’s a few to get through 😉
Strange. I don’t usually miss Auckland at all. Suddenly though…
Take a month long eating holiday and put it down as a research trip. You could almost get through all 100 restaurants too.
31 days, 3 meals a day = 93 meals.
Im so excited! I was away from Auckland last year in August, can wait to make the most of it this year!
I can’t for this! So excited to try all the restaurants 🙂
Can’t wait! I’ve already started picking the restaurants I need to go to
I bet you have. Any overlaps?
The Grove and Masu 🙂
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Gosh – you are certainly spoiled for choice there. great round up
Great post! August happens to be the b/fs birthday month, I’ll have to have a look through the 100 and find somewhere nice to take him 🙂
Good idea. So many special occasion places to go to!
Oooh. Yummy Japanese food! I don’t get up to Auckland as often as I’d like – usually only once a year or so – but now I have some new places in my list to try out 🙂
I live in a somewhat smaller town, so we don’t have anything like this. HOWEVER Seattle sure does..and I’m only a short trip away. One of these days I will make it to a restaurant month/week event!
Wow, you’re onto it! Gotta check some of these out!
The list makes me want to visit AUCKLAND right now. Wow!!!!