All posts filed under: Dining out

Kiwi Flavours in Mt Eden

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Last month, I was invited to Tuihana Cafe for a Zomato meetup. A mere 600 metres from my house, I was a little embarrassed that I’d never visited Tuihana Cafe before. With a clean, modern interior with gorgeous monochrome wallpaper on one wall and a huge photographic print of the owners on Piha beach, Tuihana has a modern kiwi feel…like a brand new beachside bach. The owners are Nate and Leslie: Nate is the operations guy and Leslie in charge of the food. The story We met with Nate, who guided us through their menu and business as if we were new staff getting up to speed. I’ve worked in hospo before but I’d never seen anything like this sort of training. Nate had printed a set of notes for each of us, props at the ready for our viewing pleasure and professionally photographs via his iPad to explain the dishes. Nate’s background is in IT and this geekery clearly shows with their tech integrated cafe. As someone tethered to a computer, phone or wifi …

Anniversary Dinner at Odettes

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The Koala and I celebrated our anniversary over a decadent dinner at Odettes. Odettes is pretty new to the Auckland scene and a cafe by day, restaurant by night. Odettes was recently named “Best Room” (the interior design award) by Metro and runner-up for “Best All Day Restaurant”. The hand made tiles around the room are a lovely detail that caught my eye. Ex Ping Pong The space is the former Miss Ping’s – a ping pong bar (table tennis, not Thai style) but it has been completely transformed. The dining room is vast with super high stud, comfy banquet seating with plenty of throw pillows for comfort. The colours and textures of the decor are great and the lighting is dim and romantic. Like many cool places in the city, they don’t take bookings so we arrived before 6pm because we had a show to make later. There were not many diners when we arrived and while more arrived later, the dining room didn’t fill up like I had envisaged. How we roll The …

Tasting Menu with Matching Wines

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I was stoked to be invited to a Zomato Foodie Meetup at One Tree Grill last week. As much as I love food and wine (like, HEAPS), I have never experienced a tasting menu with matched wines. I was in for a treat. I was annoyingly early for our 6.30pm start. When I arrived I was greeted by Charlotte who I know from what feels like another era. About 8 years back we lived and breathed a restaurant and bar in Parnell called Blowfish. It was a funny time. Charlotte took my coat and set me up with a delicious Xanadu Shiraz on a comfy couch. We chatted about old times and One Tree Grill. There were 8 of us and it was a pleasure to dine with other foodies and we had plenty to talk about food-wise and about our experience. Bloggers at the dinner were Cecilia from Ultimate Om Noms, Amy from My Dining Journey, Tiffany from Heartshrooms, Jen from Mango and Beans. The decor is inviting with dark wood furniture, white tablecloths, neutral colours, a large …

Cheap date – $5 Wednesdays

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Academy Cinemas is a boutique cinema right in the heart of Auckland City. They’re located just under the public library and you might miss them if you don’t go to the library. They show a small selection of movies including biopics, festival, arty and indie. Academy Cinemas serve Stoke craft beer, organic juices, boutique wines, Kokako Coffee and Kapiti Ice cream. On Wednesdays, thanks to Vice, movies are $5 all day. Make sure you book ahead as this is proving to be quite popular. Tickets are usually $15.50 which is still cheaper than other cinemas who usually charge around $20. Academy Cinemas have an active Facebook page here if you would like to keep up to date with their goings on. Watch and Eat Combo I love a good dinner and movie combo and I’ve blogged about food and movie pairings before. Dinner and a movie can get expensive, but it doesn’t have to be. These are my suggestions on movie and dinner combos that won’t break the bank. All restaurants are within walking distance of the cinema (I’ve provided walking times) …

Monday Bunday: The White Rabbit

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Monday Bunday went on holiday last week, I don’t know if anyone noticed but today I present a double whammy Monday Bunday rolled into a restaurant review. I recently joined the NZ-based bloggers group #brunchclub. Here, bloggers can network, share tips and advice on all things blog related and of course, meet regularly for brunch. On Saturday, I attended my very first#brunchclub meetup. I was super excited not only to meet local bloggers (some who I have followed for a while) but also because it was at a newish cafe/bar/restaurant called The White Rabbit. This week’s Monday Bunday is a review this visit. History of the space The White Rabbit is in downtown Auckland on the corner of Customs Street and Gore Street, where the slightly dingy pub Rose & Crown and later Britomart Brewery used to be. The building, originally known as Hotel Britomart was established in 1864, just a year before Lewis Carroll published Alice in Wonderland. Painted white and fitted out in Scandinavian inspired light fittings, the space is light, bright and very white. …

Sawadee Kaaaaa – Zomato Meetup

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I have three food-related events on this week. On Sunday there was The Auckland Seafood Festival and on Tuesday I indulged in a night of tasty Thai food, kitschy cocktails, and foodie conversation. I have one more event up my sleeve this week. More on that later. My fellow reviewers, bloggers and the lovely ladies from Zomato converged on Sawadee, a Thai restaurant at the K’ Rd end of Ponsonby Road, across from the sunken buildings at Western Park. It’s been around for about 20 years so I was embarrassed to admit that while I love Thai food, I had never been to Sawadee before. Sawadee is much larger than you might expect from the street. The decor is inviting, well lit and flowers and electric candles set the scene. Sawadee’s special summer cocktail menu is all retro tiki-bar. I tried the Crying Tiger (brandy, Cointreau and lemon juice, rimmed with sugar). I picked this because it seemed like the sensible choice out of the very flamboyant list of cocktails. It was perfect. Not too sweet, no crazy colours or …

Clean Eating in Auckland

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IMPORTANT: This article was published in 2014. Details may have changed.  I love dining out, but it can be hard to make healthy choices when dining out so I often view dining out as a chance to indulge in rich foods. It doesn’t have to be this way! Luckily, there are a few places in Auckland who are making huge effort to offer delicious healthy options. What I also love about these places is they can be great inspiration for cooking at home too. Most of these offerings are easy to recreate at home using fresh ingredients. I’m not a health nut, but with my health issues this year, I’ve been looking at what I eat more and focusing on clean eating and whole foods.

Spices for the eyes, heart and belly

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Last Saturday, my friend Coco and I saw the foodporn movie The Hundred-Foot Journey courtesy of Zomato.com. If you like foodporn (also known as gastroporn) and feel-good comedy dramas, then I highly recommend The Hundred-Foot Journey. Also good for date night or a catchup up with foodie friends, just make sure you don’t watch this on an empty stomach and plan a dinner somewhere wonderful afterwards (Indian, French or both).

Al’s Deli Giveaway

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To celebrate 4 years of Bunny Eats Design, I’d like to share a few wonderful things that I’ve gushed about, salivated over and adored. Al’s Deli could be loosely called a diner and serves Montreal-style food. With special thanks to Aleks himself, we are giving away $20 of Al’s Deli goodness. To enter, simply fill in the form at the bottom of this post.

31. Welcome Eatery

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In celebration of Auckland Restaurant Month, I will be posting 31 quick-fire reviews on 31 restaurants and cafes in the Auckland CBD and city fringe. The atmosphere is… A big space with business customers and very cheery staff. Their mantra is “Fast, Fresh & Friendly”. Some nice graphic elements (hand painted lettering) if you are into that sort of thing (I am). Come here for… Big smiles and a big feed. A good place to take clients to for a bite, coffee and a little work. The most interesting thing on the menu… Polenta with bean ragu and goats cheese Unexpectedly wonderful… Braised beef cheek sandwich, juicy and tender. I would come back to try… Some of the nice looking cabinet food. Client meetings with good food. Catering to… Breakfast and lunch office workers. The menu is short but evolving. Healthy and raw options. Heaps of cabinet food. Plenty of vegetarian options. Expect to spend… $10-$20 per person The service is… Overwhelmingly friendly. Very attentive. Avoid if… Friendly strangers frighten you. Welcome Eatery Orion Building, 181 Grafton …

30. Ortolana

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In celebration of Auckland Restaurant Month, I will be posting 31 quick-fire reviews on 31 restaurants and cafes in the Auckland CBD and city fringe.   The atmosphere is… An airy, light-filled conservatory space with a bistro/cafe inside. Beautifully designed, the space reflects the food. Ortolana is your cool cousin who went away for a year to study in Italy and came back with big words and designer clothes that made people either roll their eyes or immediately worship her. Come here for… Fancy European style food using fresh ingredients. They claim their food is simple I feel it’s verging on pretentious. The food has a lightness to it that will appeal to clean eaters. A menu worthy of it’s own Google Search or culinary dictionary. Some words feel like they’re made up. Best to close your eyes, point at something and hope it’s a good one. Could be a good place to impress someone. The most interesting thing on the menu… Things I cannot pronounce such as: Nooch Escabeche Stracciatella Gnudi Olio nuovo Fazzoletti Pillus Cotoletta Pangritata Unexpectedly wonderful… …

29. Besos Latinos

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In celebration of Auckland Restaurant Month, I will be posting 31 quick-fire reviews on 31 restaurants and cafes in the Auckland CBD and city fringe. The atmosphere is… Latin American art and motifs set the scene: flowers, candles, a water fountain and religious motifs. A big space with exposed brick walls and high ceilings. A hacienda courtyard comes to mind. Mexican artist Cecilia Mijangos, partner Executive Chef Luis Cabrera and their crew bring a uniquely authentic Latin American experience. The music is spot on. A lot fancier than your average taqueria (taco shop). Come here for… South American inspired food. Traditional dishes from Mexico, Chile, Venezuela, Argentina, Peru, Colombia, Cuba, Uruguay, Jamaica , as well as Latin American cocktails, wines and beers. Great for both groups and intimate dinners. The most interesting thing on the menu… Foot long tacos Palitos de Queso – Fried Blue cheese sticks wrapped in pastry stuffed with dried cranberries Venezuelan Arepa – Venezuelan corncake stuffed with cheese and beef or chicken Unexpectedly wonderful… Their classic margaritas Flan Frida Kahlo (creme caramel) …

28. Cafe People

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In celebration of Auckland Restaurant Month, I will be posting 31 quick-fire reviews on 31 restaurants and cafes in the Auckland CBD and city fringe. The atmosphere is… Gorgeous artwork by local artist Flox at the entrance. The cafe decor itself is all clean lines and white chairs. Pretty minimal.  Mostly families having brunch when we visited. Come here for… Brunch or lunch. The most interesting thing on the menu… Breakfast salad Croque Monsier Unexpectedly wonderful… Coffee Their baked beans I would come back to try… Moroccan lamb Catering to… Omnis and vegies. Vegetarian and gluten free options available but unmarked. Business lunch crowd, they have a boardroom that can be hired out. Expect to spend… $20-30 per person The service is… Friendly. Avoid if… You have another favourite brunch spot. This place won’t scratch that. Cafe People 38 Ponsonby Road, Ponsonby Open 7 days http://www.cafepeople.co.nz  

27. Antoine’s

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In celebration of Auckland Restaurant Month, I will be posting 31 quick-fire reviews on 31 restaurants and cafes in the Auckland CBD and city fringe. The atmosphere is… Hushed but homely…if your home is an expensive house in Parnell. Feels posh but comfortable. Music playing at an almost inaudible level. On the evening we visited, there was more staff than diners. Come here for… Nostalgic (1970’s) fine dining with table service. We came to find out why Antoine’s has been in business for over 40 years. The most interesting thing on the menu… Sautéed lamb brains with leek tartare, black pudding, tempura snails and teriyaki vinaigrette Antoine’s tripe served in a cream, sherry, onion and green peppercorn sauce The specials of the day included a dish with a beef tendon spring roll Unexpectedly wonderful… The complimentary bread roll. The hushed, attentive service. Huge portions of meat which were very tender. I would come back to try… Their Chicken, leek and wild mushroom pie…if someone else was paying. I love pies so I’m just curious what a …

26. Maldito Mendez

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In celebration of Auckland Restaurant Month, I will be posting 31 quick-fire reviews on 31 restaurants and cafes in the Auckland CBD and city fringe. The atmosphere is… Strangely European for a South American/Latin spot. Come here for… Lots of small tasty snacks to be shared. Fresh food with bright flavours. The most interesting thing on the menu… Confit duck mole Unexpectedly wonderful… Tacos – they are not your average taco I would come back to try… Their ceviche Catering to… The Ponsonby crowd. Omnis and vegetarians. Vegetarian options unmarked. Vegan options available on request. Gluten free status unknown. Expect to spend… $30-$50 per person The service is… Good. Well oiled. Avoid if… You are on a budget. The dishes are small and you’ll probably want 2 or 3 dishes per person. Maldito Mendez Ponsonby Central, 4 Brown Street, Ponsonby, Auckland Open 7 days http://www.mendez.co.nz