Andiamo's Autumn menu features a delectable tomato risotto.
Andiamo's Autumn menu features a delectable tomato risotto.
Like to long lunch? Perching yourself at a tabletop at noon with a glass of vino and a plate of Auckland’s best bites is a beloved pastime but can break the bank when enjoyed too frequently. We’ve found a selection of top-notch Tāmaki Makaurau lunch deals that will save you a few pennies while satisfying your hunger.
Lunch is a meal best served long. But with a financial crisis, growing work responsibilities and a schedule filling to the brim, it’s a treat less-tasted among our resident foodies.
However, there’s a light at the end of the grub-related tunnel, with some of Auckland’s most diverse and delectable dining institutions serving a lunch with a twist - and a manageable price tag.
Enjoy the spoils of a leisurely lunch on a budget with five of the best luxe meal deals we discovered across the city.
Korean kitchen Gochu offers what it likes to call an “express lunch” for $39 from Monday to Friday. Diners are treated to the city establishment’s iconic fried chicken slider, tuna crudo, charred chicken and Gochu salad, as well as a glass of house wine or beer, for what many might pay for a singular dish at a top-tier eatery. A gastronomic steal? Absolutely.
$39 from Gochu, Commercial Bay Level 2/1 Queen St, Auckland CBD
Andiamo
Andiamo's " An Autumn Affair" features a delectable tomato risotto on the menu.
Andiamo’s “Andiamo Recommends Vavasour” is the perfect way to welcome the changing of the seasons via the palate. And for only $40 a person? It’s a cheap way too. The price tag includes a zesty Vavasour Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough’s Awatere Valley, fresh focaccia with red pepper and parmesan butter, and a choice between the market fish with ajo blanco, grape, pine nut and fennel, or the tomato risotto with soffritto, stracciatella and basil. Both highlight seasonal autumnal produce and the delight of a lunch drawn out.
The eggplant, dates, herb salad and tofu from Onemata is well-regarded as a lunch icon in Auckland.
Hoping to enjoy a midday meal while gazing out towards the Waitematā Harbour? Perhaps peruse the menu of Onemata, offering a two-course lunch for $55. With a choice between a starter - a Caesar salad, fish crudo or beef carpaccio - a main - pan-fried snapper and asparagus, eye filet with fries or eggplant with herb salad - and a dessert - strawberry tart, dark chocolate lamington or espresso tiramisu - lunchers are treated to a variety of options while sitting waterside.
$55 from Onemata, Park Hyatt Auckland 99 Halsey St, Auckland CBD
SPQR’s “the working lunch” marks itself as the go-to accessory to your afternoon people-watching, and a great way to break up the work hours with a feast of a menu. $55 will get you an entree, a main and a prime grazing spot on Ponsonby Rd. With pate, pork belly or eye fillet carpaccio to start with, and some of the eatery’s most iconic dishes up for grabs, such as the pappardelle with bolognese, saltimbocca, prawn and scallop spaghettini and a Caesar salad, it’s a fine choice.
$55 at SPQR, 150 Ponsonby Rd, Ponsonby
Jervois Steak House
The $55 Power Lunch is specially crafted to embrace the working lunch, where creative ideas, important decisions, and powerful conversations come to life.
Jervois Steak House is an Auckland icon in its own right, and with its “power lunch” packing a punch without the eye-watering price tag, it’s added yet another reason for its place in our good books. A main, a side and a glass of house wine for only $55 on Fridays seems illegal, but with market fish, chicken breast, potato gnocchi and the finest cuts of steak - matched with any side you could possibly think of - on the menu, we couldn’t possibly turn it down.
$55 from Jervois Steak House, 70 Jervois Rd, Ponsonby
