The chef's selection of entrees at Wakuwaku, Remuera. Photo / Babiche Martens
The chef's selection of entrees at Wakuwaku, Remuera. Photo / Babiche Martens
In their own words: “Old value modern Japanese.”
First impressions: Where was everyone? I’d been trying to get into Wakuwaku for months but tonight it was completely empty. It was also only 5.30pm. We’d jumped on a social media post advising last-minute availability on early seats because (a) on ahot day it’s never too early to drink cold sake and (b) I was tired of reading about everybody else having a great time here. Wakuwaku is a restaurant of two halves. The original 18-seater with slick black tables and pretty garlands of faux white wisteria affords the best view of the kitchen; across the laneway, a larger, lighter room offers multiple table configurations including a row of low counter stools that provoked serious pangs of travel nostalgia.
In the kitchen: Every time I turned to the business end of Wakuwaku, I spied another billow of steam or flash of fire. In this very busy space, head chef Lucas Lee (Clooney, The French Cafe and Cocoro) was a study in calm concentration.
On the floor: When I attempted to order dinner for four at our table for two, Jeremy Bayet (ex-Gusto) was a gentle voice of reason. When I couldn’t decide what wine, he beautifully challenged my palate. Why be safe when you can be interesting?
The neighbourhood: Named for the upmarket suburb’s postal code, 1050 Remuera is a shiny new retail and restaurant precinct. The overall aesthetic is smart-modern and a trifle dull but perhaps that blank canvas suits its innovative tenants. Wakuwaku is Auckland’s most exciting new Japanese restaurant and it’s right next door to Spiga, easily the city’s most boundary-pushing new Italian.
The menu: Your first clue should be the truffle sushi - this is Japanese, but not as you traditionally know it. I wanted to try so many of the entrees, snacks and sashimi options that it left no room for the similarly more-interesting-than-usual mains. (Sample object of unrequited desire: lamb katsu, sesame sauce, feta, savoy cabbage.)
Beef cheek and blue cheese chawanmushi from Remuera restaurant Wakuwaku. Photo / Alex Burton
Best bite #1: As a teenager, I was a week-night boarder at a state-run school hostel. The mince, sausage and lumpy mashed potato dinners were as dire as you’d expect, but almost every night there was a single saving grace: custard. I love this silky, slippery soul-soother in its every guise, and my absolute favourite is chawanmushi. Elegantly eggy and supremely savoury (soy, mirin, dashi, etc), I’ve mostly had seafood-infused versions. Wakuwaku’s blue cheese chawanmushi layered with tissue-thin slices of braised beef cheek may have ruined me for all future iterations. This is a knock-out dish.
Best bite #2: The lamb chops at Masu are so delicious that when I booked its private dining room for my wedding dinner, I made sure they were on the menu. Wakuwaku’s are better.
Honourable mention: Karaage chicken can get back in the kitchen because karaage duck is next-level fried fowl and an accompanying red pepper and yuzu mayo is a sweet-citrussy a l’orange-ish situation the French could only dream about.
The jury’s still out: Is it churlish to complain that the black sesame icecream we ordered for dessert was a little too icy for me? Probably.
Inside Wakuwaku's newest dining room. Photo / Alex Burton
On the side: Once, restaurants just washed a bunch of rocket leaves and showered them with shaved parmesan. In 2023, we take our side salads seriously. Auckland menus are stuffed with cucurbits but not all the city’s cucumber dishes are created equal. Here, the hero vege is lightly soy-cured (giving it an almost compressed texture) and beautifully adorned with vaguely minty perillo leaf, puffy crackers and blobs of creamy sesame. Every sensorial base was expertly covered. Later, our waitperson confessed that even though he couldn’t stand cucumber, he loved this version.
Perfect for: Anyone who’s ever wished fine dining was more playful. Wakuwaku brings a high-end attention to detail in its fit-out, service and flavours - but the food is just so much fun.
How much: We spent $302 for two (including drinks) but you could have a much cheaper night if you started with the “chef’s choice” of six small dishes at $38 per person (minimum of two people).
If there was a religion called “Japanese restaurant”, then I’d sign my life over to it immediately. I’d devote my life to mastering the old testament of teriyaki and tofu and the new testament of tempura and tonkatsu. I’d eschew my cheese toastie and pasta bake ways in favour of okonomiyaki and tuna tataki ’til the end of my days. And if holy drinks lists were all like Wakuwaku’s, then my taste buds would be happy ’til the rapture cometh. I’d start with a Shochu Highball cocktail, then the beer, while the cider-inclined can shimmy along with brews from Founders, Garage Project, Fortune Favours, Sawmill and Abel. As a sake fan, I’d be launching into a 120ml of Ippin Junmai Chokara or a dry Hakutsuru Toji-Kan to shiver my timbers. Moving on to something more substantial, yet sticking to the Japanese flavour-train, a glass of Dasai Jyunmai Daiginjyo, Sparkling Sake NV, a Grace Wine “Gris De Koshu” 2020, a Kumamoto Wine “Kikuka” Chardonnay NV, a Folium Rosé by Takaki Okada or a Sato “Northburn” Pinot Noir 2019 will slake any thirst and soothe any wallet because EVERYTHING IS AVAILABLE BY THE GLASS.
I’ve never seen a restaurant do this before and it fills me with joy. There’s Haku vodka, Roku gin and Ki No Bi gin from Japan as well as Suntory Toki, Kaku, The Chita and Old Whisky - Nikka “Miyagikyo” single malt, Takersuru pure malt, Hibiki “Japanese Harmony”, Yamazaki Distillers Reserve, Hakushu Distillers Edition and Hakushu 12-year-old whiskeys from Japan as well.
Top marks to Wakuwaku for having tasty, grown-up, non-alc options too. A 0 per cent No-Groni cocktail to start and a 0.5 per cent Sawmill beer keeps everything in driving distance, hey.
