GPK

By EWAN McDONALD for viva

Sunday night at the movies. When you come out of the theatre around 7pm and drive clear across town and find that not one of the five restaurants that you felt like dropping into is open, you realise that civic pretensions of Auckland as a "world city" are slightly premature.

So, home to Boho where we thought we'd try a place that had slipped off our radar, GPK in Ponsonby Rd. From our recollection, in the past couple of years the bar had become the first port of call for newcomers to the borough and visitors from Hawke's Bay. The service and ambience were okay but the kitchen had become ... um, predictable.

First good news: GPK was not only open, it was buzzing with diners from a babe-in-arms to the boyfriend meeting the girlfriend's folks for the first time and a couple of codes of professional footballers. Not-so-good news: we're not nico-nazis but it's off-putting to walk past the smokers in the bar to the dining-room.

Next good news: the menu has been worked over and, while not cutting-edge, has shucked some items that were past their use-by date. Ben Convery, the head chef who has been at GPK for the best part of five years after doing his time in Sydney establishments such as the Establishment Hotel at the Rocks, still follows the company mantra of providing interesting woodfired gourmet pizzas with elaborate toppings that no one in the home of the pizza, New York, has thought of. The latest is Bodytech, smart marketing for the image-conscious gym bunnies who abound around here.

Smoked chicken salad has been a signature dish, particularly for business lunchers, since GPK opened eight years ago. It's a good example of how Convery has smartened up things while keeping the faith: avocado, crispy noodles and red onions hide in salad leaves while a curry-mango vinaigrette makes the dish a little spicier than in earlier days. A first-rate goats' cheese was wrapped in prosciutto and served prettily with glazed baby beets and rocket (or roquette, as the menu prefers): funny, a few years back Kiwis wouldn't touch the stuff and now we've taken to it like a duck to slow-roasting.

Sometimes simple is best, and you can't beat a straightforward slab of medium-rare eye fillet, spuds, crisp beans and suitably pungent bearnaise with a glass of red: if you're in the neighbourhood, this is the one you can't beat.

More adventurous, Ann chose braised pork shank. The waiter advised that it took 20 minutes, just about right to finish the slow-cooked meat. Moist and luscious, set off with apple juice, parsnip puree and a drizzle of truffle oil, it is a dish that only a confident or accomplished kitchen should attempt while trying to keep up with takeaway pizza orders. Mark this kitchen up for confidence and accomplishment.

Service didn't get off to the best start. Our waiter arrived too quickly for our orders and then left us too long. Nor had he tasted the pork but thought "it looked excellent".

As the evening wore on and the crowd thickened he came into his own, keeping an eye on the water bottles, wine glasses and assorted food needs of a large section of the busy restaurant.

Points again for turning down overexcited heaters and a sound system featuring people doing terrible things to Gershwin in French and to Cole Porter, who never hurt anyone.

GPK is a big restaurant, and part of a chain, often reasons for serious diners to think twice. If you've not stopped by for a while, give it a go.

Open: Mon-Wed 11am-midnight Thurs-Fri 11am-1am Sat 9am-1am Sun 9am-midnight

Owners: Dominique Parat, Peter Howard

Head chef: Ben Convery

Food: Gourmet pizza, NZ contemporary

On the menu:

Seared red snapper, potato gnocchi, lemongrass, chilli bisque and shaved fennel salad $16.50 ; Rosemary roasted half chicken, Italian style, gorgonzola polenta, watercress shallot and mustard seed dressing $24.50 ; Salt crusted salmon, prawn and chervil potato mash with lemon fumet $24.50; Creamed coconut rice pudding, caramelised palm sugar, papaya and Tahitian lime compote $9.90

Vegetarian: Pizza and other options on menu

Wine: Broad, honest list, almost all by the glass

Smoking: In the bar, on the footpath

Noise: Variable artists

Disabled access / toilets: Street-level entry, ramp down to toilets

Parking: Street

Big, bustling, buzzy, the Gourmet Pizza (and a lot more) Kitchen is still one of the best-value restaurants on the Ponsonby strip, especially for larger groups and families.



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