Address: 204 Quay St, Viaduct Basin
Phone: 09 357 6147
Website: snapdragonbar.co.nz
Cuisine: Contemporary gastro fare
Rating: 6/10
Spontaneity is great, except when it backfires. I'd organised for a group of us to check out a new restaurant down by the Viaduct Basin but hadn't bothered to book a table. Mistake. They were closed for a private function.
Having struggled to find a park in the vicinity (spontaneity meant we'd ended up with three cars between the four of us) we were reluctant to give them up so decided to walk around the basin area and find ourselves another eating alternative.
Our search led us to the bright lights of Snapdragon Bar and Restaurant. With its soaring indoor living wall (the largest in the Southern Hemisphere I hear), the place was buzzing with happy-looking drinkers and diners. We joined the party and approached the maitre d' to request a table.
"You'll have to wait 10-15," he said before strutting off. Fine, we'd get a drink in the cosy-looking bar and wait it out. We spent the next 15 minutes standing at the bar, trying to attract the attention of the bar staff so that we could place our drinks orders. When we finally got noticed and ordered four cocktails, the barman responded with, "You're kidding, right?"
Silly us, we'd made the assumption that the bartender might actually like mixing drinks but he made it clear he'd rather we'd ordered four easy-to-pour beers. He then managed our expectations even further by telling us our drinks would "take ages".
Cool start guys, we were feeling really cherished. In these situations I always think there's a critical moment when you either quit while you're behind and leave, finding somewhere else to spend your money, or you decide to stick it out and hope it improves. We decided to wait it out and see how bad it got.
Ten minutes passed before our drinks arrived and when they did, there'd been a mix-up. Oh dear. But ... surprisingly, this was where things began to change. Our previously slack bartender redeemed himself by showing genuine regret at his mistake, then rushed off to rectify his error as well as promising to follow up on our yet-to-be-allocated table.
At last some action and things began to look up. The table we were shown to had a great view of the twinkly lights dancing on the water and the menu was packed full of exciting sounding dishes.
We were ravenous so ordered quickly and recklessly, then proceeded to enjoy two hours of sharing and swapping forkfuls of food, some glorious and some very average.
Here are the highlights: The smoked fish dip, which tasted like the fish had just come out of the smoker - outstanding. The beetroot bruschetta was alive with the flavours of honeyed, earthy beets and beautifully balanced with a topping of sharp, softly whipped goat's cheese. The wagyu and prawn spring rolls were the happiest harmony of surf and turf I've experienced for a while.
In the mains department, a thick fillet of groper was given the royal treatment with a creamy, crayfish bisque, while the marbled beef fillet was teamed with a smooth and unctuous duck liver parfait and a quince caramel. With the texture of the beef like velvet, this dish won us all over.
Unfortunately there were at least as many dishes that failed to impress us - the fries with no hint of the promised truffle oil, the tough tortellini, the over-salted spinach, the dessert tart that was served still on its tin base. Furthermore mains are designed so that sides need to be ordered to make them a complete meal. It felt a little like the chef had had half a thought and then left us to complete the picture. I'd rather he constructed the dish in its entirety to ensure that all elements complement and balance each other.
So in all, our evening was a mixed bag. While the waterside setting of Snapdragon is stunning, the service we received varied throughout our night from dismissive and rude at the beginning, to attentive and informative once we were seated. The food, too, veered from being outstanding at times to average at others, which confused us. The website does promise that Snapdragon is full of surprises, so perhaps this is what they're referring to.
From the menu: Turkish flatbread w smoked snapper dip $9.50, beetroot & chevre bruschetta $15.50, snapper goujons $13, duck liver parfait $12.50, wagyu & prawn spring rolls $14, Wairarapa groper $29, wagyu salad 25.50, goat's cheese & butternut tortellini $26, Savannah fine marbled beef fillet $34, sides of truffle fries, courgettes, spinach, whitloof salad $7.50ea, banana cream pie $16, lemon & lime tart $16.
Drinks: Fully licensed.
