Rice, Auckland central

Sake to go with the excellent steamed seafood. Picture / Carolyn Robertson

Herald rating: * * * * 1/2


The Mentor is a martyr to the gout. I don't know why it is that gout is one of those things that people are martyrs to. I do know why it is one of those agonising things people laugh at. This is because it conjures up a picture of a round and ruddy chap who dines each night on, say, quail and steak and black pudding and port. That, minus the port, is about what the Mentor ate. I had worried that he might, because of the gout, prove to be a picky eater. And so he was, in a contrary sort of way - he choose all the gout-giving stuff from the menu. Which was annoying in another way because he ate what I wanted to eat.

He is not a round ruddy chap, the Mentor (this, unbelievably, is what he does for part of his living) but he is a big chap and it was really quite funny to see him tackling the tiny, ladylike leg of quail.

Honestly, he could have tucked the whole thing in his mouth in one go, but he was on his best behaviour. Well, almost. He's just arrived back from Canterbury and has decided Aucklanders are prententious tossers. He said he'd spotted a few at Rice but he said this hardly loudly at all.

We were much taken by our not-pretentious-at-all duo of interchangeable blonde waiters. They popped up like two sweet, good fairies all night at the appropriate moments - when we needed more plonk.

The service was always good at Rice, which has not changed since the good people at Cibo took over.

The room, against the odds, has remained fresh. All that white can go boringly stale. And it has the most comfortable dining chairs, in moulded white plastic.

The food, too, is as good as ever. I've never had a bad meal here and on this night it was a very good meal, which would have been an outstanding meal (in a low-key sort of way, this is not show-offy fodder) but for my pork chop. I had wanted the tempura crab claw with a side serving of the aubergine and rice dumplings. How very disappointing that blond waiter No 1 had to return to tell me they were out of claws. That was the one hitch. How naughty of the kitchen not to have told him.

He recommended the pork chop, which had been rubbed with lemon grass and soy and came with mushrooms and apple, and was the size of Texas. It was also a bit rubbery. Gouty didn't care. He was busy tucking in to his tower of beef, a lovely bit of meat which made his toes shriek all night - and serve him right. I wasn't too annoyed. My entree was a bowl of sake-steamed clams, with garlic and chilli, in nicely judged proportions.

Then for a lovely pud, which Rice does so well. The Mentor's, I thought, might prove a tad faddy - a bamboo steamed cake with a green-tea pannacotta. It wasn't. It was a perfect little pudding, the cake part done in a wee bamboo steamer and the pannacotta made light and bright with the subtle flavours of the green tea. I pinched some because three crisp cinnamon fritters, drizzled with lemon curd, slipped down like a dream. Now that's the way to end a dinner - perfect. 

Address:10-12 Federal St, City
Ph: 359 9113
Open: Monday to Friday, breakfast, lunch & dinner 10am till late; Saturday dinner 6pm to late
Owner: Jeremy Turner
Head chef: Kate Fay
From the menu: Szechuan squid, lime aioli, $13; Vietnamese caramel chicken drumsticks, asian slaw, $21.50; plum wine and lemongrass granita, $9
Wine list: Small and perfectly formed
Vegetarian: There's some nice, nourishing brown rice for you and a few other things (tofu) besides
Bottom line: Terrific service, the best doughnuts anywhere, cool room, still one of the best places to eat in town


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