KEY POINTS:
It's a tough job but someone's got to do it: sample the $100 steak and the $18 poached egg, the seaweed soup and garlic ice cream. And our restaurant critic pretends it's work as he recalls as much as he can from the past 12 months.
Whatever happened to ... (I)
Clooney? They're all at Magnum now.
Tapas? You can get a stool at Bellota now.
Bell House? A Fencible pub. Howick in a nutshell.
Don't believe the hype
Q, the Westin.
Partington's, the Langham.
Grasshopper, the Stamford.
Any hotel restaurant except SkyCity's dine or Mollies.
Best ethnic restaurant
Um, aren't they all? Even the French and Italian ones? These ones serve food like Grandma used to bake.
Satya (Indian), Sahaa (North African), Kaimana (Thai), Pastis (French), Ariake and Soto (Japanese), Empress Garden (Chinese). Italian? Niente. Turkish? Hi bir sey.
Six of the nicest people you'd like to meet you
Krishna Botica, Prego.
Martina Lutz, Wine Chambers.
Jeremy Turner, Cibo.
Chris Upton, O'Connell St Bistro.
Mark Wallbank, Magnum.
Best Kiwi cookbook
The French Cafe Cookbook: Simon Wright with Charlie Smith, Nicola Legat.
Gorgeous, fragrant, delicious - and that's only the book. Just the thing when you're whipping up ballotine of braised oxtail, butter-poached crayfish, red wine jus and parsley salad for the kids after soccer practice. Apparently the lad cooks in some dive off Khyber Pass.
Best Kiwi food TV series
Julie Le Clerc Takes Tea in the Medina.
Kate Fay Takes in Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam.
Simon Gault Steaks'n' Crabs.
Oh, you didn't see any of those? Not surprised: we didn't get them. What we got was second, third and fourth helpings from the same tired - dare one say dessicated? - Edmonds Cookbook-era faces and those two blokes from Wellington being two huntin' shootin' fishin' blokes from Wellington. Seriously, the best New Zealand food show is Anne Thorpe's mouthwatering Kai Ora on Maori TV.
We'd cross 36 miles of barbed wire ...
... to get to the Bombay countryside and eat anything from Peter Thornley's Bracu kitchen.
Whatever happened to ... (II)
Otto's?
Craft?
Upmarket groceries in Ponsonby and Glen Innes?
Six places we'd go back to... and go back to
Because they're fun, classy, or never let you down.
Antoine's.
Eight Point Two.
Engine Room.
Molten.
Vinnies.
Neighbourhood faves
If these were at the end of our street, we'd eat in ...
Herne Bay Vinnies. Dida's.
Northcote and Birkenhead Points They got the Engine Room and Eight Point Two. Lucky buggers.
Ponsonby Prego. Rocco.
Mt Eden Molten.
Mt Roskill Santhiya.
Epsom Fish.
Kingsland Tabou. Winehot.
Parnell Gion. Oh Calcutta.
Remuera. Mission Bay. Howick. Titirangi. Takapuna Sigh ...
Six people who should be in the New Year Honours
The painters and potters and poets have had a fair crack. Thyme for a change.
Tony Astle.
Simon Gault.
Peter Gordon.
Craig Miller.
Peter Thornley.
Simon and Creghan Molloy Wright.
Honourable Mention
The Hon. Winston Peters Award for most welcome new immigrant.
Nigel Marriage, Eight Point Two.
Best Quote
"If you like their music so much, f ... off next door".
Mark Wallbank, Magnum host, bounces Michael Boulgaris to the bar next door for complaining about his choice of tunes, and raises the ambience of both establishments.
Sideways Award for Best Sommelier
Cameron Douglas.
I really must go out with him when someone other than a brewery is paying.
Last rights
The condemned man ate a hearty breakfast. It was ...
Simon Wright's green-pea cappuccino.
Satya's dahi puri.
Natalia Schamroth's terrine.
Stephen Ward's pappardelle with braised rabbit, bacon, walnut and watercress pesto.
Tony Astle's traditional roast duck with Grand Marnier sauce.
Simon Gault's Spoons of 2010 dessert.
Might as well have cheese.
Cholesterol is not going to be a problem.
Come on down, Jacqui and Phil from Sabato ...
Three burning questions for 2008
(i) If menu-writers can't spell mozzarella or carpaccio, how are they going to cope with "spherification"?
(ii) 2006 Flash steaks. 2007 Flash poached eggs. 2008 Flash chips or flash tomato sauce?
(iii) Michael Meredith. Sid Sahrawat. Will the next hot new chef have matching initials?
Six of the best restaurants in Auckland
Because you really expected this list. In alphabetical order.
Cibo.
Euro.
The French Cafe.
The Grove.
Meredith's.
O'Connell St Bistro.
So, that was 2007. Quite a year. You only had to read it - I had to eat it. And manage the dates for: Jude, Bridget, Tom and Sue, Emma, Gina, Sian. To whom, my grateful thanks for charming company and frank opinions: I enjoyed every minute, and every bite.
Oh, and The Lady Editor. I will convince you that there is more to life than tofu and vegan cheese. Maybe next year.
