Tribeca, Parnell

Tribeca has one of the best locations around. Picture / Carolyn Robertson

Herald rating: * * * 1/2

What's Labne? Sumac? Brandade? The questions were coming across the table like an Eddie McGuire spinoff show, Who Wants to Be A Culinaire? Just when I thought I'd got to the first safe level ... "What's elate?"

Can I phone a friend? Which friend? Larousse, maybe. Fortunately, the Valley Girl spotted that the thoughtful people who put out the Tribeca menu had done something very useful. "Look," she said, "there's a glossary of all these terms and ingredients at the back."

The three of us were at Tribeca for a special occasion: the Valley Girl's mother's birthday. Why Tribeca? Because it has one of the nicest sites around - the lovely brick of the Foundation Building, lawn in front, loggia behind. Gorgeous room with crushed velvet curtains and flamboyant flowers and serious linen and cutlery and four wineglasses of cut gravitas for each diner.

Mark and Pauline Walynetz have owned the place since 1997 and Otto's since ... a little while ago. Chef Richard Harris has been in kitchens for 18 years and has worked with (take a breath) Judith Tabron, Tony Astle, Warwick Brown, Antony Worrall Thompson. And Eric Clapton, David Bowie, the Cure, Pearl Jam, Elton John and the Rolling Stones. Funny, never looked on Charlie and Keith as poster-boys for good nutrition and a healthy lifestyle.

We had booked for 7.30pm and were surprised to find the restaurant empty when we arrived. We were more surprised to find it still empty when our entrees arrived. By 8.30pm it was filling, then packed. People from this neighbourhood eat later than the western side of the Queen St valley.

To quote John Lennon, one of the 60s rock stars who your man didn't cook for, just rattle your jewels. Tribeca is a haunt of the well-heeled, ringed, dressed and coiffed. They come for Harris' "modern freestyle cuisine with influences from Thailand, the Middle East, Europe and the Americas".

Sometimes this has seemed more style than substance. Time to revise that. It was fun to eat his take on dressed-up rustic recipes. How about rabbit, leek and macadamia pie with a cauliflower cream, or a stilton-based tart? Oh yes, these were good ingredients, straightforward cooking, flash presentation, the flavours where they should be.

Duck breast was exquisitely roasted, lacquered with sharp pomegranate, the sweet pulp of tomatoes overflowing with rice, cinnamon overlaying piquillo peppers.

The Birthday Girl's snapper was crusted with pine nuts and herbs, the sugars of gold beet and the subtleties of smoked yellow-pepper cream; the Valley Girl's chicken breast char-grilled with a little bit of help from those old friends, lemon and oregano, a pepper and smoky bacon salad.

Perhaps I should mention the desserts. I will. They are very good and anyone who wants more information should take themselves off to www.tribeca.co.nz.

And yes, they do wine here, though the Birthday Girl was driving and settled for a flute of Veuve to mark her occasion. I asked them to match glasses to courses.

Palliser 2003 chardonnay with the rabbit pie, fine. Saint Clair Reserve Doctors Creek 2003 pinot noir for the duck felt a degree too wimpy, but Tribeca is scanty on wines by the glass.

After this you may be thinking, "Cut to the small print; it'll be 4 1/2 stars," but the service let Tribeca down.

A dropped fork, that you can forgive. Well, someone as clumsy as I can, so I did, when she did. But the waitress brought the Valley Girl the wrong entree. She brought me the wrong dessert wine. And spilled water on us.

So although this is a fine kitchen, when you put the whole shebang up against the best in town, the result is written in the stars.

Address: Foundation Building, George St, Parnell
Ph: (09) 379 8859
Owners: Mark and Pauline Walynetz
Chef: Richard Harris
Food: "Modern freestyle cuisine"
On the menu: Tagliolini, spanner crab, lemon, prosciutto, pickled chilli $19; Pan-roasted pork scotch fillet, apple and juniper compote, jerusalem artichoke puree, pancetta crisp $28; Mochaccino tartlet with honeycomb rocks, candied orange and pinenut mascarpone $14
Vegetarian: Not on this menu
Wine: Extensive, expensive; light on options by the glass
Bottom line: Sophisticated food, pity about the slightly dodgy service.