Olle
Cuisine: Korean fusion
Phone: 021 960 964
Address: 52 East Coast Road, Milford
Drinks: Fully licensed
Reservations: Accepted
From the menu: Housemade crisps $12; snapper crudo $26; beef tartare $22; barbecue mushrooms $24; scallop and crab raviolo $32
Rating: 18/20
Score: 0-7 Steer clear. 8-12 Disappointing, give it a
This was one of those meals where everything went right. We arrived in the early evening and found a table in the sun, with just the slightest cool breeze for comfort. The world’s loveliest waitress approached and we asked to try the French bubbly which, because it wasn’t champagne, cost less than $20 a glass. She returned with the two flutes of the coldest, fizziest methode I think I’ve ever been served, and we drank them with happy gusto.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.“I’m glad you like it,” she said. “That one can be a bit polarising.”
But we were happily polarised, like a Trump voter on election night.
Olle is a new restaurant in Milford, found in the old home of the Stanley Ave Wine Bar. The latter was fantastic but eventually sputtered to extinction, presumably not helped by opening between our two big Covid lockdowns. Hopefully the charismatic owner Matt Aitchison is now doing something less stressful, like negotiating peace in Burundi.
The new owners have lightened up the interior and introduced a Korean-inspired menu, but they’ve maintained the previous restaurant’s serious approach to the winelist. There are about 20 different options by the glass, including some interesting varietals and two types of Marlborough sauvignon blanc, because Milford.
At some restaurants you look at the menu and can’t see anything you want, but at Olle we couldn’t see anything we wanted to miss. We sipped our bubbles with the kitchen’s version of Kiwi chip and dip – house-made crisps with a kimchi mascarpone. Then followed a parade of dishes which I would walk over coals, or even cross the harbour bridge, to eat again.
Most restaurants do some version of steak tartare, and all do a version of fish crudo. My wife and I usually arm wrestle over whether to order them – “I have to try the things you can’t get elsewhere” is my argument, while hers is that eating the same dish in every restaurant is a great way to judge them against each other. Anyway, she won this time and I was glad I relented. Olle’s takes on each of these dishes are wonderful, and unexpected. You’d struggle to recognise either if they were put in front of you, and the fresh flavours are exceptional.
You’re encouraged to take chopsticks and toss your plate of raw snapper, mixing it in with gochujang, shredded pear and nori, and dashi granita. I’ve never been quite convinced by having a little pile of ice in a bistro dish but it really works here when you mix it all together and the granita melts a little to further cool down the fish.
Like the crudo, the tartare was spicy, thanks to a fiery sambal mayo. Pickled daikon, diced into tiny pieces, cut through the lush meat while handmade lavosh crackers added some crunchy texture but … oh, I see they’ve taken it off the menu in the week since I visited. I’m sorry, it happens! Try the new aged beef skewers with jalapeno and onion mayo instead.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
We had one waitress for the night so I can’t speak to the service as a whole, but signs are very good. I recently ate at another restaurant in the area where they had obviously recruited school children and given them little training – the contrast here at Olle was stark. Our server was personal but professional, enthusiastic but not overbearing, knowledgeable without any showiness. Can you train for that? Or do you just have to pay more to encourage a higher level of applicant? If it’s the latter the owners have made a good choice – and the final bill was very reasonable, so you didn’t feel as though you were bearing the extra cost.
It must also help with staff enthusiasm levels when they’re delivering food this good. The mushroom dish is a vegan’s delight. How is it possible to get a vegetable (okay, funghi) tasting so delicious? The spicy harissa is one thing but even without it the mushrooms have a moreish meatiness. They are moist – juicy even – despite being cooked on the barbecue and come topped with a “tofu cream”, a sort of plant-based mayo-equivalent that has been popping up on a few Asian-adjacent menus recently. The dish is finished with a fresh, soft herb salad on top.
If you’re more relaxed about the ingredients animals generously provide us, try the raviolo – just one pasta parcel in the middle of the plate with a luscious sweetcorn and butter sauce. The raviolo has scallop and crab meat inside and is technically very rich but somehow the chefs make it taste light. Maybe it’s the pasta, which is closer in texture to a dumpling I think. Or maybe it’s the freshness the corn adds to the sauce. The little moments of scented flavour you get from the fresh herbs help too. Whatever is going on, this is a star dish and you should order it.
The locals won’t need me to tell them about this place – they are all over it. But I think Olle is worth driving some distance for, particularly at this time of year. The parking is easy, the outdoor tables appealing, and it’s hard to think of many other places where the food is quite this good. Congrats to the team on this stunningly good restaurant. Don’t change a thing.
More restaurant reviews
According to dining out editor Jesse Mulligan.
Is Piha Restaurant Aryeh Worth The Drive? It’s definitely worth a look, says Jesse.
Ada’s New Chapter Is Just Brilliant. The Grey Lynn bistro heralds a bright new chapter with chef Alfie Ingham.
Britomart’s Seafood Bistro Kingi Has A New Chef. But the team needs work.
The College Hill Wine Room Is A Freemans Bay Wine Bar. It’s not just for the rich and famous.
Nuuna In Wynyard Quarter Could Feel Like A Party Every Night. Even chef Peter Gordon has this Vietnamese restaurant on high rotation.
Taste The Pacific By Way Of France At This Big New Inner-City Restaurant. The sunny, conservatory-style dining room will come into its own in summer.
