Jesse Mulligan Auckland Restaurant Recommendations: Where To Eat Alone In Wellington & A Question About Harsh Reviews

In this fortnightly series, Viva’s resident dining-out editor shares advice on where and what to eat.

Do you have any restaurant-related questions or dining-out dilemmas? Jesse Mulligan is here to help.

Email Jesse at Viva@nzherald.co.nz and tell him what you need. Where and what do you like to eat? How much do you want to spend? If you’re just visiting, where are you staying while you’re in town? Who are you eating with? Does anybody have access issues?

Here are some questions he’s been asked lately and his answers.

Hi Jesse

Firstly, thanks for the effort you put into your reviews, I love that your reviews are objective, give all the info we’d like to know, and you review a good range of restaurants.

I have a tricky combo of guests and hoping you can please suggest a couple of potential places to try. We’re looking for somewhere to go regularly for family celebrations, so not over the top expensive. The family (all adults, small group) includes elderly parents who have fairly traditional tastes (not spicy, lol), plus one person who is gluten-free and another who is vegan. Also, the vegan isn’t so keen on either tomatoes or mushrooms which seem to be the go-to for restaurants trying to squeeze a vegan option on the menu.

I’d really appreciate any suggestions you have, please. We’re based on the North Shore but happy to travel to Central or West Auckland for the right place.

Lisa

Thanks, Lisa, I like a challenge.

Your main problem (and I say this with love) is the vegan. I could send you to an Italian like the excellent Farina which is having a real moment right now – fun and full with lots of delicious options. But your vegan (I mean I’m sure they are more than just their eating preferences but it’s a useful shorthand) will have to eat pizza every time. At least it’ll be very good pizza.

Little Bird Kitchen around the corner is probably your safest bet. The menu is fantastic – it’s gluten free and vegan but they give all their dishes normal names so as not to scare the horses. Your older couple could be half way through their creamed corn toastie before they even realise they’re anywhere out of the ordinary.

Sadly, though they’ve tried dinner service over the years, Little Bird is cafe-only these days. So if you’re meeting for dinner perhaps you’ll need to go to the wonderful Forest on Dominion Rd. As at Little Bird the traditional eaters will be your biggest issue here – it really is geared towards people avoiding animal products who still want to eat chef-level food.

While we’re on it there are a couple of vegan Thai places worth a look. I hear you on the spiciness but you could probably avoid chili with a little help from a good waiter. Thai works well for those eating gluten free too – Look up Khu Khu (they now have a branch in Milford) and East at the Sudima in Nelson St.

Hi Jesse,

I read your review of The Grill a few weeks back. I felt sorry for the restaurant but hopefully they appreciate your honesty and are able to make some changes – certainly sounds as though it wasn’t their night! Quietly, I was rather pleased to read you being critical – I wondered if you only wrote positive reviews.

Hi Beth

No, I’m happy to stick the boot in when required. Though it doesn’t happen very often because we’d prefer to tell good stories – I stay away from places that look like they’re going to be bad, but tell the truth when I visit somewhere that should have been better.

I got a lot of people asking me about that Grill review, and I can tell you the restaurant itself called me soon afterwards to let me know they’d taken the criticisms on board and were confident I could come back any time and find the experience much improved. They also offered to talk me through their batch-made cocktails which apparently have more of a story than the one I heard from the waiter that night.

So yeah, if you’re thinking about going out for steak, try The Grill – there’s probably no restaurant in Auckland trying harder to impress right now. Thank you for reading and for getting in touch!

Jesse

Kia ora Jesse,

Can you give us some recs for places to eat when you’re solo and travelling for work in Wellington? Despite coming and going between Auckland and Wellington for a few years now, I still default to Astoria, Aunty Mina’s, Ombré and Home Kitchen. What are your reckons?

Anon

Hello friend, great question.

I love visiting Wellington and I love eating alone, though sadly it’s been a while since I combined these hobbies. A few years ago, an unaccompanied dinner at Rita (which is always my first restaurant recommendation for Aucklanders visiting the capital) was one of the great evenings of my lifetime. I can also recommend WBC where they have a long, seated bar which is easy to slip into and eat oysters without feeling like a Nigel.

But for an up-to-date list, I have a trusted friend Susan in Wellington’s tourism office and she adds the below:

“Hi Jesse, great question! Our picks are:

1154 – on the corner of Ghuznee and Cuba Sts – fresh pasta, always busy, no pretensions, wine in a vegemite glass, sit in the window and watch Cuba St go by. After that go around the corner to Puffin and have a drink (or vice versa). I once saw a woman well into her 80s there sipping on a glass of red and reading a book on her own. Apparently, she is a regular. I decided I wanted to be her.

Damascus – Tory St, they do early sittings if that’s of interest, great food and they’ve just opened a new spot on Willis St.

Chaat St – corner Willis and Dixon Sts, amazing, original Indian food.

For the other end of town Avida Wine Bar, Featherston St, easy place to dine on your own. Or if you’ve got a generous work credit card and you want fancy Artisan at the Bolton Hotel.

Oh I forgot The Ram in Cuba St – chatty staff, great vibe.

That should keep you going for a few weeks. Let me know how you get on!

Previously recommended by Jesse Mulligan

What you’ve asked, and what he’s shared.

Where to take a vegetarian and accessible eateries. Get out of the city centre to find some of the best accessible eateries.

Great Chinese food and where to go to impress a chef. A restaurant packed with heart, soul and a lifetime of experience that is surprisingly fun too.

Where to go for an after-work drink; the strangest things I’ve found in my food. Plus, news from a beloved bar on Karangahape Rd.

Auckland’s top Thai spots; where to go for a quiet, romantic dinner. From big menus and a sublime satay sauce, to lovely lighting and good acoustics.

Where to go for good gnocchi; a drink in Mt Eden. Try three different styles of gnocchi cooked traditionally, and Jesse’s current favourite.

Where to go for the best Vietnamese food in Auckland; dinner before a show. Plus, one reader asks where to find some of the city’s hottest new openings.