Jesse Mulligan Auckland Restaurant Recommendations: Where To Go For A Summer Get Together

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,

We have a big family get together over the summer in Auckland. Need a place that can fit about 20 of us – doesn’t need to be fancy at all, just a bar or restaurant that can fit us all in and won’t be too stressed about the numbers. Pizza and beer would be fine! All ages group.

Thanks Dan

Hey Dan I have just the place.

Enjoy and consider a couple of maxi taxis to and from!

Dear Jesse

I’m going out for lunch in Auckland before Christmas with my British dad (70 years old, conservative) and my nephew (17 years old, up for any sort of food). I’m pretty open-minded myself – can you help with a couple of suggestions?

Nick

Hi Nick

I think I’d head to one of Josh Emett’s restaurants – his new bistro Gilt (which we just named Best Lunch in the city in Viva’s Top 60 Auckland Restaurants) or up the hill at Onslow which does comfortable classics like a salmon trolley and scotch fillet, along with some pretty nifty snacks like a crayfish eclair.

If they’re both too flash what about Prego? They’ve become famous for being all things to most people, and the service is extremely reliable. Your dad will struggle to find much to complain about.

If he fancies something by the sea you could head to First Mates, Last Laugh where the food is great. Keep an eye on the bill though – a friend went with the company credit card recently and the bill was $1200. “We had a great time,” he said to me later. “But that’s expensive fish and chips”.

Jesse. Omg I missed this email! I would LOVE!!!!!!! to have dogs in.

Yael Schochat, Ima Cuisine, replying this week to an email I sent her in June.

Thanks Yael, great to hear from you (eventually).

Happy to add the wonderful Ima (also a new addition to our Viva Top 60 Auckland Restaurants list in 2024) to our collection of restaurants that are dog-friendly. Others include Vivace, Baduzzi, Cibo and Hotel Ponsonby.

Ima is a uniquely wonderful Fort Street restaurant – Yael and her team are arguably the real heart of the city. The restaurant isn’t slick but that is part of its appeal, and the food is completely delicious along with being vegetarian friendly and studded with Middle Eastern treats you won’t find anywhere else. If you haven’t visited for a meal yet, make sure you do!

Back to pet-friendly matters, I ate at Nuuna in Jellicoe St last week and they’ve devoted a whole sign to how much they want dogs in their restaurant. You can read my review of the rest of the experience here.

Keep the comms coming, canine-loving restaurateurs of Auckland!

Previously recommended by Jesse Mulligan

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

The Best Auckland Restaurants For Peace & Quiet. Plus, where to take a child with food allergies.

Where To Find Japanese Food You’ll Love & What To Do About The Bill. Plus more on pet-friendly dining.

Where To Take A Vegetarian & Accessible Eateries. Get out of the city centre to find some of the best accessible eateries.

Great Chinese Food & 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.