Spicy Joint, Dominion Road

After attempting to go to Clip ‘n Climb without a booking we decided to go and eat instead. With a name of “Spicy Joint” and an A-rating (yes we checked) it sounded like it would be a good adventure.

We were the only non-asians in the restaurant, and the waitress needed to get the people on the table next to us to translate what we wanted; that is a sign of an authentic restaurant. The style of food here apparently comes from central China, according to the table next to us.

I went with a ridiculous chilli and chicken dish that was reminiscent of a dish I ordered years ago at another restaurant. The chicken was deep fried, which I assume is authentic, and the chilli’s altered between mild and crazy. At one point I had to wait before I could eat again.

We also had some dumplings that were lovely and covered with chilli oil and garlic.

There were other good dishes too.

I was also amused by the bill, and the only English on it being “GST”.

A great afternoon adventure that came to $58 for 4 people.

Mikano, Mechanics Bay, Auckland

We had a good (but lacklustre) meal out tonight at Mikano in Mechanics Bay with service that didn’t feel natural and lacked finesse.

I last went to Mikano several years ago and it was Jane’s first time. The setting overlooking the harbour through the floor to ceiling glass windows is lovely but the restaurant itself almost feels like you’re in a barn with poor lighting (at least it was in the corner we were seated). It was disappointing to see that the glassware was of a rugged variety as opposed to good quality glasses.

For my entree I had the clams. These were done in a chardonnay sauce with herbs. There were different types of clams and I enjoyed the dish.

Jane had a smoked fish platter for her entree and thoroughly enjoyed it. The fish had a beautifully light smoked flavour and was very moist.

I had Yellowfin tuna for my main pan-fried with fennel puree, orange, pink grapefruit, capers, croutons & burnt orange vinaigrette. This was cooked nicely in a rare/blue style and I particularly enjoyed the puree. I did however find the tuna was a bit too salty and not helped by the capers. I did still enjoy the dish.

Jane had the grilled milk-fed veal scotch with lemon & basil, zucchini, pinenuts, raisins
& ricotta gnocchi for her main, which was nice but lacked any wow factor.

I finished with a lovely Blue Cheese (Bleu d’Auvergne) and crackers and Jane had the Chocolate & mandarin ‘Delice’ (hazelnut crust, chocolate mousse and mandarin jelly) which she enjoyed.

Our meals arrived in a timely manner and were well presented, but even though we were asked a few times whether we would like another drink our empty wine glasses were not taken away. Similarly, our water was topped up while we had our entree but the glasses remained empty thereafter.

Daikoku, Takapuna

We dined out at the Daikoku Teppan-yaki restaurant in Takapuna this evening. This was our first time to this particular restaurant but we are familiar with Teppan-yaki.

The restaurant was about a third full and had a nice vibe,

I had the Scotch Fillet set and Jane had the Aged Scotch Fillet set. Our chef prepared the meals in front of us, made a volcano out of onion rings, oil and some flame and did several other tricks to entertain.

We had a variety of entree dishes that arrived prior to the main that were all beautifully fresh and flavoursome, particularly when using the accompanying sauces.

Jane’s aged scotch fillet was slightly more tender than my steak, however I don’t think it really warranted the extra $10 (or thereabouts). The steak really needed the sauces to be anything more than a steak cooked on the grill.

An enjoyable evening out.

Calliope Road Cafe, Devonport

For brunch today we headed along to Calliope Road Cafe in Devonport. This was our second time here and I decided to have the Colcannon Brunch with house cured salmon; essentially eggs benedict on a potato mash with leek and cabbage. It was a nice dish, although I would have liked to have the option of using freshly cracked pepper instead of the precracked pepper on the table.
Jane had the Bang Bang Chicken, a sichuan satay chicken where the satay was the predominant flavour, and enjoyed it.
We both also thoroughly enjoyed an Ice coffee.
From a service perspective the food arrived quickly although the lack of table service for ordering I do find frustrating.

Deep Creek Brewing Company, Browns Bay

I had heard that there was a microbrewery in Browns Bay so having tracked down the Deep Creek Brewing Company had to give it a go. The bar had a nice vibe when we entered, and half the bar is setup for casual drinks and the other half for eating. There is also a lovely outdoor area with great views out to the sea.

I started with their 309 New Zealand Pale Ale, which I found to be a nice slightly bitter drop with a touch of orange. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

For my meal I had the ribs and these were the best ribs I have had in a long time. They were a good sized portion and beautifully tender to the extent they were falling off the bone, and covered in a nice Jack Daniels-based BBQ sauce. The meal was accompanied with beautifully cooked kumara chips and a salad. I would very happily order this dish again.

Jane had a perfectly cooked Angus steak with a biltong and aged cheddar crust, although it did taste like it needed more salt prior to cooking to better extract the flavour of the meat. Jane chose the slap chips as an accompaniment that were not as strong in vinegar as the waitress suggested, but were still nice.

Our waitress was good and the food arrived in a timely manner.

We will happily return.

GPK, Takapuna

We felt like pizza for lunch so decided to give GPK in Takapuna a go. It is one of those places we have been past many times but never gone in.

There were only two other tables occupied when we arrived and about the same when we left. We started with a coffee and mocha. My trim latte was good and I assume Jane enjoyed her mocha.

I had the Muscovy pizza which consisted of wood fired duck, red onion, roast kumara, Kikorangi blue, rosemary oil & rocket & pear salad. The thin base of the pizza was lovely and nice fresh ingredients were used for the toppings. I did however expect the blue cheese to be quite strong but it was almost non-existent, and the duck was lovely although I thought it was a bit sparse.

Jane had the Mediterranean pizza which was supposed to have seared octopus & calamari, roasted eggplant, anchovies, olives, wood-fired shallots, garlic & tomato, lemon & parsley oil; the anchovies were however nowhere to be seen. Jane found it to be okay, but found the octopus and calamari to be a little tough at times and was really looking forward to the anchovies.

We kept an eye out for a waiter to ask about the anchovies and get our water refilled but this did not prove to be successful. Even 15 minutes after we had both completed our meals nobody came by.

When we went to the counter to pay we mentioned the lack of anchovies, for which we did receive an apology for and they deducted our coffees (which was a nice touch). We also suggested that they should pay more attention to filling up water which he took on board.

Stoneleigh Rapaura Series Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough 2010

With a tinge of green, I picked up green gooseberry and passionfruit to the nose. To taste it is very full bodied, beautifully smooth with nice gooseberry and passionfruit flavours, and a nice long tail. This is a superb New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc that is drinking beautifully now.

Paired with Beef Stroganoff, which had some of this wine in it, it went very well.