Takapuna Beach Cafe

The Takapuna Beach Cafe used to be a regular location for us to go out to for brunch but it had been months since our last visit, so when we did go on Saturday I was pleased to see a revamped menu with lots of really interesting options.

I love the location of this cafe near the Takapuna boat ramp at the end of Takapuna beach with a beautiful view over the ocean to Rangitoto. The circular tables and large metal chairs however, whilst contributing to a nice beach feel, I feel are oversized and crammed in.

In addition to the complementary sparkling water, I enjoyed a good trim latte and Jane enjoyed a lovely fresh juice and long black.

I had the “Grilled King Salmon, folded free range eggs, homemade croissant loaf“ for my meal. The Salmon was quite rich but it worked well with the butter flavour from the croissant. I enjoyed the dish and would order it again.

Jane had the “Poached eggs, salsa verde, wild rocket & potato salad, grated reggiano with pancetta” which she really enjoyed.

All food was beautifully presented, our waitress was excellent, our water was regularly filled and the food arrived in a timely manner.

Chihuahua, Takapuna, Auckland

Chihuahua is a reasonable mexican restaurant located in Takapuna. Jane had come across it in Channel magazine (a local magazine for Takapuna) and we decided to give it a go.

We started with the rattlesnake salsa that was absolutely superb. It is thoroughly recommended.

I had a burrito for my main and was a bit disappointed. It was smaller than I expected and I found it to be lacking in flavour. I did spice it up with the chilli sauces that were available on the table but I was still underwhelmed.

Jane enjoyed the half short ribs she had which was accompanied by corn encrusted in parmesan and chilli that she also really enjoyed.

We also had some buffalo wings, that were nicely cooked but I thought lacked anything special. I would however order them again.

For dessert Jane had the soft centred chocolate pudding with chilli that was perfectly cooked and the chilli had a decent kick to it. A magnificent dish that I obviously needed to help her with.

The service was good and the food arrived in a timely manner. We would return, but I will order differently.

Pakwan Indian Restaurant, Devonport, Auckland

We had a superb curry out with friends last week at Pakwan Indian Restaurant in Lake Road in Devonport (well actually it's more Bayswater). This is a very small restaurant in which the vast majority of people were Indian and they were more-so set up for takeaways. It is not a flash restaurant by any means (in fact it's quite the opposite) but the curries were very flavoursome and enough for two people. I did however find that my hot curry wasn't hot at all and was in fact closer to mild; maybe specifying Indian hot may have been a better idea.

The service was very genuine. It's definitely not trying to be anything special and the dishes are delivered when they're ready and if that means the rice comes out 5 minutes after the other dishes come out then so be it.

It is worth noting that they are BYO and do not sell liquor.

Fuego, Hamilton

We had dinner out with friends in Hamilton at Fuego in Rototuna on Saturday. This is a casual restaurant that also catered well to the 3.8 year old that was part of our group. I'm not used to getting colouring in stuff when I go out to dinner.

We started with the garlic bread and a selection of dips. The dips were a hummus, a butter and an olive oil with balsamic vinegar. These were okay although the olive oil was a little bitter.

I had the lamb rump for my main. This was char-grilled and beautifully rare. It was accompanied on top of a nice mash with Ratatouille and a nice red wine jus. It was a nice dish.

Jane had the pork belly that she really enjoyed. It was a good hearty meal.

One of the other members of our group had the fish of the day which was a Salmon dish that she enjoyed.

The chicken nuggets with chips were apparently "really yummy".

For dessert I shared a flavoursome crumble with Jane

and the others shared a chocolate brownie that looked nice (and a decent portion too).

The wait staff were friendly and efficient and the meals all arrived in a timely manner.

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.