Saturday, August 8, 2015

Best of Wellington 2015


One last hurrah from me: Alexander Bisley, my regular Wellington correspondent, has put together this list of the best of the city as at July 2015 - a great set of notes to put in the back pocket ahead of a weekend trip to the capital ...
Wellington remains a really good place to eat, though it could do with a high quality joint to watch the rugby at. Ortega Fish Shack and Bar is still Wellington’s best restaurant.  Mark Limacher and Regnar Christensen are still creating absolutely delicious, fresh seafood. Maitre D’ Davey McDonald, Cuisine’s restaurant personality of 2015, has an infectious passion for seafood. 

He told me recently:
“Seafood is one of the great treasures that we have easy access to in New Zealand. It’s simple, delicious, sustainable and great fun to catch, too. Our fresh sashimi is a favourite, especially when paired with a great pinot gris. Our stew of monkfish, prawns, mussels, cockles, potato, basil & saffron mayo is hearty for wintry Wellington nights. I can’t say I haven’t come in on a night off for the beef with the fantastic Cafe de Paris butter and fries.  I love horse, too. When Cafe Bastille was new, we did horse filet mignon steaks with a wine sauce. Awesome dish, though some people got upset about it.”

Complementing Jesse’s excellent 2014 picks, here are ten of my current tips as of July 2015.

Best African: Afrika 
Best Brunch:  Jano’s Bistro                                                                                                                       Best Foodtruck: Le Canard camion
Best Fromagerie: Le Marché Francais
Best Indian: Great India
Best Maitre D’: Davey McDonald, Ortega Fish Shack and Bar
Best Malaysian: Little Penang
Best Non-Alcoholic Drinks’ List: Ortega Fish Shack and Bar
Best Scrambled Eggs: Ti Kouka
Best South-East Asian: 88

Alexander Bisley is a Wellington writer. More of his take on Wellington restaurants in the New Zealand Herald. He interviewed Tony Bourdain about Fesenjan, Persian Pomegranate Chicken, and other things Iranian.