Doggy bags off menu

Simon Gault of Euro is happy to provide doggy bags. Photo / Doug Sherring

Some restaurants ban taking food home but others hate to see waste.

Some of New Zealand's favourite fine-dining restaurants have put the bite on customers taking away doggy bags. Auckland's plush Langham Hotel has introduced a no-takeaway policy for patrons at its popular eateries Palm Court and Eight.

It is also against etiquette to bag leftover food at the upmarket Clooney, on the outskirts of Auckland's CBD. There, a three-course meal costs about $95 a head and $150 for a tasting menu.

The Langham introduced the ban for health and safety reasons and said the policy includes its $49 per person Tiffin Afternoon Tea menu.

"We used to allow doggy bags but stopped this after a small number of customers phoned last year to say they had felt ill," Langham marketing manager Lucy Clark said.

"They had not properly stored the food, which is freshly prepared or refrigerated, before consuming it. We cannot take the chance of people leaving our food in the car in the sun for three hours before eating it."

Clooney general manager Gary Olasz said the restaurant did not allow doggy bags for similar health reasons.

"There is also the risk of people trying to pull a scam by taking food home then pretending they were sick and seeking a refund," he said.

However, the traditional Kiwi doggy bag is still alive and well at a number of other quality establishments, such as the Federal Delicatessen and Depot, in central Auckland, operated by celebrity chef Al Brown.

"I can't stand waste and we package things up nicely for anyone who wants to take food home," Brown said. "Doggy bag is an unfortunate name though. We prefer to call it a gourmet take-home leftover pack."

TV chef Simon Gault provides doggy bags at all his restaurants, including the Crab Shack and Shed Five in Wellington, and Euro in Auckland.

"We even throw in a little surprise for anyone taking our food home," Gault said. "I don't care if it is the customers who eat it or the dog gets it, as long as it is put to good use.

"We rely on people simply having the common sense to store takeaway food properly before eating it."

Family restaurant chain Denny's - which operates in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch - offers doggy bags. But the popular Cobb & Co has a disclaimer printed on takeaway bags.

General manager Debbie Hotene said it was up to customers to make sure food was kept properly.