Looking for a cheap meal this summer? Ooh-fa on Dominion Rd is one of our expert restaurant reviewer's top picks. Photo / Babiche Martens
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In this collection of restaurant reviews, Kim Knight finds some affordable dining options in Auckland, so even if the Christmas credit card bills are starting to bite, you can still enjoy a summer evening at a restaurant.
Here are three recommendations to check out when you’ve had enough of barbecues and leftovers.
In their own words: “Pizza and wine.”
First impressions: The pizza oven is bigger than the tables. Perch on a stool, scooch on to a banquette and get your order in, stat. That wood-fired golden orb takes up a bit of space, but it also turns out gold-standard pizzas.
In the kitchen: I recently interviewed a chef whose food I very much admire. He told me that on his first visit to Ooh-Fa he ordered all the pizzas. And then he ordered all the pizzas, all over again, because they were just that good. This may not surprise anyone who has eaten the pasta at sister restaurant, Pici. These guys are to flour as MoVida is to an anchovy.
On the floor: Wait staff have to work harder in a room where everyone is watching and at Ooh-Fa they’ve hired some real stars. Ninety-minute seatings are increasingly common, but only the best restaurants have perfected the pacing. We never felt rushed and we still managed to order dessert (and a dessert wine, thanks to a very genuine and charming upsell).
The neighbourhood: Ooh-Fa, Omni, OMG. How (and also Mr Hao) lucky is anybody who lives adjacent to this delicious block of Dominion Rd?
The menu: Seven pizzas (mostly vegetarian), two puddings and a perfectly formed selection of (mostly vegetable) snacks.
Best bite #1: Just when you thought you’d eaten every roasted carrot in the city, along comes this wood-fired version. The magic is in the cubed carrots. More edges equal more caramelisation. A lemony ricotta base has been whipped to the consistency of a soft fudge, and there’s a decent sprinkle of crumbled pistachio. The overall effect is savoury carrot cake, which might be a bit much if it wasn’t for the minty earthiness of soft, whole oregano leaves that remind you this is a dish with its roots in the dirt. The humble carrot is rarely this inspiring.
Best bite #2: If I had to choose a favourite, I’d say all of them. Yep, the pizza was everything we’d been promised. A 72-hour sourdough base is bubbled and black in all the right places. Toppings are simple but, as per those carrots, treated so beautifully. We particularly loved an eggplant that had, I think, had some pre-treatment that meant it melted lusciously into the mozzarella. We had to poke around under the fresh basil and mint to find a few dots of the promised stracciatella, but these are petite pizza (a little smaller than a dinner plate) and anything more might have been overkill. Every mouthful was moreish and pizza begat pizza. If there was not a time limit on the table I would have still been there at breakfast.
The jury’s still out: Cavolo nero is indestructible. Many of the country’s green crops have succumbed to wind and rain, but this dark green dinosaur kale keeps on giving. Pizza is a good vehicle (the leaves are robust enough to withstand high heat) but in combination with Italian sausage and parmesan, it wasn’t quite as exciting as everything else we ate at Ooh-Fa.
On the side: Refreshingly crunchy pickles and a pot of bagna cauda big enough to accommodate pizza crust? You’d be a fool not to.
Dessert: Sheep’s milk panna cotta with olive oil and sea salt is basically a creamier version of the famous Pici cheesecake. Paired with a very cold glass of Churton’s Natural State “field blend” (viognier, petit manseng and sauvignon blanc) it was the sublime taste of the summer we wish we’d had.
Perfect for: Intimate pizza dates and casual catch-ups with discerning, gluten-tolerant friends.
What it costs: Pizzas $15-$23, carrots $18, desserts $12, wine (125ml glass) $15-$26.
Address: Ooh-Fa, 357 Dominion Rd, Mount Eden, Auckland. Bookings (dinner, Tues-Sun, maximum of four people per table) at oohfa.co.nz
In their own words: “A tap bar and Asian tapas concept with a new social dining experience like no other.”
First impressions: At Lucky 8 all of the dishes and many of the drinks are a pleasantly economical $8.88 apiece. (They used to be $8 but inflation, etc). If the menu is cheap, the aesthetic is not. Head up the stairs to the vibrant dining room that ticks all the requisite Ponsonby boxes - exposed brick, warm wood, red leather, neon signage and more 20-somethings than a BA grad ceremony. Am I the oldest person in the room? (Yes). Is my mobile phone charged? (No). Help!
In the kitchen: Scan the menu’s QR code into your phone, place your order digitally and the sweet and spicy cucumber salad will be with you before you’ve decided which teriyaki barbecue skewer to get next - Lucky 8′s chefs are the Usain Bolts of small plate dining.
On the floor: A cheat sheet explaining that digital ordering system might have been useful for our geriatric table. Fortunately, the wait staff who sped across the floor with our plates were happy to take their time ensuring the over-50s didn’t accidentally dial up 88 mojitos.
The menu: Tapas meets yum char meets bar snacks. The 28-dish list runs from “too good to share” (think spicy lamb ribs or slow-cooked black pepper beef cheek) to dumplings, salads and skewers. A “share with care” section makes excellent use of the deep fryer - pork belly fries are the meaty chip opportunity all other restaurants are missing.
Best bite #1: Smashed cucumber is the new ceviche. It’s on every second Auckland menu and ideally suited to this city where every climate-changed summer is more monsoonish than the last. Lucky 8 takes the sweet-spicy flavour of the cucumber classic and delivers it with a (literally) sophisticated twist. The thing that sets this restaurant apart from other low-cost eateries is the care that is taken to garnish and plate - minimal cost, maximum eye candy and definitely the prettiest cucumber in town.
Best bite #2: Creamy mayo makes the world, and a crispy-coated shrimp, a better place. Order twice as many as you think you want. Speaking of delicious and diminutive, if you’re a fan of Mr Hao’s chilli chicken, the Lucky 8 version is just as moreish, but more manageably-sized than the dish made famous at namesake restaurants on Dominion and Oteha Valley Rds.
The jury’s still out: The speed of delivery suggests a fair amount of pre-cooking which is not a problem in itself, but I couldn’t help wonder just how far in advance a wedge of banana leaf-wrapped salmon might have been prepped. The flesh was tight and the taste was strong. I thought it was overcooked but then a perfectly rare centre was revealed and I was forced to consider that, perhaps, the whole thing was just not that fresh.
On the side: On a recent visit to a downtown tapas restaurant, I paid $22 for a single wood-fired, farmed baby pāua. Lucky 8 cuts its abalone with squid - quite a lot of squid and even more bean sprouts, to be honest - but $8.88 for one of these little cuties will make your budget table look extremely luxe.
Dessert: There’s only one official pudding (coconut puffs) but this is the moment to let those $8.88 cocktails shine. “Seoul sipping” (pineapple soju and yuzu sake) came with a big wedge of fruit and lime-spiked tapioca pearls; a “Viet dragon” with vodka, coffee liqueur and condensed milk was the ideal finish on a hot summer’s night. Connoisseurs might bemoan the lack of namechecked spirit brands on the cocktail list, but my cash-strapped pre-Christmas credit card wasn’t complaining.
Perfect for: Champenoise tastes on a Coca-Cola budget. This is a fun food and drink experience that looks twice as expensive as it actually is. Lucky 8′s dishes run slightly sweet and the chilli levels are unlikely to set your mouth on fire - but your wallet won’t feel the burn either.
How much: We spent $156 for three.
Address: Lucky 8, 161 Ponsonby Rd, Ponsonby, Auckland. Ph 021 978 396.
See also: Our review of sister restaurant Jungle 8 in Elliott Stables.
In their own words: “Taco Loco is la casa of the best traditional Mexican street food in town.”
First impressions: Taco Loco is a many-chambered wonder. Move from the tiny takeaway counter to an atmospheric anteroom before winding up in the covered courtyard. En route, encounter wrestlers and gunslingers, cactus and grinning skulls. You’re not in Mt Albert anymore.
On the floor: The waitstaff don’t look old enough to drink, but they are very quick to deliver one. Side plates arrived before I could ask; empty plates were whisked away before the next table could clock our greed. Friendly, efficient and fast.
The neighbourhood: Taco Loco used to operate from a former garage on New North Rd. Today, it’s on the same Mt Albert Rd corner that does excellent eggs (L’Oeuf) and introduced a generation of bearded 30-somethings to gua bao with their beer (Chinoiserie).
The menu: Tacos and tortillas. Quesadillas and burritos. Chicken-fish-cactus-etc. It’s everything you’d expect from a Mexican menu and nothing more, but I’ve had three Sunday lunches here since January and still haven’t managed to taste everything.
Best bite #1: I will not order the beef birria taco. I will not order the beef birria taco. I will ... definitely and absolutely have the beef birria taco. It oozes cheese and slow-cooked meat, even before you add the dark, dry heat of a homemade taco sauce. You will get so much of everything all over your face and there won’t be enough serviettes but I promise you won’t care, because now a chorus of taco angels is singing deep within your heart and if you looked up and saw the Second Coming carrying a bowl of birria dipping sauce you’d probably just nod and ask for a spoon. Don’t wear a good shirt. Do remember to dip the taco in that broth where the pulled beef has been bathing for hours. (Or maybe days? Months? Honestly, I don’t know how else they’d get it to taste that good.) According to one recipe I consulted, the secret to a great beef birria taco is to dunk the slow-cooked meat-stuffed tortilla in meat fat and then fry it. I wouldn’t recommend three of these in a single sitting but, if the kitchen is having a good day, this is one of the single best things you can eat in Auckland.
Best bite #2: That beef birria taco is a hard act to follow but on a recent visit we took a punt on the pulled pork empanada (crisp pastry, slightly cinnamon-flavoured filling) and the gobernador quesadilla. The flat, grilled tortilla was healthily plump with prawns and melted mozzarella - cheese on toast, but made special.
The jury’s still out: Queso de rancho is billed as deep-fried halloumi bites with a hibiscus reduction. I anticipated chunks of elastic cheese coated in a sweet-sharp respite. What arrived was devoid of both squeak and flavour. If you’re looking for something to have with a drink, go straight for the corn chips and guac, and consider adding a side of the salsa riviera. Remember when you were 7 and ate pineapple-and-pickled onion hedgehog oranges? Now imagine that with chilli and cool people.
On the side: Every time I eat Mexican rice - soft, savoury and tomato-imbued - I wish someone would put it on a breakfast menu with a fried egg. I love this little scoop of comfort food that is nothing and everything all at once.
Dessert: There’s cake, flan, churros and a deep-fried flour tortilla filled with banana and chocolate, drizzled with caramel sauce, sugar and cinnamon and served with icecream. I will not order the pudding chimichanga, I will not order the pudding chimichanga ...
Perfect for: Cheap Tuesday dates (three tacos and a drink for $25) or long weekend brunch-meets-lunch-and-maybe-dinner with friends at a big courtyard table.
How much: We spent $124 for two, but ordered way too much food.
Cocina Mexicano Taco Loco, 179 Mount Albert Rd, Auckland, phone (09) 215 8542.
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