‘Exactly the sort of rejuvenation we need’: New late-night dining precinct plan for Auckland CBD

Paul Wong, anchor tenant Jungle 8, Steven Nguyen, chef and owner of Buns n Rolls, and Paul Reid, managing director of Icon Group outside the Elliott Stables which is going to have a makeover. Photo / Dean Purcell

Auckland foodie revellers and insomniacs can look forward to a late-night food precinct right in the heart of the city.

Hospitality business owners are planning to turn Elliott St into a dining destination where eateries open late, and some operate from night to dawn.

Opening in early July, Elliott Stables will be turned into a bustling high-end street food and drinking hall reminiscent of those in the streets of Asia and Europe.

At Mid City mall, Lao Guangzhou (Guangzhou Hot Pot) opens next week as an all-night eatery in the CBD that will soon operate until 6am.

Towards the Victoria St West side of the street, there are plans for up to eight late-night “container restaurants” selling Asian street hawker-style food from Malaysia, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and Vietnam.

Although the initiative is driven by the property and business owners, it has won the blessing of Heart of the City and the Auckland Business Chamber.

An artist's impression of the Jungle 8 eatery, part of the new development planned for the Elliott Stables site in the Auckland CBD. Photo / Supplied

“This is exactly the sort of rejuvenation we need to see and keep seeing in the CBD,” says Auckland Business Chamber chief executive Simon Bridges.

Auckland’s city centre has been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, with foot traffic falling 95 per cent at one point and consumer spending falling 35 per cent.

Stakeholders who spoke to the Herald said they knew they had to evolve in order to survive and thrive following the pandemic.

Bridges said the central city “must keep reinventing itself to stay relevant and attractive” - and the entrepreneurs behind the initiative should be congratulated.

He believed having more people out and about at night would also make the central city safer, where reports of crime have risen significantly compared with pre-pandemic levels.

“I think if anything these sorts of initiatives can improve safety as they bring more law-abiding people in to crowd out the lawbreakers,” Bridges said.

“Contrary to what some think, 24-hour cities can be the safest.”

Anchor tenant at Elliott Stables Paul Wong of Jungle 8 and his associate Steven Nguyen. Photo / Dean Purcell

Paul Reid, managing director of Icon Group which owns Elliott Stables, said the pandemic had been an “incredibly tough time” for tenants and private landlords.

More people worked from home, and international students and tourists vanished. On top of that, City Rail Link construction had made access to the inner city impossible at times, said Reid.

Tenants at Elliott Stables who were not able to pay their monthly rents during the early stages of the pandemic got embroiled in legal battles with the Icon Group as they sought rent relief.

“Icon Group did the best it could to support tenants during the government’s Covid-era restrictions, including writing off more than $3 million in rent owed to support our tenants through the difficult time,” Reid said.

But he admitted this wasn’t enough to save some businesses - and the new plans aimed to turn Elliott Stables back to its “rightful place as Auckland’s premier food dining hall”.

Harry Cai, owner of Lao Guangzhou Hot Pot restaurant chain, is excited to open his new outlet at Mid City mall. Photo / Jason Oxenham

Reid will be injecting about $2m into renovations to turn Elliott Stables into what he hopes will be the “focal point for nightlife in the future”.

He would not reveal specific tenants but confirmed that Paul Wong, a restaurateur behind the popular Mr Hao eateries and Lucky 8 bar in Ponsonby, will be an anchor tenant.

The range of offerings inside the new dining hall would also include cuisine from South America and Italy.

“The new tenants coming in will be more authentic and relevant to today’s taste while keeping Elliott Stables special for so many,” he said.

Paul Reid managing director of Icon Group at the Elliott Stables. Photo / Dean Purcell.

Wong has just returned from a trip to Vietnam and Singapore where he went to scope for ideas and “get a better feel for Asia’s nighttime street dining scene”.

He said the aim of the new project was to have “authentic chefs bringing their traditions and skills from their homeland”.

The interior decor of his Vietnamese-inspired fusion Jungle 8 bar and eatery at Elliott Stables will include hanging paper lanterns, street lights and styling that takes diners to the streets of Asia and Europe, he said.

“The 16 or so stalls will have flaming barbecues, steaming woks and the plan is also to have a DJ or live music every evening,” Wong said.

Jungle 8 will follow in the “noisy, busy and buzzy” style of Wong’s Lucky 8 bar in Ponsonby, serving Asian-style tapas food, cocktails and drinks.

Yejun Shim, owner and director of Yooa & Tako on Elliott St. Photo / Jason Oxenham.

Lao Guangzhou owner Harry Cai said he was confident the Cantonese-style hot pot and street food offerings would appeal to late-night revellers.

Opening next Tuesday, Lao Guangzhou will cook until 2am but Cai plans to extend this to 6am during winter.

Cai said his flagship restaurant In Newmarket is always busiest after midnight.

“It’s what people do in Asia - many places are open until dawn and people love to eat late into the night.”

“We are really excited to bring this to Auckland, and I know it will work for the CBD because it has worked for us in Newmarket.”

Auckland Business Chamber CEO Simon Bridges with Heart of the City CEO Viv Beck. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Yejun Shim owns and operates Yooa & Tako, a Japanese takeaway operating from a shipping container on Elliott St. There are plans for another six to eight containers to open.

“We will have tteokbokki, Korean fried chicken, kaya toast, dumplings, rice paper rolls, bao buns, just like the kind you find on the streets of Asia,” said Shim.

“I’m Korean and part-Japanese, and in Korea, we have a word for this late-night food culture called ‘yasik’ meaning ‘food eaten in the middle of the night after dinner’.”

He will be seeking consent for after-hours outdoor seating and heating to add to the street-dining vibe.

Skewers, grilled crab and oysters are some of the late-night food offerings. Photo / Jason Oxenham

Heart of the City chief executive Viv Beck said it was great to see Elliott St getting an injection of new eateries.

“It’s an iconic part of the city centre and its close proximity to the arts precinct makes it an ideal place for late-night dining,” she said.

“The city centre’s hospitality offering continues to be a real drawcard and there’s been a number of new openings in recent months.”

Overall spending in the city centre in December last year was close to pre-pandemic levels in December 2019.

Hot pot feasts are popular after midnight at Lao Guangzhou. Photo / Alex Burton

“There’s some great leasing occurring and later dining options will give a welcome boost to our nighttime economy, especially with more international tourists and students around,” Beck said.

Beck said Heart of the City remained “committed to supporting safety day and night” and collaborates with NZ Police beat teams that include security patrols, Māori Wardens and City Watch.

“It’s important that people feel safe when they’re having a night out,” she said.

“Having more people around does help people feel safer too.”