Hotel d'Urville

Definitely the best restaurant in Blenheim downtown. They have a wine list that emphasized on Marlborough wine (Of Course!). Hotel d'Urville is on par with any top class restaurant in Auckland. Their scallop entree from the Autumn menu is to die for (unfortunately it is winter now). Venison (regular) and quail (winter) entree is also very good. Their lamb on the menu is excellent but their best stuff is usually their fish special of the day. The bone-in Snapper is a treat. Price wise you will be looking for $80 per person before beverages.

Industry Zen - 2pm lunch

I am walking around aimlessly in the city and find myself hungry at 2pm. I drive past Industry Zen and recall someone recommended that to me. So I walk in and God I don't know I am in for a treat.

Their menu is really extensive, with all kinds of food from Robatayaki to full course dinner. Since it is lunch they do not offer robatayaki so I order Wagyu beef, Otoro sashimi. I also order shrimp tempura and "five styles teriyaki chicken" base on recommendation of the staff.

The Wagyu beef is to die for. It comes up with raw Wagyu beef and torched it in front of you, so you could control how cooked it is. The Wagyu beef is the best wagyu I had tasted in Auckland. The dish is quite expensive (upper 20s for 3 piece of thin beef) but it worth every penny.

I ordered two pieces of Otoro (bluefin tuna belly). It is good Otoro, melt in your mouth, and serve with fresh wasabi. Though in Otoro I usually use minimum amount of wasabi so I could taste the full extent of the taste of the fish.

The shrimp tempura is rather disappointing. It is not bad, but it has nothing differ itself from other well made tempura. To me, a well made tempura is a must for any Japanese restaurant. If they cannot make proper tempura they might as well close their store. For a place as fancy as Industry Zen I expect they come up with something that can top the normal tempura but it is not the case here.

The last dish is teriyaki chicken in 5 different styles. It is basically 5 different sauces to go with teriyaki chicken. This dish really showcase what the vision of the chef as not only the visual presentation is wonderful, but the sauces compliment the chicken very nicely. I am skeptical at first as I think teriyaki chicken are nothing but low end generic food but this chef really make wonderful variation out of the generic category.

Overall Industry Zen is a wonderful place, but the price do not come cheap. I ordered the above and 2 small sake and I pay almost $100 for this meal. Definitely worth it, but not a place I can come week. Industry Zen is definitely in for contention for the best of Japanese food in Auckland.

Tanto Japanese Dining - 18 December 2010

Tanto Japanese Dining

250 Manukau Road, Epsom, Auckland

09-5222300

tanto.co.nz

Tanto just opened in November, 2010 and I went there on recommendation of a friend. I went there by myself on a Saturday at 7pm. They only have 1 seat at the bar left. I ordered 2 piece of sushi, a Japanese pancake (Don Don Yaki) and Owanmushi for my dinner in addition to a desert.

The sushi is so-so. Not bad by any means, but nothing special to write home about either. They also don't have fresh wasabi.

The Don Don Yaki is a variance of Okonomiyaki - various savory stuffing wrapped in a pancake. It is a very favourful dish and it tastes good. The flavour is strong but not overwhelming. If you like the stronger flavour style of Japanese food, you would like this dish

Owanmushi is steamed egg custard with seasonal vegetables, prawn and chicken. (According to the menu). The egg is steamed really well. Very smooth surface and the egg melts in your mouth. I love steaming eggs at home and I never steam the egg as perfect as this one. The custard is also very flavourful - it is likely they added flavourful stocks instead of just water to the egg. However, I do not see much seasonal vegetables in the egg (I don't consider the broccoli "seasonal vegetables" and I am expecting the vegetables infuse with the custard) , and I only see one piece of prawn and a tiny piece of chicken in the custard. That is rather disappointing as that is billed as a "specialities" and it should be considered as a main.

Finally I opted for dessert which is poached pear. As in most Japanese restaurant, their dessert is nothing special. I believe a good poached pear is supposed to infused everything in the dish together (in this case, the pear, ice-cream and jelly) and it fails to do so here.

Overall it is not a bad meal by any means. With everything I ordered in addition to a large sake, this meal only cost me $54. Not considering the drinks one can easily walk away with less than $30 for their tab per person. With this quality of food there should be no complaint. Tanto is a restaurant where you go when you are on a budget, want to eat some well-made food, but you are not aiming to eat something fancy like Wagyu or bluefin tuna.

Yealands Riesling Marlborough 2008

A riesling bursting with apple and citrus flavour, but the wine lack complexity to make it a great wine. Still a good everyday drinking wine and good for its price range (about $20/ bottle)

Esk Valley Reserve merlot malbac cabernet sauvignon 2006

It has a very dark red color, almost purple. Its aroma is very ripe red fruit with spicy overtone and a hint of chocolate. It is a full body wine with still strong, but not undesirable tannin in the wine. The wine will benefit for another couple years of ageing for sure. The retail price is $65 but I got it at $34.

Lake Chalice Marlborough Pinot Noir 2008

It has a crimson red color and a light body. The first aroma I get is developed aroma such as pleasant bacon fat and barnyard. I also has red berry flavor with a hint of spicy overtone. It is a fruity wine with minimal amount of tannin and nice acid balance with a hint of sugar lingering. The wine is sold at glengarry for between $20-$30

Vidal Syrah Reserve 2005

dark red in color with a medium body, this wine has plum, herbs, blackcurrant, peppery and smoky aroma on the nose. On the palate it has hint of chocolate and coffee taste. A very good and complex Syrah. I bought it at $33/ bottle. The original price is $55/ bottle.

Brancott Estate Terraces "T" Pinot Noir 2009

The 2008 is reviewed here a couple months ago. Now the 2009 is on the market, also on a discount at New World ($19.99)

The 2009 has significantly less secondary characteristics. The earthy and barnyard smell is gone. Instead the wine has intense cherry aroma. The wine is crimson red in colour and has a light body. I personally like the 2008 more as it is more complex, but aroma may develop in bottle in the next year.

Brancott Estate Ormond "O" Gisborne Chardonnay 2007

Another of former Montana's wine on discount ($19.99). Like the pinot noir, it is superior in value compare to other $20 wine. This chardonnay has citrus, smoky oak, buttery and a hint of peachy character. This savory wine is well balanced and is a good buy at $20.

Montana Terraces "T" Marlborough Pinot Noir 2008

Terraces "T" Marlborough Pinot Noir is Montana's flagship pinot noir. It is a light body (like most pinot noir) wine with a crimson red colour. It has an aroma of blackcurrant, red fruit with earthy, cow yard undertone. It has a plumy and spicy taste. Overall it is a complex wine. The original price is $35-$40 but I bought it $20 at a supermarket. For $20 it is an exceptional wine for value.

Domaine Felines Jourdan Picpoul De Pinet Languedoc 2008

A lesser known varietal, Picpoul de Pinet in a lesser known region, Languedoc. The wine has undergone lees stir and malolactic fermentation resulting a fuller body and rounder mouthfeel. It has a clear yellow color with a citrus, lemon and buttery aroma. $23 from the wineshop in Elliot Stables. Would be a good match with a heavier seafood dish.

Soi Japanese Cuisine November 29 Lunch

Restaurant: Soi Japanese Cuisine
Address: 596 Remuera Road, Auckland
Phone: 09-5220907
Parking: Street parking is available
Food ordered: Tempura udon ($15), organic tofu ($7), sashimi ($5.5) and sake ($14)

Soi Japanese Cuisine is a relatively new restaurant in Remuera. It is well known for its homemade Tofu and Udon. So obviously I ordered what they are famous for. The homemade Tofu is cold Japanese style Tofu which is excellent. It is tofu to die for though those who are not familiar with Tofu might find it strange. You can really taste the delicate taste of the bean and it goes perfectly with the salmon roe, scallions and sea salt. The tempura udon I ordered is also very good. The tempura is fried "the right way" (Lots of places serve tempura but they don't even know how to deep fry stuff) and the udon itself is good, though it is not as stunning as the tofu.

Soi is a small cozy restaurant with less than 30 seats. I once walk outside the restaurant at 8pm during weekend and the place is packed so make reservation before going there on Friday or Saturday night. Price wise it is sort of in between the fancy japanese restaurant and the generic ones you find anywhere.

Gion Japanese Restaurant 6-November 2009

Date: 6/11/ 2009
Name: Gion Japanese Restaurant
Address: 197 Parnell Road, Auckland
Website: http://www.gion.co.nz/
Party size: 2
Parking: You should be able to find street parking either on parnell road or on one of the side roads.
When we get seated: 8:30pm
When we left: 10:30pm

Tonight experience:
Food ordered: Omakase chef's choice ($68 per person)
The Omakase starts with 3 pre-dinner small dishes (Takuwan, Japanese plum and squid(?) wasabi), salad, miso soup, sashimi, a small dish with eel and egg. The main course consist of teriyaki chicken, tempura, salmon, oysters and rice. The dessert is ice-cream, cake and fruit. Yes, it is plenty of food and I didn't even touch the rice that come with the main course. The taste of the omakase dinner is good, but I don't see any surprises. When I ordered a omakase/ chef's choice/ tasting menu...etc, I want to taste the creativity of the chef, which unfortunately I couldn't find any in this dinner. Please don't get me wrong, the taste of everything is above average, just no surprises for me to remember. The Gion omakase dinner certainly have more food than the Ariake's omakase, but I sense more creativity and elegancy in Ariake.

Environment:
By the time we arrived there it is already 8:30pm and they have 2 tables available and most people are finishing their dinner. I can imagine they have a full house at 7pm. The environment is pretty standard, nothing stands out too much.

Biggest concern:
The biggest concern, undoubtly, is the pace they serve our set dinner. I don't know if they will be serving at the same speed if we come in at 6pm, but I feel rushed and many time they bring out new dishes before I finish the one on my table. Maybe their speed will not be such a problem if they serve smaller portions. However, with that much food I believe this dinner should be eaten in 3 hours, not 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Final comment:
Gion is definitely a top tier japanese restaurant, but compare with Ariake I found that Ariake gives more thought to their premium set dinner. If I go back to Gion, I would not order their omakase as I believe that if the chef's creativity is not there, I would prefer to pick something that tailor to my taste.

Didas wine lounge and tapas 5th November 2009

Restaurant: Didas wine lounge and tapas
Date: 5th November, 2009
Address: 54 Jervois Road, Herne Bay, Auckland
Website: http://www.glengarry.co.nz/didaswinelounge.jsp
Party size: 1
Parking: Didas have its own parking (around 10 parking space) but you shouldn't have trouble finding parking spaces on side streets as well.
When I get seated: 4:10pm
When I left: 5:00pm

I was just walking around in the ponsonby area and got hungry at 4pm. Most of the half decent restaurant were close between 2-6pm so I stop by Didas and have some tapas and wine. They have a huge wine list. (my estimate is probably over 300 different wines) and about 30-40 by the glass. I have the Chartron La Jaja De Jean Chardonnay ($13), which is the only french chardonnay they offer by the glass and the Geoff Merrill Mclaren Shiraz ($13). The chardonnay is excellent, exactly what I am looking - a fruity chardonnay with some dense but no oak at all. The Shiraz is also pretty good - I usually don't like Shiraz but this one is nice. The tapas I go with the chardonnay is the duck wrap in crepes ($8), which is only OK or I will say a little bit disappointing. It is shredded duck which takes away all the fun texture of ducks. The lamb ($9)I ordered to go with the Shiraz is very good though. It is roast lamb with rosemary and a special salsa. The lamb is cooked very nicely and the rosemary and the salsa compliment the lamb very well.

The bottom line is, this is a higher end wine bar. Your main purpose over there is to taste wine. Food are only secondary. They have a lunch special which allows you to pick 3 tapas and a glass of wine so I assume it will take 3 tapas to fill up a normal person for lunch and probably 4-5 on dinner. The tapas is not expensive, only around $10 per dish. However since it is a wine bar you probably will drink alot and thus order lots of food to go with your wine throughout the night. It may add up and hurt your wallet.

Ajadz Indian Cuisine 28 Oct 2009

Restaurant: Ajadz Indian Cuisine
Address: 8 Robert St. Ellerslie, Auckland.
Phone: 09-5801555
Food ordered: Wild Fish ($18) and Mango Lassi ($6.50)
Time arrived: 5:30pm
Time left: 6:10pm
Party: 1

Wild fish is fish with curry and the menu said that it is a secret recipe so the ingredients are not disclosed on the menu. To me, it is curry add with some interesting spice and herb to make it unique. One ingredient that is visually available is tomato. I never think curry and tomato would go well with each other but my dish certainly did.

While my dish is pretty good and I am satisfied with my experience. The problem with this place is nothing really stand out. While I am happy with my meal, it is not good enough for me to call others/ drive out only to have dinner in there.

The bottom line is, my dining philosophy is that I would go to places either very cheap and the food is relatively OK and I go there as a substitute of cooking at home, or the food is top class and I am going to indulge myself in taste then I will not worry about prices. Ajadz is certainly far from being top class restaurant and its price is a tad high for a substitute for home cooking.

Momo Japanese Restaurant 21-Oct-09

Restaurant: Momo Japanese Restaurant
Address: Unit G, 113 Meadowland Drive, Howick.
Phone: 09-5349967
Special note: Close on Tuesday
Food ordered: Seafood Udon for lunch ($11)

The soup base of the udon is OK, and the udon itself is pretty good. However, the seafood, while is not bad, lack the premium ingredients. For example, there are only 4 extremely tiny, head off, shell off shrimp in the whole bowl. The whole bowl consist of couple mussels, 2 pieces of imitation crab, a small amount of squid and fish cakes. I would certainly hope for more seafood but I guess I shouldn't complain as it is only $11.

In short, Momo Japanese Restaurant is OK for a quick lunch or a quick dinner. However it is nothing fancy.

Club VO2 Health and Fitness

Address: Building D, The millennium center, 23A Main Highway, Ellerslie, Auckland
Website: www.clubvo2.com
Parking is available on site

I have tried and decided to join this gym. This is a much smaller gym compare to the Olympic. It has about 20 cardiovascular machine with free weight and other stuff. I join this gym mainly because it offered a 4 week trial membership for only $49, but also because of its personal touch. This gym feels much more personal than Olympic, which for me is a plus as I need all kind of motivation I need to workout.

Bottomline: Hardware wise, this gym cannot compare to the larger gyms (VO2 do not have swimming pool, sauna, spa pool...etc). They also have limited hours during the weekend (they close at 2pm on the weekend) but the individual attention that the trainer can give you make up for it.

The Olympic pools and fitness center Oct 6th 2009

Date: Oct 6th 2009
Address: 77 Broadway, Newmarket, Auckland
Phone: 09-5224414
Website: www.theolympic.co.nz













I have a tour in the Olympic pools and fitness center yesterday. Here are the pros and cons of the place in my opinion:

Pros: The place is huge, there is a standard size pool and a fitness center with 50+ machines. It is located in the heart of Newmarket. You can either park across at the warehouse parking which gives you 1 hour free and the next hour is $2.00. There are also parking at the back of the building which Olympic can give you a discount rate but according to the staff, warehouse parking is the cheapest. They also have sauna and spa pool available. If you are a member, they will give you a fitness assessment which is included in the membership fees.

Cons: The place looks kinda dated. Since I hate swimming, their fantastic pool did nothing for me. They do not have any membership level below 3 month, which I believe is a huge committment, especially for someone like me who don't know how long my determination for workout will last.

Bottomline: If you are looking for a swimming pool with a fitness center, Olympic is a good choice for you. Since I am looking for just a gym, I would look for another gym to try to find a better deal or one that have a trial period.

Golden Horse Dinner Sep 29 2009

Date: 29/9/2009
Restaurant: Golden Horse Restaurant
Address: 374 Great South Rd, Greenlane, Auckland
Website: None
Party size: 2

Parking: They have no official parking, but there are a couple across the street which you should be able to park at night
When we get seated: 6:45pm
When we left: 7:45pm


Today's experience:

Food ordered: 3.2 pound Lobster, grouper pot ($124)

Presentation: standard cantonese cuisine

Overall comment: Pretty good. A 3 pound lobster is usually eaten by a whole table (12 people) but we are sharing with just 2 tonight. So we would be able to eat lobster pieces after pieces without reserve. It is cook in standard cantonese style and they did a fine job with it. Lobster, compare to other cantonese food are more forgiving to the kitchen. Meaning if a chinese kitchen make poor lobster, they really sucks. The grouper pot is also good, the size is larger than I expect with only $16.

Environment: Maybe because it is a weekday and it is raining, they only have 2-3 tables in the entire restaurant. Other than that there is no fault to pick on for the environment. Nothing special, but nothing bad.

Final comment: Golden Horse is relatively cheap compare to other restaurant and you can easily spend less than $20 per person if you are not ordering pricy item like lobsters. Their food is decent so it provide good value to the customer

Final grade: B-

Nishiki Lunch Sep 26 2009

Date: 26/9/2009
Restaurant: Nishiki, Rotaba-Yaki Bar Botany
Address: Torrens Rd, Botany Downs, Auckland
Website: http://www.nishiki.co.nz/
Party size: 2

Parking: Very easy. There is a huge parking lot for the shops and restaurants there. Even if that parking lot is full, you can always park on the street
When we get seated: 11:45am
When we left: 1:00pm


Today's experience:

Food ordered: Kaisen Don ($18) and Unatoji + A set ($18)

Presentation: standard

Overall comment: Pretty good. Though the stuff we ordered did not really test the kitchen. The Kaisen Don is chef selected sashimi served on a bowl of sushi rice. The sashimi includes salmon, tuna, snapper, octopus (tako), cooked shrimp (ebi), scallop and salmon roe. The choice is pretty standard so there is not much surprise there. The Unatoji is eel and egg cooked together. You can either order the A set, which includes miso soup, a bowl of rice and pickled vegetables for $3, or the B set which includes a bowl of rice, pickled vegetables and a mini bowl of udon or soba.

Environment: It is a small restaurant. For those who prefer small eatery, this place gives off its unique charm. For those who prefer bigger eatery, you might feel cramped in there.

Final comment: Lunch menu Nishiki offered really did not give a full look on what they are fully capable of. Their dinner menu mainly consists of snack sized items, which mean you might order 10+ dishes to share between your tables and I believe that will truly test their kitchen and how well its value compare to similar restaurant. I cannot give a definite review until I try their dinner. On a side note, although I didn't order any sake since it is only lunch, they carry nice sake with reasonable prices.

Final grade: B (for my lunch experience)

I would love to try their dinner some time in the future.