Birthday celebrations always call for a sticky celebration with dining alternatives. Especially when you have a short time frame in a different country and want to squeeze in as many food experiences as possible due to the hours spent researching.
The solution? Have multiple birthday celebrations.
The solution? Have multiple birthday celebrations.
Which is exactly what I did during my trip to New Zealand with my father. Originally, I had planned for four dinners but had to cut down sadly enough. With dad's true love for his meats and Masterchef, it was a no brainer that The Grill by Sean Connolly was a place we had to visit. A perfect blend between casual and something a little more special without being overbearing, With interiors mixed between warm lighting and brown opulent leathers, the restaurant feels welcoming and comfortable.
Every occasion calls for a quick glimpse at the drink menu and this time was no exception. To kick start the night - a strawberry daiquiri. The fresh sweetness of strawberry puree embraced the bitterness of the bacardi. The lime added a little extra kick of flavour with its acidity. As usual, your expected bread and butter hits the table. The butter; nice and smooth, spreading easily on the slice of bread. Creamy, with a hint of salt to evoke the senses on the tongue. Shortly after, a smoked salmon canape. Rich but nothing overbearing. The texture is very light and is more than enough to whet the palate.
It comes as no surprise that I am an avid seafood fan and usually do not stray from it for my first course. It is always a fresh, inviting manner to begin a meal without weighing down the stomach too much. To celebrate the fresh seafood available in New Zealand, we opted for Cloudy Bay swimming in parsley sauce, topped with chilli and a bed of chopped jamon. The dish, whilst enjoyable, danced quite dangerously to being too salty. The jamon added a nice texture to the fresh clams and sometimes tipped the saltiness to extreme, but was still an enjoyable eat. The heat in the chilli was somewhat absent - when we added extra chilli sauce, it helped add further depth that the dish required.
For mains, my father settled on the Sunday Roast; hopeful to bring back childhood memories of his foster mother's cooking. For myself, I chose the Japanese export 130 day grain-fed Ashburton scotch fillet, with a side of mustard. To share, a serve of grandma's carrots. Overall, the meat was cooked to perfection (medium rare). The cut itself, was tender and juicy. It worked well with the sweetness of the soft carrots and accompaniment of the heat from the mustard.
To conclude our evening, we finished on a sweet note of coconut panna cotta topped with a pineapple sorbet and passionfruit coulis. What a divine, tropic note! The creamy flavours of the coconut married well with the refreshing sorbet; melting gently as it hit the tongue. The panna cotta itself, could have been the slightest touch less firm.
Overall, a pleasant evening. Gracious staff who were fairly observant and delivered prompt service - near faultless. Meals were quite nice, although I will dare to admit that I was slightly disappointed whilst leaving that the food did not quite reach the calibre I expected. In saying that, it was still enjoyable although some further refinement is still required.
The Grill by Sean Conolly
A: 90 Federal Street, AKL 1010
Ph: +64 9363 706