apache

vietnamese cuisine with a touch of french, apache takes a spin on traditional northern vietnamese hawker street food and gives it a contemporary flair. apache uses local, organic and gluten-free products when possible and gives everything a healthy touch. between the two of us, we ordered fourdishesto share. we were expecting ourselves to have plenty of food leftover but we managed to devour everything without feeling sick afterwards!

good, fresh food but where's the zing. apache food was very fresh, innovative menu, cool atmosphere, nice service - but where was the vietnamese zing? the lemongrass, coriander, chilli, lime, mint, ginger, thai basil? across 8dishesthere was a hint of some of this (although almost no chilli) but no ... zing.  (maybe this was the french influence).  food was very fresh, nicely cooked (especially the fish) but just lacked that ..... . and veggies be warned the night we went there was no veggie starter and the veggie curry was very bland. disappointed.

modern quality viet food. the prawns were gorgeous and i total cleaned up all thesedisheswith ease. nice atmosphere and friendly staff. definitely be back to try the rest of the menus.

came here tonight with a couple of friends for an early dinner. great atmosphere and soon was a full restaurant. we ordered the popcorn chicken, green prawns, fresh rolls and squash curry with coconut rice to share. the popcorn chicken was a stand out. great flavour, sticky and crispy. the prawns were huge and very tasty also. recommend booking a table, sharingdishesto try more and also saves you room for dessert!

a friend and i ordered the spinning pig and winter curry (menu here is not updated but should be in their website). enjoyed the spinning pig immensely. the pork belly was tender and succulent, accompanied with a sauce and small salad. it was really good. the curry, however, was a little bland and quite disappointing. the portions are not at all large and would be good to order moredishesfor sharing. friendly service. would return to try otherdishesand for the spinning pig dish.

team lunch and we chose apache.

my colleagues were very keen to go stating it was 'amazing'.

stylish decor. a good space.

i ordered the chicken pho and asked for some fresh chopped chili on the side.

i'm always a little wary of pho/brothdishesas i tend to find them a little bland.

this was very nice. subtle yes, ut had enough depth to pass the flavour test. the chili added another dimension.

light noodles and fresh ingredients made for a delicious meal.

my colleaguesdisheslooked amazing also. i can't deny i had a little food envy.

won't be my last visit.

apache is an eclectic mix of pan-asian flavours served with european flair. thedishesmay seem simple on the plate but are very deeply flavoured (think long marination and hours of stewing) and innovatively combined. the decor is an interesting mix of industrial and 'asian'. great fast service and definitely an overall pleasent experience. i would highly recommend the salted lemonade, the popcorn chicken and banana cigars! definitely one to be repeated!

the space apache now occupies used to be finc cafe. at first i was sad to see that finc was gone. but apache has proven to be a worthy successor. i was excited to try it - i'm a big fan of vietnamese food and apache's french-inspired/infused vietnamese creations sounded irresistible. and it did not disappoint. the fried pork spring rolls were great, complemented by flavourful sauce and slaw. it was a vietnamese classic that i felt was executed perfectly, not too oily, and filled with quality ingredients. for mains, the pork belly and and salmon green currydishesboth had their own punches. the pork was my favourite, meat had a balanced lean-to-fat ratio and sat on a bed of to-die-for sauce. the salmon was done well but the curry was a little bland, perhaps deliberate not to overpower the salmon - green curry is always tricky as it's hard to strike a balance with how much coconut milk/flavour should be put in. in this case i think it could've use a bit more hit. finished with dessert, the chocolate mousse was a decadent treat, washed down with a mojo coffee. one of the best things about apache is all thedishesare tailored for sharing. i'd be keen to come back, perhaps with a group to try more things.

first impressions: set in a funky old building with hexagonal tiled flooring, the offering of vietnamese cuisine made this restaurant a surprise find. the menu featured some creative yet saucy soundingdishes("bang me twice" springs to mind) - all featuring a wonderful array of ingredients.

food: the rice threads dish is the best lunch i've had in a long time! the mix of vermicelli, vegetables, mushrooms, coriander and beautifully cooked chicken made this a tasty and utterly divine food experience. i could eat this every day.

service: quick, friendly and no fuss.

i totally want to come back and try the other dishes!

had lunch with friends - all of us had either worked in vietnam or were frequent visitors. we loved the food -  great flavours and new twists  - we shared fivedisheswhich was a great way to taste hanoi. the 333 beer brought back memories as did the "cafe den"  made and tasted as we remembered  bringing back great memories.  while not my daily short black - its a must try for coffee loves.  the service was friendly and competent and the decor fine, if a bit noisy.  we will return

just what i have been waiting for.  some good vietnamese food that does not include pho like all the other vietnamese restaurants in wellington.

apache seems to tickle my tastes buds in terms of offeringdishesthat i love such has papaya salad and bun cha.

i have yet to try the other dishes, but will make an effort to revisit this place in the near future to add to my review.

for an indepth review and pictures, please visit my website.