atticus finch

the back story: wandering through the streets of rotorua brought us to delightful gathering of food places. termed "eat streat" this was a collection of contemporary modern eating establishments. atticus finch came up on rating well on tripadvisor so we decided to go check it out.

setting: upon checking out the menu, we were immediately met with a friendly wait staff taking us to a nice outdoor table with outside heating. the seating was a little cramped between tables but otherwise the outdoor area was welcoming and comfortable despite the cooler temperatures outside.

food: the menu had lots of food choices from small to large plates. the menu here is designed for sharing and the waiter helpfully guided us as to what to try and portion sizes. we were not disappointed. we tried the polenta chips and chorizo croquettes to start. the chips were crunchy and had a delightful aioli on the side. the croquettes were equally tantalizing on the taste buds with surprise chorizo pieces hidden inside pockets of warm potato. a red pepper dip accompaniment deemed to be a good companion. the beef short rib was the main deal of the night though with the beef tenderly falling off the bones. the parsnip puree side was abitless suited but when mixed with the marinade took away the edge of the parsnip. the slow roast lamb was a littlebitless certain as i'm not a fan of mint and there was quite abitof this despite it not being mentioned on the menu. nevertheless the meat was well cooked and tender and the sweet honey kumara a perfect side to the lamb. all in all, it was a satisfying meal albeit a little on the pricey side for the serving size, which is what brings it down a point.

occasion : nice evening out in a modern contemporary environment.

revisit potential : 8/10

not worth the hype....
had dinner here, food 3/5. lamb rump, mushroom salad and fried chicken. mushroom dish had a lot of chopped nuts which made the texture annoying. chicken gave me a shock as it was red inside, the waiter assured me it was the marinade not the cook though, the orange and sesame flavours mixed into the chicken was abitweird though.
lamb dish had some cool flavours, the meat flavour got lost though amongst the rest, i think this dish has changed recently, not the same as previous photos.
service was 5/5, prompt and helpful, dishes came out quickly even with a full restaurant.
ambience, thoughtful and most importantly warm in winter 4/5

spent a lovely night in atticus finch. service was friendly and accommodating.
we had lamb rump(3/5), beef rendang(4.5/5), fried haloumi(5/5) and mojito(1/5). lamb rump was abitdisappointing tho which was not the normal lamb rump we always have. this one tasted like bbq lamb with tons of cumins. beef rendang was nice and very tender. fried haloumi was legit, highly recommend it.

really lovely atmosphere, and the staff were very friendly. there are even blankets for those that are sitting outside, which was a nice surprise. however, the portions/serving sizes were abittoo small for our liking. the food was delicious, but i just wish we got more (for the price). lastly the service could have been faster but we did come just as it was starting to get busy, so i can understand why.

love the idea of share plates. this was the first place that i experienced share plates, and it was overall a pleasant experience. the greatest con was the price for the quantity which was a little steep.

spice rubbed lamb rump; lamb was very soft and chewy, taste was infused lightly but nevertheless delicious. the tapenade a lovely touch, with an interesting texture (reminiscent of mince)-i was expecting mince.
8/10

chargrilled peppered beef sirloin; asked to be made medium rare, and it was prepped very nicely, a great assortment of sauces and vegetables. too bad the portion was the smallest out of the bunch yet the price was the steepest! the beef was soft and the vegetables not over cooked and well marinated with sauce. i just really didn’t have enough to eat.
8/10, 7/10 for lack of portion

roti pulled pork summer slaw; the dish in which i had the highest expectations but was the most disappointed. the pulled pork had flavor but the meat itself was dry and abittough. the summer slaw was a bummer, nothing special about the slaw and i really did not want to be served rice at a european dining, and the vegetables on the side were very average. asian fusion? not a direction this restaurant should take.
6.5/10

fresh fish pan fried; lastly added this one on since we were still hungry. i hadn’t had high expectations but this really was the star of the show! the fish was delicious as was everything paired with it! the fish was soft and filled with moisture, tasted fresh and flavorful. the salad was also equally as delicious, the caper salsa and lemon flavors meshed so well together, paired with the bean and topped with almond, it was glorious! i loved it so much i even tried recreating the flavors and texture at home (with some lentils, spinach, and almonds).
9/10

best tapas in rotorua!
popped in one night without a booking but it was no issue- the reserved tables have their booking times on them, so you can pick one as long as you’re finished by the booking time.
we were served promptly and the staff explained the sizes of the different plates (small and large share plates) and a guide of how many per person which was helpful. the menu has really good variety and options for gluten free, vegetarian and vegan. the plates came out as soon as they were ready (as opposed to altogether, which would have taken a fairbitlonger).
the food was amazing. the only reason i haven’t given five stars was that the dishes were not exactly as they were described in the menu- the cauli dish barely had any cauliflower and couldn’t be tasted, and the beef salad was more of a beef dish with a few garnishes. both tasted great nonetheless.
i will definitely be back to try the rest of the menu!

nice smart place with tasty tapas. everything we tried was great. no complaints. vegetarian options were plenty. meat and fish recipes quite nice.
did not try desert, found it abitcomplicated but very happy overall.

we were recommended to dine here by the hotel we stayed whilst holidaying in rotorua. service was friendly, quick and professional. prices were reasonable. food was good but we couldn't find the wow factor and the dishes we ordered was abittoo salty for our taste. overall, we had a good night there.

absolutely loved this place! the decor was very aesthetically pleasing and welcoming. the staff were all very friendly and extremely helpful with explaining how the place works with their small and larger plates and sharing options. my partner and i just went for a drink and a snack and got the ginger sesame fried chicken with lime mayo. the chicken was absolutely amazing, delicious texture and flavour and while you could definitely taste the ginger it wasn't to overpowering making it edible for my partner who isn't big on ginger, but enjoyed this chicken. i'd never had lime mayo before and was abithesitant but it was delicious and went perfectly with the chicken. would definitely go back next time i'm down i rotorua

visited atticus finch with my mum for dinner and we both loved it, the service was great and the food came out super fast, designed to share the menu was fresh and everything sounded delicious! we had the risotto balls, fried chicken, beef salad and the fish of the day. the fried chicken and beef salad were my favourites and i would say the chicken can't be missed. the risotto balls were good too but were just abit"standard", fish was delicious and came with an unusual salad but all the same was great! look forward to tasting more from the menu in the future.

first visit to atticus finch and surprisingly the food was delicious!

we had sesame chicken, roast rolled pork, sirloin steak, prawns appetizer and fries.
the sesame chicken was so yummy! it had the taste of ginger, sesame and abitlemongrass, coated with a layer of flour deep fried and very crunchy! guess what? it was so delicious until we ordered two portions for our dinner!
the roast pork and sirloin steak were quite small portions (expect only few pieces to share not the big chunk of meats served elsewhere) but taste good and with some side and veggie served aside, they were good!
prawns appetizer was a few grilled prawns served on top of noodle with fine sliced veggie added lime. this was like the grass noodle sour appetizer served in thai some restaurants.

aside from that, we ordered 3 glasses of iced chocolate which was not so nice. so skip the iced chocolate totally.

the dinner cost us about $120.

the ambience of the restaurant was comfortable and romantic.

overall experience was wonderful!

january 2016.
interesting experience.  table of 10 ladies.
took quite some time for the drinks order to actually get through and come out to us.  the waiter was abitconfused.... constantly.

group platters:  honey mustard peppered cured beef etc - very very nice ! would order again.  and beetrot hummus platter - great for the vegetarians, just good.
our group of 3 at the table ordered:
polenta chips - very nice.
haloumi salad - yum salad but haloumi was cold so had that ick sound and taste about it.
lam loin - nice and ok for the price, but nothing really to write home about.
potato gnocchi - the mushrooms were great and the rest, well, it was okay.
pork belly - very lack luster
spring slaw - never arrived.

they tell you that the meals just come out whenever, and not all at the same time, which is just another way of saying 'our kitchen can't cook to order'  we arrived at 7, ordered at 7.30 and the last 'main' hit the table at 9.10pm. 
took ages to get refill drinks
went to pay for our portion requested they remove the salad as we never got it, got told it was never ordered. no apologies no nothing.

price is reasonable, but not consistent across the dishes that they put out.
won't be back.