one tree grill

this is a lovely qualityrestaurantwith fantastic service and excellent food. the fact that their menus are brought to you on ipad minis with pictures of each menu item is very cool.

however, what i particularly want to praise thisrestaurantfor is the way they handled my special dietary needs. at the time of dining, i was on a very strict diet regime of diet shakes, diet soups and non-starchy vegetables. the chef created a very tasty beetroot, babaganoush & rocket salad for an entree and then an absolutely divine vegetable stack for a main. this was completely not on the menu. the staff were also happy to make up my diet shake. i felt like i had enjoyed a quality dinner, even with the dietary restrictions. throughout the dinner, the wait staff treated me very well and made me feel like a valued customer. the chef and the staff went above and beyond to meet my specific needs, and for that thisrestaurantdeserves high praise!

went for dinner with friends, therestaurantwas busy on a friday night but the service was very smooth. my starter was the tea smoked wild boar with serrano ham and sour cherry sauce. the dish was very tasty, the boar was mildly smoked and not as gamey as i expected, the pickled cauliflower on the plate added some nice tartness along with the cherries. my duck breast and braised duck leg were beautifully cooked, the breast pink in the middle and the leg moist and falling off the bone. others around the table had the pork roulade, the salmon and the eye fillet steak. there wasn't a lot of complaint with the quality of the fare. a rich valhrona chocolate fondant finished the meal off, all in all a very satisying 4.5 star experience

i’ve passed one tree grill many many times on the way from and to the airport. as solid as a meredith or french café, it’s been standing for years but never with the hype of the other two. needless to say, i was excited when zomato invited me out for a meetup.

upon arrival, i loved the variation of the seating options in the restaurant. yes it is a low-lit white tablecloth restaurant, but well thought out concepts break up the suffocating formality that normally lingers around these restaurants. for one, a large fish tank brightens the friendly booth areas suitable for groups of 4-6. also, below your feet lies an impressive wine cellar that glows through glass ceiling.

while waiting for others to turn up, we were invited to sit on the soft couches next to the fireplace - lifesaver given the recent cold snap in auckland. after the crew all turned up, we were lucky to be seated at the private room around the back with beautiful warm wooden hues. although we were there for a degustation menu, we were given these ipads to play with. one tree grill is the firstrestaurantthat i’ve been to with ipad menus. perfect for visual people like me who glaze over at words. 

first course: we kicked off with a smoked duck and sweetcorn soup – great for the recent cold snap in auckland. the texture was smooth and velvety with a beautiful fragrance from the duck. i don’t normally like ordering soup for fear it’ll fill me up but not soon after the soup was served, you could hear the scrapping of spoons from everyone trying to get the last drop of deliciousness from the bowl!

second course: the tea dusted seared tuna was done perfectly the way i like it with the outside lightly seared so the middle is nice and pink. my favourite was the beautiful pops of wasabi roe giving it a light and fresh touch. paired with the sweet riesling, it contrasted with the subtle flavours of the tea. 
  
third course: venison carpaccio with pecorino, capers, truffle oil. it was a real flavour hit with the pecorino cheese being quite strong. our conversation turned to the topic of edible flowers and whether you would eat it as part of a dish. would you? personally i don’t mind smaller ones but i only had a nibble of the fuchsia before i wrinkled my nose and forked it aside. there was no real taste, but it was just too big for my liking!  

fourth course: black angus eye fillet with grilled sweet corn and black garlic. my favourite. simply satisfying with the black garlic being the most intriguing part of the dish - caramelised and tangy. the portion was so generous it could have served as a main itself instead of being part of a degustation.

fifth course: strawberry bavarois with meringue, mint gel, strawberry balsamic and pepper sorbet. hello dessert. and hello dessert wine! i loved the pepper in the sorbet – not enough to make you breathe fire but it left a playful tingle on the tongue. 

a special mention goes to the thoughtful wine matches. i should have known how serious they take their wines with the dedicated underground wine cellar but i was so taken back by how the pairings actually made so much sense. i’ve never had wine matched so well that it elevated the food and brought out the contrast in the flavours.

service was never obtrusive and our conversations gelled with the waitress every time she discreetly came in to serve us. 

i would recommend one tree grill if you want to show off fine taste to business clients or for special occasions. it isn’t too pompous and formal, and the service would never make you feel that way.

it was a real treat to meet up with other bloggers. thanks zomato and one tree grill for hosting us!

visited one tree grill after meaning to dine here for quite some time.

we were pleasantly greeted and seated in an adequate fashion.

we ordered our entree and main.

whilst we waited a cute little cup of complimentary mushroom soup was provided. this was a nice touch we thought.

5 minutes later, the entree arrived in a timely manner.

thats about where the pleasant experience started to take a turn.

we arrived at 8:15am and therestaurantwas not exactly packed to the brim.

40 minutes after our entree, the mains finally arrived. by this time the anticipation of waiting for a lovely meal had disappeared.

although the food was really we'll presented and tasted excellent, i feel it was over priced by about $10 per main meal. for what we received anyway.

when paying for the meal we were asked "how were your meals?" by the front of staff. my reply was "very nice, although the mains took 40 minutes". we were then advised that the reason why the meals took so long was all other restaurants microwave their well done steaks, but they cook theirs in the pan. pffffffffff, what sort of an excuse is that! i have eaten at many fine restaurants and have never had to wait that long for a well done steak. i'm sure other restaurants would not like to be thought of, of microwaving their steaks!

all in all, the experience was tainted by the long wait and i won't be thinking of one tree grill for my next dining out experience nor recommending to friends or family.

my husband chose one tree grill to surprise me for date night and i have to say that i think it is one of auckland's better kept secrets. situated unassumingly at one of pah road's many intersections, parking was free and easily located in the side streets. we entered therestaurantand we were immediately struck by the cosy ambiance, ideal on a cold autumn night! we did notice the use of bifold windows however, meaning in summer the entire front of therestaurantcould be opened to let in the breeze. the most striking architectural feature has to be the glass floor panel showing the extensive wine cellar below.

we sat and were quickly given our menus, surprisingly given through an ipad app. the menu therefore had accompanying pictures and i wondered whether each dish would have similar presentation. we ordered bread for our starter, and found these rolls ever so slightly on the too-crusty side but still definitely edible. better luck was had with the mains, with the pork belly tender and delightful while the salmon was cooked perfectly with a delicious crispy skin. we ordered accompanying sides; the roasted beetroot and the green beans, both were delicious. at this point we were surprisingly full and split a plate of petit fours between us; the truffle being by far the most delicious of the four. to accompany our meals we both selected from their craft beer menu which endeavors, without being extensive, to cover a wide range of beer.

the service for the most part was spot-on, as you'd expect in an establishment of this quality. the maitre d' seemed a little flustered upon our arrival (something we assume was nothing to do with us) but our wait staff were attentive throughout the meal. my one little niggle would be that the waitstaff seemed to disappear after bringing us our dessert - i always like to be asked if i would like a further drink or indeed, the bill.

thisrestaurantwould make a fantastic place to bring that date to make that special impression. while it is kid-friendly (with a children's menu and even high chairs) i'll be waiting a fair few years before i bring our ratbag along!

very impressed, wanting to go back already!

arrived this evening first table. staff were professional and onto it. courses arrived quickly and smoothly. the drinks were really nice and tasty. ribeye, eye fillet, duck and fish mains all cooked perfectly. flavours were sophisticated and delightful.

entrees were very delicious. loved the raw fish, scallops, mushrooms and risotto.

the desserts were fantastic. they even managed to make rhubarb taste delicious! it’s something i don’t eat but i ate all of it.

it was perfect. loved every bit of it. great job guys. must feel very good to be part of arestaurantlike this.

service: 5/5
environment: 5/5
presentation: 4.5/5
food quality: 5/5
food quantity: 5/5
price per person: $80-$100

great menu, food and very good service. however it did take longer than expected for food to be served. nice atmosphere inrestaurantbut a bit cramped where we sat. would recommend to try it

sophisticated fine dining restaurant, resides on manukau road. the beautifully designed interior provides elegance and an intimacy and conversational dining experience.

their menu isn’t forged much like some of the hipster restaurants, but you are guaranteed with prime food and service. their seafood are fresh and beautiful dressed. their red meat are tender and juicy. although last night the eye fillet was made to medium instead of medium rare.

been to thisrestaurantmany times, i no doubtfully recommend everything on their menu. for entree: the raw kingfish, seared scallop and venison carpaccio. for main: the eye fillet, market fish, duck breast and lamb are my top choices.

super friendly and attentive staff.

they also have the most amazing wine cellar and an excellent wine pairing.

highly recommended to everyone.

food: 8.5/10
food presentation: 9/10
service: 9/10
location: 9/10
ambience: 10/10
price $80 per person

i love how this place occasionally does @grabone_nz vouchers for their degustation menu, which is great for a poor student like me who also wants to experience the high life.

first course was the salmon which was fresh, the green apple gave a nice crunchy, tangy and refreshing component and the miso sauce complimented the dish nicely. the scallops were one of my favourite courses of the night. it was different to the one i had a few months back (they change it up every once a while), which was exciting. the charred corn gave it a smoky flavour. i’m a sucker for anything charred. third course was the wild venison tartare. i’m not a big fan of forking raw chunks of meat into my mouth but the pickled red onion helped me get through this.

i was able to try both the pork belly and eye fillet for the main course. both were very yummy, but the crackling was more chewy than crispy (i guess nothing can beat a chinese roast pork) and the shiitake mushroom shocked the hell out of my tastebuds because it was so sour (pickled?).

the final two courses were both desserts, the first being more of a palette cleanser. i seriously can’t decide which one i like better. the passionfruit curd was so light (almost like a foam) it felt as if i was eating a cloud and the yoghurt that accompanied it was frozen with nitrogen, making the dish super refreshing. the chocolate mousse was rich and decadent, the berry sorbet cut through perfectly and the macadamias gave it a crunch.

if you do decide to give thisrestauranta try but don’t want to commit to a whole degustation menu, you can order à la carte on @firsttable and get 50% off the bill!

a iconic restaurant. the food lives up to it's reputation too. the staff really knows their wine and have great customer service skills which you would expect for a fine diningrestaurant(even the subtle things like folding your napkin when you get up to the bathroom is nice).

the food is well presented and the wait staff knows their dishes as they can explain it well and tell a story of what we're eating.

i always thinking about to try thisrestaurantand finally we made it. they food and service is very good here. and i like the way they use ipad for customer can see photo and details on menu. next time i will try different menu.

fine diningrestaurantvoted one of the top restaurants in auckland. lovely ambience, excellent customer service and quality of food.

they have a great desgustation menu that's worth trying. their selection of wines are excellent and pricing is also great. waiters/waitresses are very helpful in suggestions on the menu. would be one of my fav restaurants to revisit.

the food provided at this very finerestaurantis amazing. the overall experience is pleasant, partly due to the staffs and the ambience of the restaurant.
the food was served timely, and the results have not failed to amazed any members of my family.
i would definitely recommend this place for a special occasion, being a fancyrestaurantand therefore a bit pricey.

had the 6 course degustation for my boyfriend and i’s anniversary and it was so good! we’ve come to one tree grill a few times already over the years and never been disappointed. friendly staff, amazing food. it’s a wonderfulrestaurantand i highly recommend. my favourites were definitely the salmon and the scallops.

we really enjoyed the steaks in this restaurant. it is reasonable for the quality of the food and the staff is knowledgeable about what they serve.

my son was impressed with the extensive wine cellar below therestaurantthat is visible through a glass floor !