we'd been wanting to dine at this iconic venue for what seems like an age, but haven't been able to make it work with a trip 'across the ditch' until now.
it was great!
unusually we both ordered the same menu items as a main, but i'll get to that in a minute.
we started with a shared plate of house prepared cold smoked salmon. the texture and taste were both on point, without a hint dryness, or over infusion of flavours. further investigation revealed the salmon is sous vide, before being cold smoked on site. we ordered the house baguette with the salmon and while it was very good, the salmon could have stood on its own as a starter.
as for the main, we were in wellington on family business for a couple of days, so had been snaking non-stop. as a result neither of us felt like anything too substantial as a main and opted for the caesar. georgie added the $5 chicken to hers, but i opted to take it as it comes, which was with a scotch egg!
both salads were of a good size and with the welcome exception of a perfectly cooked scotch egg, were, as you'd expect 'proper', as in not swimming in that awful creamy dressing that has somehow become the norm when it comes to this classic. the only criticism was for the chicken, which consisted of two small, over-cooked tenders, which didn't add anything to the dish.
the atmosphere was buzzy, the service friendly, if a little too attentive; which is hardly a criticism, the wine list adequate and the value high, with the bill coming in at $130 including four glasses of quality nz pinot.
it's any wonder pravda has been part of the wellington for so long, it's good. really good!