restaurant 88

no trend breaking here. i have been the restaurant 88 several times now and have yet to be let down. the menu is exciting and the food is just as delicious. impeccable service, agreatatmosphere and reasonable prices top off thisgreatdining experience. recommend this to everyone looking for agreatnight out and something other than your run-of-the-mill!

this place was recommended to me by a friend who lives in wellington. there were 6 of us. when we arrived it wasn't busy yet. customer service was very good. staff were all friendly and had smiles on their faces.

their aromatic roast duck wraps when plum sauce were awesome. stuffed chicken wings with pork and prawns were such agreatidea! tasty too.

but their banana leaf wrapped baked fish with prawn and papaya salad -which i ordered was a tad too salty and strong in terms of flavour. quite hard to swallow alone. and correct me if i'm wrong, but i was expecting to have papaya in my salad which i saw none of.... so i don't know what happened there.

overall, a nice place to dine at. food in general is very good. good portions. will definitely be back.

hands down one of the best meals i've had in wellington.greatfresh flavours and generous servings. staff were attentive and there is an awesome drinks list. restaurant 88 will be one of my go tos for a top notch dining experience.

best meal we have had in ages.
our groups of friends meets every 6 weeks at different restaurants for dinner. this has been the best meal we have had in a long time.
the entrees were great, especially the mini pancakes. the mains were all lovely, i recommend the shaking beef. the desserts were equally as nice and i highly recommend the creme brûlée with sesame ice cream. delicious and agreatmix of tastes.
very highly recommended, and it’s in the entertainment book!
the only downside is the slow meal appearances but it was definitely worth the wait. our water glasses were filled often and the wine, although expensive, was very nice.

amazing service staff very friendly and attentive, food was delicious,greatatmosphere, not rushed, relaxed dining very pleasant date night

this place is incredible!! having just got back from a trip to vietnam i wasn't holding my breath for food as good as i'd had there. but this place completely delivered. i had the ca (fish dish) which came with a gorgeous papaya salad (zingy, spicy, perfect) and rice. was faultless, the flavours were out of this world. had the creme brûlée to finish which wasgreatalthough i wasn't a fan of the black sesame ice cream it came with. i tried a friend's dessert - waffles with coconut ice cream. divine!!! (and a very generous portion).greatservice too. get yourself here!!

lovely and beautiful green enviornment. it's so green and clean. waiters are really friendly. for entre we had the coconut calamari which was really delicious and fries which were not so oily. my main was the lemongrass chicken with rice which was really filing as it also came with corn springrolls. beautiful setting and lovely staff.greatplace to dine out.

agreatrestaurant. having a booking we were seated immediately upon arrival and the service was a+. we dined as a large group for a staff christmas do. six of us opted for the banquet of which was delicious! greathaving the opportunity to sample 'a little of a lot' on the menu. every one in our group were feeling very full and satisfied by the end of the meal. the rest of the group also thoroughly enjoyed the amazing taste sensations of their chosen meals also commenting very positively. only concern was with how hot it became with a 'full house' - possibly could have done with some more windows open? however, we're already planning our next trip back - maybe next time i'll have the mixed grill.

agreatrestaurant withgreatservice andgreatfood. we shared our meals and ate everything. mongolian beef drunken chicken and the beef salad were delicious. i would definitely go back and try more.

yummy authentic vietnamese food! 

the first impression is positive, we were shown our booked table straight away, in intimate dark corner, good for couples or small groups. 

not too bad drinks list, and the well portioned food was great! highly recommend most dishes we got, including duck wraps and stuffed chicken for entrees, lemongrass chicken for main and creme brulee and black sesame ice cream for dessert. yum! the prices are on the higher end, but worth it. 

the only things that were a bit off were mains taking awhile to come out, but as someone with experience in hospitality, it was a busy night and not everything goes according to plan. one of the staff was wearing short shorts which did not suit the classy restaurant itself, but it wasn't a bother. what mattered was that they were friendly, polite and attentive.

overall it was agreatdining experience and would definitely go back. 

thank you for having us!

i very nice place to eat.  good service andgreatfood.  always reliable.!  had the lemongrass chicken with coconut noodles, so good and worked well together.  if you want a my full review visit my website.

agreatlittle gem on tory street, that gets real busy in weekends, so a booking is highly recommended to avoid disappointment!the service is always impeccable, with well train staff, who have an eye to detail, although, i must admit that the "would you like another beer" use to be systematic in the past, but not so now, where the waiter/waitress is happy to take your glass away without asking if you would like another one, so that would be the only "stain" for an otherwisegreatservice. i never go without having the fresh spring rolls as a starter (call me boring), but they have also to mygreatdespair removed a grilled steak served with a mushroom sauce and potatoes that was to die for, alas, it hasn't made it back on the menu, surely i can't be the only one missing that!! so for the main, i do not have a favorite, not that there is anything wrong with them, but nothing match the steak! i have tried their dessert, but nevertheless, i highly recommend this place!

dined here on a saturday night with 4 friends who live in welly (i live in palmy) who had recommended it...and boy was it worth the recommendation!!! this is without a doubt the best restaurant i've ever been to. the food was completely delicious, so fresh,fragrant and flavourful.it was really difficult to pick from the menu as everything sounded so delicious! i had the caramelised sticky baby back pork ribs, prawn two ways and the creme caramel with black sesame ice cream...a-m-a-z-i-n-g!!!!black sesame is now my new favourite ice cream flavour! everyone at the table raved about their dishes and we all had to try each others food...it was all just so delish! the service was wonderfully attentive though non obtrusive and especially good seeing as the restaurant was fully booked and they were very busy. the decor was authentic and really added to the whole experience. the layout wasgreatas you didn't feel too crowded by other tables and could easily carry on a conversation as the music was not too loud. the price was extremely reasonable and everyone had a truly wonderful night. i can't wait to return. be sure to book as restaurant 88 is crazy popular (for good reason). i've recommended this restaurant to all my friends, family and co-workers...now i just need an excuse to get back to welly so i can dine there again!!!;)

sunday night and the weekend is drawing to close. you need something extra strong to stave off those pre-monday blues. will it be the drunken crispy salt & pepper baby chicken or the beef pho? decisions, decisions ...
on a more practical note, this is a very popular vietnamese restaurant so you should book if coming at a busy time. decor is ok, and it can be a little noisy, but the food is real drawing card.greatflavours, and some unusual dishes.
service: 4/5
ambience: 3.5/5
food: 4/5
value for money: 4/5

came here on a friday night. was incredibly busy. i recommend booking. my partner and i had to wait at the bar for what was going to be 30 minutes but ended up being only 15-20min.

service was great, always filling up your water etc - the staff hadgreatattention to detail, emptied tables really quick and used a good spray for the table rather than just a damp cloth like i've seen at other places.

food:
to start, had the fresh vietnamese spring rolls. these were perfect, so fresh and soft. the sauce which came with it was delicious - sweet soy with a hint of peanut and lots of herbs. there were also prawn crackers which were nice touch.

mains - we had the shaking beef platter. this was amazing too. the beef was so tender and pink, with a delicious sauce and large pieces of cracked pepper. the vermicelli noodles were great, and the pork meatballs accompanied by the sauce - yum.

the other main we got the drunken salt and pepper chicken. this was beautiful too, very tender and flavoursome. the slaw was nice too full of coriander. this was a bit messy as you had to eat with your hands, but it was really yum - makes you feel like a bit of a cannibal ripping apart half a chicken with your mouth!

didn't have dessert as was really full. if you are super hungry - between two, share a starter. if you're not that hungry i suggest only getting two mains as they are quite filling.

agreatplace - a perfect combo of western style service and menu plan - but with delicious vietnamese food.