the grove

booked for my partners birthday for a special night. window seats were great (february).
we got the experience we desired. thefoodhad the most elements but still maintained the correct balance. the waiter was new from france and on request repeated the specials in french much too the birthday girls delight.
met its rep.

after having dined at the likes of merideths, spqr, depot, fine dining etc i was really looking forward to dining at the established and well renowned the grove which had a michelin chef and had won several metro restaurant awards.

when we arrived, and the restaurant was all but empty, we were seated at what i considered to be the worst table with the worst lighting. when i commented on this to the maitre de (who also turned out to be the owner michael dearth) he dismissed this and tried to justify it by saying we had been seated in the most romantic spot. after being moved i couldn't but notice that the "romantic spot" remained empty for the duration of our meal.

for our meal tonight we ordered the degustation menu, a bottle of red and two glasses on white. with an end price of $380 we were expecting exceptionalfoodand service.

unfortunately, we left disappointed.

the seven course degustation was good, but not exceptional and not comparable to other fine dining experiences i had had previously.

the deserts were great, as was the espresso that accompanied, and i have to commend the patisserie chef.

both the fish and and venison were very good, but not amazing, and the other 2 courses were not memorable.

whilst thefoodwas generally quite good, i didn't think it was fantastic, and personally i go to fine dining restaurants to be blown away by the gastronomy, not to simply think it was pretty good.

i had two issues with the service:

1. after spending $80 on a bottle of wine we had to ask for our glasses to be topped up. it may seem minor but when you're at a fine dining restaurant this should not happen.

2. the waitress said our next course was veal ... when she checked she confirmed it was venison. again, maybe a simple over sight, but not one that should be expected to happen.

when we left i commented to the maitre de / owner / michael dearth that i thought thefooddidn't meet my expectations and was a bit "average" he lost his temper and had a go at me.

all up i thought thefoodand whole dining experience was about a 7/10 ... so well below what i would expect from a bill of $380

fantastic service, from the moment we entered the restaurant and right thru our dining experience. very knowledgeable staff, fantastic wine matches to the chefs special 5 course. exquisitefoodas usual. my friend was a first time diner and was totally blown away by everything.

i have always wanted to dine at the grove and i finally did. we had the 5 course degustation, made up of salmon, rabbit terrine, duck, venison and dessert. thefoodwas good, but most of the courses weren't really to my liking. i found they all had very sweet elements to them and i personally don't like my savoury dishes tasting sweet. my favourite of the savoury dishes was probably the venison which came with a variety of unusual and cool mushrooms. it was a hearty dish and despite the size was very filling. the dessert was divine - a rich chocolate mousse with fruit and delicious sauces, a great way to finish. the service was very good but just a wee bit pretentious for my liking. it was very over the top, with our waiter thanking us for every little thing - like she would pour us more wine or water and then thank us...it was a bit much. in saying that, i'm glad i went but at nearly $90 for just the base food, and the constant attempts to upsell, i probably won't be going back.

ya know, i think the grove could teach a lot of other restaurants a thing or two about how to greet people at the door, make them feel welcome and how to offer great service and tremendous food. it's pretty damn exemplary when it comes to high end dining.

i have a hunch that if this were nyc you'd pay $500 just to have your name on a waiting list for a table and then you'd pay $1000 for a dish. i mean, you wouldn't eat here every day (it's about $100-150 a head doing it nicely) but for the special occasion or as a treat it's approaching flawless.

the grove it tucked away next to the church, next to some sushi place and it's long and it's thin. it's understated, doesn't shout about itself, nothing is gaudy, it's quiet, subdued, classy. you could take your girlfriend's parents here and they'd think you were a quite a catch. 

i briefly mentioned the service before. they've been trained really really well. compliments to whoever is maitre d' because these guys are pros. they're attentive, discrete, friendly, warm, knowledgeable, will pass on requests and messages to the kitchen, will follow things up and do what they can to ensure your evening is memorable and your enjoyment absolute.

the tablecloth is spotless, the cutlery is spotless and reassuringly heavy, the old wooden floor gleams with a dull sheen of use. the lighting is low enough to be intimate but bright enough to not trip over the handbag left on the floor. it's... just right.

man, the food. ben bayly is a wizard and his chef, mike, is like the apprentice. the unusual combinations shouldn't work, they should run away from each other like timid kids but crawfish and rabbit ravioli? goddam, that's delightful. velvety, smooth, just the right amount of weight and chew to feel substantial, yet light and fine enough to still feel refined and sumptuous. there's never enough of these things on the plate. 

the flavours are pronounced, rich and deep, verdant and lush, never overpowering or imbalanced, but applied with a deft touch that's uncanny. i'm a big fan and a convert.

another thing i like to point out: you can order just a steak and a beer and still be treated like a gentleman. i know some places, you sit down, order something stereotypically blue collar like a slab of beef and a glass of beer and they think you came in by mistake, or are here because you're filming a candid camera tv show. not here though, here they have the class and decency to treat everyone with respect and dignity. nice going.

this is truly a gem in auckland'sfoodscene.

i am amazed! from the moment you enter the restaurant until you leave, you feel welcome and well taken care of. the food, while worried me by the unusual ingredients, were beautiful. i had never tasted such uniquefoodin my life. the price point is insane i must say, we paid almost $800 for the two of us but were well fed for the rest of the night. the 7 course was definitely too muchfoodfor me but i didn't want it to go to waste!

food: 4.8/5
service: 5/5
we had a amazing night here tonight. thefoodwas perfect. i highly recommend the venison i tried tonight. it tasted so good.

after hearing many brilliant things about the grove, i finally got to experience this restaurant for myself as i was invited here for a private lunchtime event. the overall dining experience was fantastic- the staff were very professional, the wine was lovely and thefoodwas nothing short of divine. we had a 3-course lunch menu (including pre-meal snacks) which they customised a vegetarian menu for me.

snacks- the meal commenced with three snacks. the first was a croquette with a crisp charcoal exterior and a rich cheese interior. the whole thing exploded in the mouth, both with filling and with flavour. the second snack was a cracker topped with something that resembled the texture of pate. the flavour was overpoweringly smoky so i was not a fan. the third was a sweet celeriac puree on a thin rice wafer which was light and refreshing. we were also served some deliciously warm and crisp bread with soft butter- always a highlight of a fine-dining restaurant.

entree - for the entree i choose the mushroom brioche which came with confit morsels, mushroom foam and a pine crumb. they also served it with a mushroom tea (i initially thought it was a sauce to pour over the meal so i’m glad the waiter informed me before i made a serious faux país) which has so much flavour in it that i think it was my flavour part of the dish. this dish did not muck around when it came to mushrooms- the mushroom-shaped brioche was filled with mushrooms, lay on a bed of mushrooms and was accompained by a creamy mushroom sauce. good thing i’m a massive fan of mushrooms so i loved every element. my only critic was the brioche was a little dry and perhaps they could have swapped out one mushroom element to add a contrast in flavours. 9/10

main- for the main i choose the spinach and cashew cheese ravioli which came with a parmesan dressing. the ravioli itself was lovely, the creamy dressing complemented the filling perfectly and a zesty green purée added a nice citrusy touch. the one part of the dish that really didn’t work were the charred brussel sprouts... they simply to tasted burnt like burnt toast. 9/10

dessert- for dessert i got the dark chocolate and pear entremet. the dish was presented in such a beautiful and unique manner. the entrenet itself was perfection- the rich layer of dark chocolate on top was cut through by the creamy pear centre, with the added texture of the crunchy base and perfect addition. it was accompanied by a moorish hazelnut sauce, slices of poached pear and an interesting pear and thyme sorbet. if i’m being honest, the sorbet on its own was so strong its thyme infusion that is was almost unpalatable. however, when combined with every other element on the plate it brought about a more subtle and interesting flavour to the overall dish. 9/10

we celebrated our anniversary at the grove which has the best fine-diningfoodwe've ever had.

while the grove does not have great views like sugar club and orbit 360° or the luxurious setting like clooney, theirfoodis enough to wow you, both visually and taste-wise. that is not to say that the setting wasn't comfortable. we were given a spacious table meant for 4 people and had them all to ourselves, so thank you so much for the kind gesture!

now, the food. we went for the 7 course menu with no regrets. every dish was so different from each other and we were able to experience different flavours and textures. i'm nofoodguru but i can definitely tell the cleverness behind how they piece together each dish. like how the clam surprisingly removes the taste of the fish to cleanse our palate and the popsicle after our mains.

i can't speak enough of how good thefoodwas. they do change their menu from time to time and it is definitely the place to go for a mind-blowing gastronomic experience.

my pictures do not do thefoodjustice (you might be disappointed if you want to take nice pictures at night because it's quite dark inside and flash is not allowed. we actually had someone from the next table waving his phone around with the flashlight on -.-)

the best of new zealand flavours, meat and produce cooked and perfected using french and italian techniques! the 7 course was perfect to celebrate our 7th wedding anniversary! the service staff are all friendly and perceptive towards their guests' needs. real shame about the construction across the road but the perfect execution and the delicious taste of thefoodmore than made up for the 'view' next door.

always love coming here, staff are nice and accommodating and thefoodis always great. will recommend an ala cart menu with a 5-7 course meal.

thefoodis 5/5! everything tastes divine, and the presentation of each dish is very cute. i got the raukumara venison carpaccio with kawakawa icecream, quail egg and pecans as my entrée, hawkes bay wagyu fillet with toasted brioche and smoked bone marrow (soooo good) for my main and for dessert ordered the nettle mousse, chocolate, caramelized apple, lemon balm granite.

we also got a few sharing plates of oysters, eel flavoured churros (quite a strong fish taste) and something else i can’t recall what it was but it was good,

before dessert we were given some kind of frozen cocktail popsicles, the alcohol flavor is quite strong but texture is like a slushy,

after dessert they brought out raspberry flavoured marshmallows and these are so yummy, very very sweet and melts in your mouth.

service is outstanding, quick to come round to fill glasses and to get more drinks, and they make any cocktail that is requested.

we did the 7 (5+2 dessert) course degustation and it was nothing short of outstanding. there are no menus in this restaurant so the staff have to know everything... and they did. the timing of thefoodwas great so that you didn't feel rushed nor were you sitting there waiting wondering if it was over. atmosphere was great in that we were seated in the middle and we could still have a quiet conversation without the need for shouting to be heard. the grove pricing (i think) is well aligned to the experience and i would highly recommend it for that special occasion. spend: $349 includes non-alc drinks excluding tip. my wife and i thoroughly enjoyed it.

this is a top quality restaurant
possibly the best in auckland
fine-dining has been mastered here
back in the day these premises housed the excellent le brie french restauarnt
which is still missed to this day
but wow what a institution has taken its place
thefoodand wine standards are to die for
the 5 course degustation option is delightful
excellent service and surroundings
try it

a fabulous place and experience for the whole family! thefoodand wine plus service explaining each course made the whole experience magical! our whole family enjoyed our meal and experience here -attention to detail is everything - we highly recommend!