Foodies mark your calendars – between August 1-31, Restaurant Month in the Heart of the City 2022 will showcase the world-class dining on offer throughout Auckland’s city centre.
Every day of August, well-loved dining establishments and well-kept local secrets will be serving up menus at three price points – $25, $40 and $55-plus per person – so diners will be able to discover the myriad of city centre eateries through menus created especially for Restaurant Month.
One-off Extraordinary Evenings will include a night of nostalgia with New Zealand’s Godfather of fine dining Tony Astle who is teaming up with FISH’s Des Harris, while QT Esther’s celebrity chef Sean Connolly and Jiwon Do from Wellington’s iconic Hippopotamus will collaborate to serve up some spectacular French fare.
A ‘Kiwi road trip on a platter’ created by Rob Ede-Hope of Park Hyatt Auckland’s Onemata, a sustainable Pacific-inspired seafood feast by Tom Hishon and Uelese Mua of kingi – Cuisine’s Top Hotel Restaurant 2022 – and a formal Japanese omakase menu by Fred Wong in the revamped Commercial Bay hotspot PONI are a taste of what’s on offer in the 2022 Chef’s Table Series.
This annual favourite offers diners a once in a lifetime opportunity to connect with some of the city centre’s top chefs through an evening of food and conversation, gaining an intimate glimpse into the chefs’ personalities, careers, and culinary inspirations.
While those who fancy a winter party can check out Fiesta in the Lane, a night of food, wine and live music in Everybody’s and Imperial Lane. This enviable line up of events also highlights the calibre of hotel restaurants in the city centre. Six hotels are hosting events this Restaurant Month – SO/Auckland, Hotel Britomart, QT Auckland, Pullman Auckland, Park Hyatt Auckland, and Hilton Auckland – so event goers and diners can treat themselves to a staycation in the heart of the city.
“Restaurant Month offers an exciting way for people to experience the depth of talent and breadth of cuisine on offer in the heart of the city,” says Heart of the City interim chief executive Steve Armitage.
“It’s also a great opportunity to support and celebrate our hospitality sector. Our dining scene is one of Aucklanders’ favourite things about the city centre so what better time than Restaurant Month to get a group together and indulge your taste buds.”
People can experience a mix of academic and industry events, all designed to stimulate discussion, explore tastes, and showcase the potential of food, at the AUT Gastronomy & Culinary Winter Series programme, be served drag-inspired fare by Culprit’s Trolley Dollies and experience delicious food and drink matches with not only wine, but whisky and margaritas.
Returning favourites include the perfect excuse for a mid-week catch up- Social Hour, with some of the top bars in the city centre plating up their most ‘grammable’ combinations of creative cocktails and beautiful bites and the heady colours and spice of Bollywood Night at IVillage.
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