Who can deny that the Viaduct Basin is New Zealand’s premier visitor attraction for locals and internationals with its vainglorious display of private maritime wealth, waterside apartments, hotels and, of course, restaurants. Entertainment for all !
Whether you’re just promenading in the sun, watching the watercraft come and go, espying the well-known sipping chilled wines on their afterdecks or looking for a meal that will leave you lost for words....in a good way of course, then this is the place to be.
I had received a personal recommendation from no less than a Masterchef judge to dine at Soul Restaurant and Bar. How could I not take note?
Lunchtime at Soul is like the tide coming in – there’s a human wave that surges into the place, filling every available table and you must count yourself lucky if you have secured a position with a view of the water.
This is a restaurant with clean, modern lines, appreciable space between tables and excellent natural light from the full length glass roof. The sheer size, or length, of the premises is broken up with three rows of hanging plants and these filter the sun to an extent.
What impressed me from the outset was the efficiency of the wait staff and their ability to handle the great body of diners once the restaurant was full. It is no mean feat to keep 200 people happy and I witnessed no evidence of stress or staff bumping into one another, no confusion or mixed up orders(and I was within earshot of the waiter station at one end of the dining area). My own needs were attended to well enough with cold water brought to my table immediately, drinks orders taken and time left to peruse the menu. I was expecting a long wait to eat or at least a delay in between courses but I experienced nothing like this at all.
A glass of Wooing Tree Pinot Noir 2008 whetted my whistle while I waited for my first course, Goats Milk Haloumi Fritters with almonds , mint and honey. The combination of the almonds, mint and honey stood out so expressively, perhaps surprisingly, and created a beautiful melt in your mouth experience that was truly memorable.
In between courses I had the opportunity to people watch, a favourite pastime of mine. The restaurant seemed to have attracted the well manicured, the well coiffured, the well madeup and the very well dressed on this particular day with an adjacent table to mine taking first prize for sartorial elegance in women under 30! A stunning group of self-assured, magnificently attired, happy young women who seemed to have an unquenchable collective thirst for champagne and cocktails. All on the company I hope!!
Roast dry aged Hereford beef rib, Café de Paris butter, truffle mash, seared vine tomatoes & red wine jus. This main dish was the star of the show with an accompaniment of garden leaf salad with avocado, cucumber & lemon dressing and a further side of steamed broccoli. Such a natural mingle of everyday vegetables so enchantingly displayed and with an almost translucent quality in the bright sunlight. The individual components on the plates came together successfully to deliver a very palatable experience, overseen by the superbly cooked medium-rare piece of beef.
All credit to the chef(s) in the kitchen for producing such a good product on the plates and equally to the front of house staff who just seemed to have an enviable skill in coping with the numbers. I’m impressed and I can fully understand how this establishment consistently wins awards for customer service and staff training and development. Well deserved I’d have to say based on my visit.
No comments:
Post a Comment