JUCY Snooze | Top 10 eateries in Auckland

Auckland is home to some of the finest cuisine found in Oceania, if not the world. A melting pot of cultures has brought together meals from every continent and Aucklanders have embraced all sorts of delicious foods. Let your taste buds take a trip to India, China, Japan or America. These flavors all have a distinctive Kiwi flare, but haven't taken away the traditional essence of the recipe. Auckland itself prides its cuisine in seafood and is dedicated to the best cuts of lamb/cow. So let's go virtual eating folks!  

Seafood lovers this is the place for you! Located in the heart of The Viaduct, this place is hard to miss. Go for a classic Kiwi dish, that of Whitebait fritters with a squeeze of lemon, or a hearty, seafood chowder. YUMBO! If you're an oyster fan, they do plenty of em' and they serve them any style. My pick would be the fried oyster, brioche bun, coleslaw and spicy mayo burger. Try the Savannah beef filet with rosti and black pepper sauce if you're not a seafoodie person. Hmm, now I'm hungry. ;(  

Japanese cuisine at its finest. Located on Tyler Street, in the Britomart precinct, this restaurant has a great ambience with stylish décor. The menu is set up for sharing plates and whilst I'm not a big fan of this method (yes I'm greedy), it fills you up quick and hey, you don't have to share either! Grab some of the perfectly slated green beans (Edamame), Beef Tataki, Karaage chicken, Steamed Prawn Dumplings and the Crisp Soft Shell Crab is to die for! Try the Sticky Pork Belly, or Char-grilled Wakanui Scotch if you're after large plates.  

Amano 

Who doesn't love Italian? I don't know about you but I could eat pasta until I die. So bad but so good. Located right next to Ebisu (How handy?), this place has to take the crown for the best dining area in the country. Big, modern, stylish furniture is the winner on the day and they provide the goods to back up their lavish facility. With a bakery attached, what more could you want? Pre-prepared juices, pastries any style, coffee's made with love and I haven't even started talking about the restaurant! The Crayfish Tortellini and Chitarra with scampi, tomato and a hint of chili are my pasta picks. Char-grilled lamb or chicken, or the scotch filet are my picks for poultry. For dessert, finish with an espresso with mascarpone trifle. You simply can't go wrong at this place.  

Let's go to China now folks! Located in Ponsonby, this restaurant is for those wanting a cheap but bang-for-your-buck dining option, with reasonable décor. Xiaodan offers dumplings galore with a 10 for $9 or 15 for $12 deal. How good?! Cucumber salad, steamed pork buns and deep fried prawn meat with mayo or sweet and sour dipping are my other favorites.  

Who would've possibly have thought Indian-Peruvian would mix so well that Cassia has ended up as one of the top rated restaurants in New Zealand. Superb décor to rival Amano and located on Fort Lane, off of Fort Street, it's tucked into a strange spot in the CBD, but it doesn't stop people from coming in their droves! Plus, a trip to this restaurant won't bruise your wallet too badly either! With lots of menu items to choose from, the caramelized kumara and carrot with vindaloo butter is a great start to the meal, followed by the lamb chops and nibble on some Pani puri too. For the main event, the vegetable curry, snapper, tandoori chicken or prawn and celeriac are my pick of the bunch. For sweets lovers, try the apple sorbet or coconut and cashew desserts.  

O'Connell Street is a beautifully paved street in Auckland surrounded by some of few heritage buildings in the city that have been well preserved. The Bistro has been consistently rated as one of the best restaurants in the city and they're always booked out on the weekend. They take culinary art to a whole other level. They say you eat with your eyes first right? Well this place makes you do just that (not literally of course, that'd hurt!). They provide the best cuts of meat mixed in with the most flavorful herbs and spices. Crispy peppered squid or Steak tartare are recommended starters. The lamb rump or slow cooked rib of beef are both melt in the mouth for mains. They even have a cheese menu, fancy! My dessert picks would be the Tahitian Vanilla Crème Brulee or Lemon curd ice cream sandwich with strawberries. Heaven.  

Located in the heart of the city (right by the Skytower), this contemporary Japanese restaurant has a large menu, with big and bold flavors. They do everything from sushi, tempura, Wagyu beef, steamed vegetables, sashimi, edamame and soft shell crab (a favorite of mine if you couldn't tell!). Miso soup, rice any style, this place is a dream for those who love the cuisine, which is simply fresh and irresistible, jam packed full of deliciousness. Be sure to get a table early, Federal Street only goes quiet on Monday nights and is packed on most other evenings.  

Al's Deli 

With three locations in the city centre, you'll be bound to walk past one on your adventures. This is your classic Canadian/American chain, anything goes deep fried here and the shakes are a meal in themselves, they'll be your whole sugar in-take for the year! Classic Caesar salads, poutine, yes, poutine, MMmmmmmmMM, fried chicken, tender ribs covered in sauce, burger's and dogs (hotdogs) and BLT's. Desserts include banana splits, moose ear donut, croissant bread and butter pudding and cheesecake! How about pancakes, waffles, eggs benny and bagels? This place tempts you at every turn so be careful not to go crazy! 

What's the cuisine you ask? French of course, but heavily influenced by Kiwi cuisine. This is about as good as it gets folks. This is probably a once-only dinner, unless you're raking it in. In other words, expensive. But the price you pay is worth every mouthful of what you're about to experience. This restaurant does A La Carte and tasting menus only, so this is why it's expensive. As said, this is an experience. Smoked venison, whitebait sandwich, grass fed beef, spring lamb, textured chocolate, vanilla pear, this restaurant brings out all the stops. Art on a plate. Located on Symonds Street, near the uni's, this restaurant isn't hyped up for nothin' and delivers nothing but the best quality food NZ has to offer.  

We saved the best for last. Another Japanese restaurant, with a funky attitude. Situated in hip Ponsonby, this one is quite hard to find with only one sign hangin out. It's slender building has been fitted-out with chic black furniture and pop-art on the walls. This is the best meal I've ever had. Yup, I called it. Service is top notch, ambience is great and most importantly, the food is glorious. Start with a crispy pork belly, or chicken katsu bun and have a pickled cucumber salad on the side. Next, go for some tiger prawn dumplings and for main, the melt in your mouth wagyu beef short rib will make your tummy happy. You'll want to savior every bite (I ended up licking my plate :/), or the crispy pork belly and twice cooked chicken are other beauts. For dessert try a tapioca, or tempura custard. You'll never forget this meal, it's finger-lickin!