O'Connell Street Bistro Re-Opens After Devastating Kitchen Fire

First-rate eatery O'Connell Street Bistro was devastated by a fire in January of this year, resulting in extensive damage to the kitchen, dining room and wine cellar, leaving the space unusable for an estimated three-to-four weeks.

That handful of weeks eventually turned into a whopping nine months, leaving diehard regulars yearning for a snifter of the bistro's infamous rabbit pappardelle and steak tartare.

While they surfaced with several pop-up events in the interim, it's never quite been the same as O'Connell's full-blown dining room experience. The good news is that O'Connell Street Bistro is finally ready for its mighty comeback, reopening this Friday, September 9.

The down time gave owners Chris Upton and Amanda Mason, head chef Mark Southon and their team an opportunity to give the bistro a major overhaul. The new restaurant isn't an exact carbon copy of the original, though still retains certain elements that will be familiar to regulars. In fact, Upton values the opinion and dedication of his regulars so much that the dining room was modelled around certain patrons' favourite tables.

Together with O'Connell's original architect Mike Marshall, the dining room space has been refreshed with brand new cutlery, 25 new plate styles from the depths of Ubud in Bali and Devonport, striking artwork from Bill Snider, and chairs so comfortable they warrant an extended stay from lunch service into the evening.

Southon has developed an equally impressive new tasting menu that showcases seasonal ingredients and the restaurant's bent for modern European cuisine. Highlights include the Ora King salmon with spanner crab, pickled radish, eggplant and black vinegar; hapuka with Cloudy Bay clams, roasted fennel and garlic shoots; Southland lamp rump with truffle glazed sweetbreads, pommes Anna and broad beans, and the final touch of chocolate mousse with hazelnuts sponge, panna cotta and milk ice cream.

The new look O'Connell Street Bistro can be found on the corner of Shortland and O'Connell Streets in the central city. They are now accepting reservations past September 9, 2016.

Image by Babiche Martens.