Overview
Ponsonby may just be Auckland's hospitality mecca, boasting more tempting eateries and atmospheric watering holes than any other suburb. So when you open a restaurant on Ponsonby Road, you've got to come correct; miss a beat and you won't last long. Thankfully, AdamArnold is more than correct, offering a personal service experience, simple-yet-delicious cuisine and a beautiful environment in which to dine.
The restaurant itself looks stunning, sporting a full-length silver wall down its left side, an ornate marble benchtop and several hanging plants which break up the metallic and white colours with shocks of green. We sit in a deep blue booth along the side of the restaurant looking over perhaps eight or 10 tables full of happy diners.
The owners of the restaurant, Tobias (Adam) and his partner in business and life Brad (Arnold), serve our table and the one next to us respectively. Tobias is unbelievably friendly running us through the menu, recommending favourites and sticking around for a laugh - offering what was perhaps the best service I had ever received in Auckland.
When it was time to order the decision was a herculean task with such a tempting menu. In the end we go with the chorizo stuffed squid ($19), an inventive and delicious meal which beautifully combines the spice of chorizo with the delicate flavours of squid. Next we had the pan-seared market fish ($21.50), which consisted of a perfectly cooked, skin-on fish fillet on a cauliflower truffle puree accompanied by the most delicious kale I'd ever eaten. This tasted amazing although I would have liked to have tasted more truffle. Lastly for dessert we had the special, mille-feuille with coffee soil, a light yet flavourful dessert, which ranked among my recent favourites.
When the night was done I reluctantly approached the door after paying a surprisingly affordable bill. On our way out Tobias bid us goodbye, laughed at my bad joke and instructed us that we were to come back some time soon. Interactions like this with him and his staff lift the experience above that of the delicious food and salubrious surroundings - making AdamArnold the complete hospitality experience and one of the best on Ponsonby Road after only a few months open.
IMAGES SHOT USING THE SAMSUNG GALAXY S7
We've enlisted acclaimed photographer Jeremy Toth to put the Samusung Galaxy S7 through its paces. Read more here.
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