Thorndon Favourite Hillside Kitchen & Cellar Is Moving to Downtown Wellington

Overview

Thorndon favourite, Hillside Kitchen & Cellar, is temporarily making a move down the hill and into Wellington's CBD, as its quaint pastel pink home with black and white awning undergoes earthquake strengthening.

Hillside owner Asher Boote says the restaurant will set up its temporary home at 99 Victoria Street, ​a space many Wellingtonians will already be familiar with. Boote has previously used it for pop-up restaurants, including The Ramen Shop, Karaage Burger and BŌL. It was most recently home to Nikkei-inspired cocktail bar YakiSoda from bartenders Giancarlo Jesus and Kerry Burgess.

The Tinakori Road eatery, which has regularly appeared in New Zealand's top restaurant lists since opening in 2015, is best-known for its seasonal plant-based cuisine using homemade and sustainable ingredients. Boote says bringing Hillside into the heart of Wellington will give more diners a window into a culinary experience they may previously not have had the chance to try.

Hillside Kitchen & Cellar, Tinakori Road.

"Sometimes people don't always have the opportunity to travel across town to Thorndon to dine at Hillside — they may not even be familiar with it, which is why it's exciting we have the opportunity to introduce Hillside to another audience in the city," he says.

Boote says he's not trying to recreate Hillside as it is on Tinakori Road, but will be bringing a "slightly redressed," piece of that culinary experience into the city. The Hillside Downtown m​enu will be small and regularly changing to keep it new and exciting. Dinner will come as a multi-course set menu, and people can order extras based on seasonal availability. Lunch will be a small à la carte offering or set menu for daytime dining.

Hillside Downtown is taking bookings from 9 April. The pop-up space at 99 Victoria Street will be open five days a week from Tuesday to Saturday for lunch and dinner, with an early sitting for dinner from 5pm. ​Boote's other restaurant Daisy's​ has also expanded its hours to accommodate local diners.

For more information, visit hillsidekitchen.co.nz.