"Let's Eat" lunch at Izakai

Izakai

Cuisine: Japanese with a Maori twist

Address: Baycourt Shopping Centre, Mount Maunganui

Phone: 07-572 0484

Website

Drinks: Licensed

Reservations: At night and weekends (it's small)

 

I have long been a fan of the concept of Izakai, if only because it is so refreshing to see a restaurateur do something genuinely different. That's what Izakai does and it's a surprise to find something so original in a shopping centre (pretty much everything else at Bayfair is a franchise operation). 

 

Mount Maunganui-born Liam Millard and his partners aim to create a local NZ take on the Japanese Izakaya (which are small informal bars that serve drinks and snacks), bringing together culture, tradition and flavours of both Maori and Japanese to create a unique experience. That's what they have done with this intimate 30-seater restaurant, with its tastefully understated decor, open kitchen and a good dose of imagination.

 

 

There is only a small wine list, but since it highlights the most excellent Marlborough vineyard Te Whare Ra you can't complain. There is also a small and unusual bespoke cocktail list, a vegan one at that since it uses aquafaba (chickpea water) instead of egg whites. Most interesting is the Foraged Negroni which includes Kawakawa and fig infused Tanqueray, a truly native take on the drink.

The menu itself does exactly what the mission statement promises - mixes trad Kiwi and Japanese flavours. Thus they offer the likes of Ramen with Hangi-style Pork Belly and Watercress, and Lamb Rump with Boil-Up Reduction. The specialist ingredients do not, however, come cheap: the Ramen here costs $25 as opposed to around $14 at the excellent Chidori.

 

They also offer a "Let's Eat" Best Of Izakai selection at night ($60 p/p) and at lunch ($35 p/p), for a minimum of two people. There were two of us so we opted for that and a couple of glasses of the Te Whare Ra Toru, their Pinot Gris, Riesling, Gewurztraminer blend ($13/150ml). If you do the same I'd suggest waiting 10 minutes before drinking as it was served too cold to taste properly.

 

The "Let's Eat" selection comprised 5 dishes, one of which was a choice of dumplings from the three they list. We really should have had the more unusual Creamed Paua and Prawn ones but for reasons that now escape me we opted for pork. Here's what we got:

• Edamame - Spicy Soy Glaze, Shichi-mi

• Pork and Watercress Dumplings - Shitake Mushroom, Bamboo Shoots, Watercress, Yakiniku Sauce, Spring Onion

• Ika Mata - Coconut Panacotta, Mango Salsa, Flying Fish Roe, Passionfruit Dressing, Micro Coriander, Crispy Shallots

• Kaitia Fire Karaage Chicken - Kaitia Fire Japanese Fried Chicken, Teriyaki Glaze, Koshu Mayo, Shichi-mi 

• Seasonal Goma Greens - Goma Dressing, Garlic Chips, Shichi-mi 

Pork & Watercress Dumplings

Ika Mata

Karaage Chicken

Edamame

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Seasonal Greens

OK. Overall it was a very enjoyable lunch and the food looked lovely as you can see, but I must say it was actually a bit of a mixed bag. I do - surprise! - have a few thoughts...

 

The edamame beans were good with a very tasty coating. They were only very slightly spicy.

 

The dumplings were a bit underwhelming. Nothing wrong with them at all but they were pretty plain pork dumplings. I assume they had mushrooms and bamboo shoots in them but it wasn't obvious. The sauce, however, was fantastic, really savoury and tasty. Unfortunately it completely overwhelmed the light flavour of the dumplings....

 

The Ika Mata, four slices of Tuna, was absolutely perfect. The accompaniments were all excellent and all worked with the fish both together and individually - coconut, fried shallots, those little fish eggs - yum! I wouldn't have minded a couple more slices of Tuna but it was still The Dish Of The Day.

 

The Karaage chicken was a bit weird. If it looks a bit dark in the pic that's because it was slightly burnt. But at the same time the chicken inside was still moist and tender so it didn't ruin it. I always find it hard to know what to do in a situation like that. It wasn't burnt burnt, so it felt a bit too picky to send it back, but you could definitely taste an inappropriately charred edge on some pieces. The other odd thing is that despite the description (which mentions Kaitia Fire twice) we struggled to detect even a hint of chilli heat. 

 

And the seasonal greens. They were broccolini. Just fine. Cold but with a nice sauce.

 

So in the end I find I have mixed feelings. I like the concept more than some of the execution - there did seem to be some rough edges and I'm still not entirely convinced by the value for money ratio. But I still immensely admire the whole idea and there's a lot more on the menu that I'd very much like to try. And those cocktails. I'd certainly recommend giving Izakai a try, and I'll be giving it another crack next time I'm at Bayfair...