Cutler & Co

Culter and Co in Fitzroy served the best food we have had in Melbourne so far. Talk about " the combination of flavors exploding inside your mouth" - a phase so often heard on MasterChief. The entree, main, and dessert I had last night was simply divine. One thing for sure, it will be quite hard to replicate this at home. The photo, taken by my aging LX1 , doesn't really do justice to the dish. 

Westin Auckland

Despite the elegant Parisian maitre'd striding pass various tables many times earlier in the evening, the food and service at Q is not as impressive as the interior design in the lobby.... much room for improvement.

On the other hand, their signature The Heavenly Bed® and The Heavenly Shower/Bath® may well be where the money is.

Winehot

Winehot is one of the few civilised joints where you get nibbles with whatever you ordered.

Owner Julian said he didn't get the the best Bar at the Bar awards tonight. Well, who needs a prize when the place is almost full inside late on a Tuesday night?

neighborhood restaurant

Auckland is full of fine neighborhood restaurants: Engine Room in Northcote, Maple Room in Remuera, Fish in Epsom to name a few. Point in Point Chevlier, unfortunately, doesn't quite make the list.

It used to be Point 9-5 a couple of years ago; staffed by a husband and wife team, much like The French Cafe, ensures top notch food and service.

Fast forward to 2007. Their website proclaims "we use the freshest possible produce to offer our diners an unpretentious selection of New Zealand culinary fare"

Well, after yesterday's visit, our impression is that if their food is at all representative of the state of New Zealand culinary fare, we should all stay home and learn how to cook for ourselves.

Finding Johanneshof Gewurztraminer on the wine list was, I'm afraid, the only positive highlight of our visit.