Soaring to greater heights
Divine food, attentive waitstaff: what more could you want
for a celebration meal?
One of my ‘‘besties’’ was in need of a cheer-up birthday dinner to forget that she no longer qualifies as 30-something. I knew just the place to make her feel better. At least I hoped that The Grove, in St Patricks Square in central Auckland and sporting a new chef, Ben Bayly, would deliver to its stellar reputation.
Invest here, it's sublime
A down-to-earth reader emailed me to lament
the profusion of flash expressions on menus.
She asked about "degustation" – a
word that restaurants here use for a tasting
menu; in France it is applied to a set menu.
But she also introduced me to "Liaison".
I have got my just desserts
Allow me, then, to introduce five glorious courses of pudding. Each one is a joyous occasion in it's own right; the combined effort is an exercise in supreme and heartfelt harmony.
Bread and butter. Bangers and mash. Roast beef and Yorkshire pud - some things just go together. Like ostrich fillet, chocolate soil, haloumi and chorizo!
Not the sort of thing you find on your average restaurant menu. It sounds like the kind of dish that makes people look at flash restaurants and say, "Give me real food. Good, plain cooking that we can eat, not pretentious muck. What's sumac, anyway?"
But the Grove is not your average restaurant. And Sid Sahrawat is far, far from being your - or anyone else's - average chef.
The recent departure of The Grove’s founding chef Michael Meredith must have been cause for some concern for owners Michael and Annette Dearth. Since opening in 2004, The Grove has earned a stellar reputation on the back of Meredith’s technically brilliant and highly original food. The Dearths need not have worried. New chef Sid Sahrawat (ex-The George) has created a menu in keeping with the inventive style of food for which The Grove is well known.
Michael and Annette Dearth, owners of The
Grove have made their mark on Auckland’s
dining scene with a unique approach to both
food and service. Their Californian restaurant
expertise, modern New Zealand cuisine, loads
of passion and an attention to detail, has
seen The Grove receive critical acclaim since
its doors opened in late 2004. New head chef,
Sid Sahrawat, was named the Innovative Chef
of the Year at the 2006 Lewisham Awards, and
brings his unique flair to create culinary
masterpieces. Complimenting the exceptional
food, Michael Dearth has developed an admirable
150 bottle wine list featuring wines from around
the world.
Click here for full review >>
Ridiculously sublime
Maureen Marriner discovers true happiness at
The Grove
Oh, the disappointment – but more of
that later. Canvas has not been to The Grove
for some time, not since Michele Hewitson’s
feature live from the kitchen when Michael
Meredith was chef. He’s now moved on
and the man in charge is Sid Sahrawat, the
2006 Innovative Chef of the Year.
Click here for full review >>
Sweet dreams are made
of this
Geraldine Johns
It must, I am sure, bring night terrors to
any restaurateur. You start up a site, pour
your every last bit into it, select the best
chef there is – and stamp a damn fine
mark on the city. And then what happens? Chef
leaves to go out on his own. At the same time,
it is the Christmas downtime and your wife
and business partner is about to give birth.
Even soap operas survive on weaker story lines
than this.
Michael and Annette Dearth opened The Grove
almost three years ago. They gave new life
to the old Le Brie and Auckland was all the
better for it. Head chef Michael Meredith performed
kitchen tricks nobody else could copy. But
Meredith has decided to go solo. We will watch
his next steps with great interest. Stepping
into his very big shoes at The Grove is Sid
Sahrawat. He won Innovative Chef of the Year
at the 2006 Lewisham Awards. He is 26.
Sid’s first full menu is in evidence
when the Duke and I roll up on a Thursday night.
I tend to get a bit excited when I come to
The Grove. It brings with it a sense of non-stuffy
occasion you don’t find too much around
these parts. And so it is tonight: a-hum with
discreet charm and a welcoming warmth we can’t
blame on this weather.
Cuisine
Magazine Annual Awards
"When Michael and Annette Dearth brought Californian restaurant expertise
to Auckland to open this smart inner-city dining room, their master stroke was
to employ Michael Meredith to head the kitchen.
His food is often
technically perfect with flashes of brilliance,
and his flavour and ingredient combinations
delighted the judges."
Click here for full review >>
Geraldine Johns
"Terrific last time; fabulous tonight. We will retire here. The Grove is
a place of rich rewards; it deserves an equal degree of praise."
Click here for full review >>
Ken Downie & Nicola Legat -
Great, worth seeking out.
"In my view,
right now this is some of the best cooking
in town. I suggest you check it out."
Click here
for full review >>
Geraldine
Johns
America's food
and entertainment magazine
"The Dearths have made The Grove an instantly accessible spot with brick
walls and an eggplant and Wasabi color scheme. Glide through one of chef Michael
Meredith's tasting menus or order a la Carte – everything's delicious,
from the pork belly confit with apples and lentils to the grilled calamari, chorizo
and onion tartlet. Finish your meal with a flourish, courtesy of the Valrhona
chocolate cake with Armagnac creme anglaise and orange sorbet."
Click here for full review >>
OVER THE WINE GLASSES
Ewan McDonald takes a visitor from
Parnell to a city restaurant that's just getting
better.
"Michael and Annette Deart were brave
to open a fine-dining restaurant in the CBD and
smart to install Michael Meredith in the kitchen.
The Grove has settled to become a must-eat for
fusion fans"
Click here for full review >>
Peter Calder
"Chef Michael Meredith (formerly of the the incomparable Vinnies in Herne
Bay) deals in bright, clean tastes. His dishes are artistry without artifice
at all and the eating is simple but sublime. Highlights from our evening included
a prawn ravioli served with sprigs of blood pudding (an unlikely but very happy
marriage), the whole dressed in a frothy lobster bisque; and a main of succulent
pork confit topped with a square of perfect crackling that our canny guest, a
man not given to overstatement, said was the best pork he'd ever eaten."
Click here for full review >>
Lauraine
Jacobs
Two other standout entrées were thin slices of rabbit loin served on
tortellini that was filled with the leg meat and accompanied by pancetta, chervil
and vanilla jus; and an Indian-spiced duck breast with carrot and cashew salad
and medallion of wobbly coconut jelly.
Click here for fulll review >>
Gilbert Wong
"The Grove's sure sense of cuisine, allied with waiters who know
their menu and wine list inside out, is a classic in the making. Long may
it prosper."
Click here for full review >>
Scott Ashton discovers The Grove – an
eating oasis in the city.
"For food of this quality and quality service, The Grove should definitely
be added to your inner-city dining choices."
Click here for full review >>
Geraldine Johns
"Seldom have I been so enthused about one so young. Credit, therefore, to
owners Michael and Annette Dearth. If restaurant success is about stamping a
point of difference, they've really done a fab job. I'm going back tonight."
Click here for full review >>
