Advieh

You would be hard pressed to find a restaurant that ticks as many boxes as Advieh, the gem from Chef Gareth Stewart. 

Sure, it’s open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner with generous dining windows for each. But never before have we met such a spot in Auckland, where you could just as easily take a spicy hot date as you would your visiting parents, a picky eater and your most refined-palate pal. 

Here, Middle Eastern modern cuisine meets Auckland’s glittering waterfront—a perfect metaphor for Advieh’s approach to dining. 

Nestled under the Intercontinental Hotel on Quay Street’s doorstep and connected to Commercial Bay’s Level One, the sweeping restaurant is a piece-de-resistance for downtown. The restaurant is fitted with sleek earthy touches and a glamorous gilded bar. Not to mention, the softest shearling seats.  You can even snag a sneak peak at the chef’s dessert prep station as you enter.

If you thought baklava was a strictly sweet affair, think again. Far from your average flaky filo creation, Advieh's lightly butter chicken liver baklava (a starter which you would want to order a whole tray of) makes for a melt-in-your-mouth moment, complete with pistachios. 

Also striking the intense flavours with a light pastry balance is the crispy kataifi—a nest of fine pastry squiggles wrapped around scampi and crayfish. It's like candyfloss, only savoury. Not to mention, it's served with a generous side of tarragon mayo—perfect for double dipping. But we wouldn't expect less from a restaurant named after a treasured, complex Persian spice.

Speaking of all things gooey, the Tarama and a bowl of Anabelle’s Fresh Cheese are prime examples of what you’ll soon find to be Adveih’s signature—lashings of sauce forming the base of a dish. Take the smoked-warehou Tarama, which is scooped up by ultra-thin chips. The creamy labneh of Anabelle’s fresh cheese gets a fresh spin with heritage green tomatoes, cucumber, basil, olives—a monochromatic feast for the eyes. Treat both as a snack, a starter or as a meal in itself.

Tartare lovers—or fans of any good cuts of meat—shouldn’t miss the First Light Sish kebab. Made with wagyu, this rare skewer delivers dinner-time theatre as well as a bouquet of pretty garnishings. Oh, and lebanese toum yoghourt sauce. See, we weren’t fibbing on the sauce front. 

Now don’t let this meat-speak spook vegetarians and pescetarians. The fried cauliflower is a showstopper. Not one pocket of ungarnished or unseasoned veggie, thank you. Just oodles of burnt butter yogourt sauce, gently popping pomegranate seeds and a garnish of microgreens. Pair it with the date and Matakana Watercress salad or Grilled Eggplant and you’ve got yourself a plant-powered feast. 

Mains treat meat with just as much panache. The day Boat Market Fish sees natural flavours do the talking, with ribbons of courgette and a herbaceous bright-green tahini sauce to scoop it all up in. Or grab your spoon (not a typo) and dig into the soft, melting comfort that is the Coastal Lamb Neck and the soft sheep’s labneh sauce. It’s hearty, it’s silky and it’s something no meat-eater should leave without trying. 

Dinner-time theatre (literally, they’re only available for evening sittings) is just an ask away at Advieh. Chose between Bone in Ribeye and a Whole Dry Aged duck—or both, who are we to dictate—and your kind server will wheel them to you tableside.

When dessert comes, don’t shy away from the Warm Pistachio Cake and its yoghurt ice cream. It’s light enough to cut through any existing food coma and has enough candied pistachios to keep you picking for hours. 

Oh, and if there was an award based solely for glassware, we’d say Advieh would scoop them up. Case in point, ultra-sippable coupe in the Auckland’s only sober, cardamom-infused espresso martini. Of course, it's what’s on the inside counts, so rest assured that their mostly-pastel cocktails are just as pretty to taste as they are on the eye. Divided into two camps—Herbs & Flowers and Fruit & Nuts—devour Lavare Lavere’s gin and lavender moment, the citrusy, peachy, rum-punched Hanging Gardens of Babylon, or let the lightly fermented goodness of the Shrubbery Sling's rosewater and watermelon shrub tickle your palate. 

Image credit: Urban List | Wono Kim

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