Mekong Baby

Currently when I view this rating, it’s just right at 3.5 stars. This place is worth rounding up, and a visit to try in the area. Whenever I go to place like this (tapas-​like) with just one other person, it makes for a difficult time choosing the right mix and amount of food to get. The staff here was super helpful in that department, and we ended up getting the right amount of food.
First off, great atmosphere and place to be. The drink selection is decent, but the cocktails are okay. Maybe I’m just use to my American cocktails, but there was little booze in the cocktail that you pay $$ for. Foodwise, the beef skewers were highly recommended and were a tasty delight indeed. My only thing is I wasn’t crazy about it coming in a baguette. I just want grilled meat and sauce! Still tasty though. Green Papaya salad and Pad See Ew were both quite nice and worth a try there.
Bookings recommended.

This Asian fusion is *not* disappointing! If you look for a big crowd this is *it*. The servers are attentive and informative**** stars up there with the food. The downside is the noise. We will come back again for the food on a Saturday lunch but not on a Friday night.

Yummy tasty delicious. What else can say. We went with the «Lets Eat» option which is where they just keep brining out dishes so you get a good range from the menu. The pork belly was my favourite. In regards to atmosphere the place has it. We actually sat outside and although basically on the footpath it was good.

Oh my goodness. I don’t even know where to start ! The food was so beautiful. I was taken here for a date and we had the Sashimi, Ribs, Wagyu and a chicken dish. The sashimi was the best I have ever had & the other dishes were just full of flavour. I eat out a lot but this is the best dinner place I have been to in a long time.
The atmosphere was nice, I do feel that the place needs a little bit of a makeover as it was a littlw dated. But the food definitely made up for it. The bartenders and waiting staff were all very knowledgeable and explained all the ins and outs of the menu in a relaxed but efficient manner.
Very very impressed !

I’m always weary of banquet menus but every dish on their Nine Dragons delta menu was amazing (even the salads!). I was there with a group and we were well looked after by the staff.
The food comes out as it’s ready and don’t be fooled by the portions. I thought it might not be enough at first but I realised there were 10 more dishes to come. It all counts and I was feeling quite full halfway through it.
The crispy spiced lamb ribs, the braised pork belly and the prawn, sticky pork and mango salad were stand outs on this menu.

I wanted to love Mekong Baby. I LOVE MooChowChow and was hoping for something along the same lines. Which is kinda what I got, but not quite up to the mark in my opinion.
We had a group table on a bustling Friday night — just like other Ponsonby Road hotspots, the acoustics are horrible when it’s busy, so prepare to yell at your friends to be heard. The ambience was cool & the place was pumping: the staff were slick & well organised though.
The cocktails list is great — lots of little twists on old favourites. I was also pleasantly surprised to find a few out-​of-​the-​box wine selections that were right up my alley: a nice Viognier as well as several other harder-​to-​find varieties. Nice work.
The whole idea at places like this is to share your dishes: with a massive menu we choose a few goodies to start with, but no one was game enough to try the Pork Cheek & Clam Salad, with Fennel, Cress & Crispy Pig’s Ear. Maybe next time! Instead, the Kingfish Sashimi with Green Nam Jim, Coconut & Basil was refreshing & light, and the Wok Fried squid with Nuoc Cham & Vietnamese Mint was ok. There are plenty more on the extensive menu I’d like to head back to try sometime.
Whenever I see pork belly on a menu & I DON’T order it, I end up with food envy, so I’ve learnt to give in, and now my Rule 1: Always go with the pork belly! Served braised with Caramelised Chill & Soy and Asian Slaw, it was bloody delicious. I think they might have even deep-​fried the slow-​cooked pork before serving, because the whole outer edges of each slice were incredibly crispy. A decent-​sized serving, and definitely a good sharing plate. Some of the other dishes were a bit hit & miss: the Green Fish Curry with Broccolini, Sugar Snaps & Choy Sum was a little flavourless for a good green curry, and the Crispy-​Skinned Hapuka with Sweet & Sticky Pork was definitely heavy on the sweetness. One of our other dishes was a little over-​salted too; perhaps we didn’t order well.
Normally I don’t go for desserts when I’m eating Asian, but with selections such as Kaffir Lime & Ginger Chocolate Mousse and Coconut Pandan Pannacotta with Ginger Praline & Caramelised Banana, they were definitely tempting! The Salted Caramel & Coconut Icecream Sundae with Lemongrass Jelly & Peanut Praline was a pretty decadent ending: the ice-​cream was meltingly good with just the right hint of salt, but the lemongrass jelly disappointed with a lack of flavour — it seemed to be there just for a contrast of texture.
So although the food wasn’t bad, we weren’t left wanting more at the end of the night — the general consensus seemed to be that there were more misses than hits. I have heard rave reviews about this place, and it is a slick operation: perhaps too slick? Probably a good choice for a group to grab a bite before heading out in Ponsonby, but definitely not a romantic dinner date option!

Mekong baby is faultless. Time and time again. You may have to wait, but it’s worth it. From my favourite spicy, ginger/​chilli venom cocktail to the succulent chilli/​mint lamb ribs that just fall apart. Pad see yew and the fire chicken are ridiculously good. Then you have the pork belly. Consistently caramelised perfection. If you really want to boost your calorie intake, get the roti bread on the side. Go crazy. This place just WORKS.

I love Asian Fusion food and as I love Blue Breeze Inn I have to like Mekong Baby. The restaurant is bigger and has better acoustics to Blue Breeze. Very popular, and like most places you can’t book so have to try your luck. But a nice drink and a prop up at the bar and 45 minutes goes fast.
As in most modern fusion restaurants, things arrive as fast as the kitchen can make them, and in this case our first Small Beginnings and salad got to us quick smart as soon as we were seated.
Shredded Chicken with grapefruit and coconut was really amazing and full of flavour and chilli kick but we thought it would have been nicer with a more subtle fruit like Watermelon or Papaya not grapefruit.
Wok fried squid was great, it was nice to have the crunch with the freshness of the salad dish.
The Roast Duck I found tricky to eat lady like considering they don’t seem to supply knives, just forks, spoons and chop sticks. It came with Pineapple, Potatoes, Shallots, Peanuts in a Massaman Curry served with a side of rice. It was lacking maybe a little salt and some kick. It was a little bland which was the opposite to the chicken dish.
The Pork belly was our favourite with Caramelised Chilli & Soy sauce and Asian Slaw.
Next time I want to try the ‘Let’s just eat” & they’ll serve up a selection of Mekong Baby’s favourite dishes for $ 60pp. Sounds good to me.

I was told I had to go to Mekong Baby. A friends birthday provided the opportunity to give it a go. I booked late on a Thursday for the popular Friday night and was dealt with politely and helpfully.
Half of our party arrived and were greeted by a busy maître d and promptly seated. Our waitress was lovely and quickly encouraged us to start drinking — we obliged.
Mekong Baby has a great cocktail list but beer is my thing and they lack slightly when It comes to craft beer. In my opinion an establishment such as this should have an extensive craft beer selection to match their wine and cocktail options…
Half of our group turned up late but at no point prior did we feel like we were being rushed or an inconvenience.
We started off with the Spiced Lamb Ribs the Wagu and Lemongrass and the Hotwings. The consensus at the table was that the Lamb Ribs were the winner. They were succulent and very rich, exactly what you expect from NZ lamb. The chili relish that came with it proved a pinch that help cut through the richness of the lamb — we had to order another plate.
Next up was the Madras Goat curry, the Pork Belly the Yellow curry and the Pad See Ew. Standouts here were the pork belly (which Is hard to stuff up) and especially the Pad See Ew. The Pad See Ew was amazing and hopefully its still on the menu by the time I get back.
Aside from the beer selection all the dishes were top notch and the atmosphere was vibrant. Including drinks we ended up paying $ 100 per head which considering the quality of the food and the great atmosphere was reasonable.

Food is good but when I asked if I couldn’t do a variation that wasn’t forth coming — good place to come with dogs as there are lots of tables outside — fire chicken is great

I love their pork belly and if I want to eat out and want pork belly, then this is the place I think of first. It is delicious! I’ve only been to Mekong Baby 3 times and each time the pork belly has been the favourite dish. The other dishes were good too. Had the crispy skinned snapper the first time and it was melt in your mouth delicious!!! The second time it was overcooked and therefore a let down since I was looking forward to it being like the first time. The pork belly is the only reason I go here and the atmosphere is pretty good too. A bit dissappointing to read some of the other reviews but I guess for a restaurant to survive, especially in Auckland as there are so many now, you have to keep the standard high at all times or you lose your customers. Keep the standard up Mekong because I’ll be back for pork belly!!!

There’s something satisfying about finding a restaurant that ticks all the right boxes, at least in my books.
Fusion cuisine has taken New Zealand by storm, and let’s be honest, there’s more misses than hits. Weird combinations of ingredients like blue cheese dumplings had me quite apprehensive about any self-​labeled Asian fusion restaurant.
In comes Mekong Baby in Ponsonby which had been recommended me to me many times by chefs and serious foodies.
Walking in, I already took a liking to the interior. It was spacious with plenty of different seating arrangements for group dinners or date nights. The décor was young and trendy, the essence of what Ponsonby is about.
To start, we each had a betel leaf with crab, kaffir lime and chilli which was so moreish and delicious, it set the tone and an eager expectation to try the other food.
Absolutely go with people who love to share dishes, it’s a good excuse to order just about everything on the menu. The braised pork belly was SO good. A juicy succulent pork belly with crispy crackling is so rare, let alone be it so bouncy and full of flavour. I don’t even normally like pork and it was my favourite that night. Accompanied with caramelised chilli and soy with an Asian slaw, it balanced out the carnivorous element.
The beef tartare with nashi and yuzu mayo was a beautifully presented dish. Mixed together, it was very creamy and the nashi crisps gave it a lighter balance. It was mellow and enjoyable but I felt like it could have incorporated some punch through the flavours or different textures.
Another favourite was the prawn, sticky pork and mango salad, with the highlight being the sticky pork. In my opinion, you can’t go wrong with a mango salad, and the prawns and pork complemented each other so well. All the elements are quite sweet though, so maybe that’s why we didn’t have a craving or room for dessert afterwards.
The crispy rice flour crepes were probably the only let down. It wasn’t crispy when it arrived and the fillings of mushroom and fried tempeh were mild in flavour. I’ve started to train myself to eat chilli and I had to add copious spoonfuls of the chilli jam in attempt to rescue some flavour in the dish.
Overall, I can’t wait to find the excuse to go back again. It’s a perfect venue for group dinners or celebrations because if you book in advance you can secure a private dining area. It has a vibrant and exciting atmosphere and the food is varied and adventurous. Thank you Mekong Baby for rescuing Asian fusion in Auckland!

I had the pleasure of coming to this restaurant with my wife. It was a first time we visited and we were both amazed with the décor and the food of this fine restaurant. The most memorable dish of the night was the pork belly. This has to be one of the best meals I have every had.

I’ve heard some excellent things about Mekong Baby and finally decided to give it a whirl for dinner. I wasn’t disappointed!
The service we got was fantastic. The best I’ve had for a long time — and totally in contrast to the usual indifferent service you tend to get in nice Ponsonby places. The waitress knew everything about the menu making some excellent recommendations and answering all the questions we threw at her about the food. Overall very knowledgeable, professional and and excellent sense of humour.
The food was absolutely fantastic. To start we had the kebab which was served in a baguette — a great take on a kebab. As well as wagyu beef rolls. Mains were salmon and sweet pulled pork (described as Mekongs take on surf and turf) and a duck massaman curry. The salmon and pork was to die for. The massaman was good too but nothing spectacular. We also had the fire chicken which is boneless chicken thighs in a spicy sauce with lettuce and cucumber. A bit disappointing as we were told it was ⁸⁄₁₀ level of spice but in reality was mild at best — but excellent with some extra chilli sauce.
The cocktails though were great. I had a venom which was chilli, vodka and lemon juice in a short glass — best cocktail I’ve had in a while. A bottle of 2011 Cote du Rhone was excellent as well.
I’m going to be back here again and again. Amazing experience.

I was really excited to take the BF to Mekong Baby after coming for a cousins 21^st Banquet dinner. I had been raving about how much I enjoyed the food and that we had to come back. However we were poorly disappointed by almost the whole overall meal and experience.
We came on a Sunday evening around 8pm so it was rather quiet and there were at least 4 – 5 waiters working. We thought this would be great the service would be quick and efficient. The original waiter we had to begin with was friendly, though we didn’t see him again after he took our order. All the dishes were served promptly after ordering. The best thing we ordered was the papaya salad. Great flavour and texture and refreshing. However it went downhill from there. We had ordered the jungle prawn curry and what we thought would be a thick sauced dish was pretty much an oily soup with overcooked prawns. The reason we ordered the roti which were actually really yum was to dip them into the curry but as you can see the «curry» was very unappetising and the pic shows the evidence that the fat hadn’t been skimmed. If the prawn curry is more of a soup then the explanations on the menu should be clearer or the waiter should explain the dish upon ordering it. The fire chicken was nice and the heat was great but it was super oily and greasy.
Once we finished all the dishes it took 45mins before someone finally cleared our dishes and asked whether we wanted dessert. We thought this was odd because there were hardly any diners by that stage but still plenty of staff walking past us, who we at one point saw them taking pics of themselves and eating in the open kitchen. Also no one took the time to ask how the dishes were. When I went up to pay, again the maitre d never asked how everything was, as I waiting to explain our disappointed but he never asked so I couldn’t be bothered with complaining. Overall I was poorly disappointed with the food and service and wished I was welcomed more pleasantly the same others have boasted about previously.
Rating
Food: 4.5÷10
Service: ³⁄₁₀
Value for Money: Average
262 Ponsonby Road, Ponsonby
Opening Hours: Tues-​Sun 12pm-​Late

Initially hesitant to try this place due to mixed reviews, but sure glad we did. It’s now one of our favorite places on Ponsonby Rd.
Fully booked on a Friday evening, so we couldn’t make same day reservations. Only option was to go and be put on a waiting list. Arrived around 7:30pm and waited about 30 mins at the bar before getting a table.
AMBIANCE: Cool. Crowd mostly late 20s-​40s people. Seemed people were there mostly for the food, though the bar saw more action as night wore on. Our table was next to the bar, so when it got really crowded, it was somewhat annoying that we were getting crowded by drunk people as we were eating.
SERVICE: Friendly. There was a delay before our order was taken, making us wonder if we were forgotten. Food came out in a timely manner. Host, bartender, and wait staff all friendly.
FOOD:
Chili and ginger mo-​no-​no — Lychee Syrup, Lime, Chili, Ginger, Mint $ 10 (alcohol free) — sweet, refreshing. freshly grated ginger.
Wok Fried Squid, Nuoc Cham, Vietnamese Mint $ 16 — delicate. light. hubby loved it. i thought it was above average.
***Braised Pork Belly, Caramelised Chilli & Soy, Asian Slaw $ 26 — Perfect combination of sweet and salty. Slightly crisp and perfectly caramelized on the outside, while melt-​in-​your-​mouth tender on the inside. Not too greasy. Ample portion.
Roast Duck & Lychee Salad, Cucumber, Sprouts, Red Nam Jim $ 18 — OK. Somehow didn’t seem as crisp and fresh as we would have liked. Too much sauce and sauteed red onions? The duck was good, but not what we expected… more like pulled slow cooked duck.
***Coconut Sago, Vanilla Ice Cream, Puffed Wild Rice $ 12 — Love, love, love! Cool, light. Tapioca was perfect… not too rubbery or hard. Some sweetness thanks to the ice cream. Puffed rice provided crunchy contrast to lovely soft texture of tapioca. Will go back just for this dessert!
*** Highly recommended

What use to be GPK, Mekong Baby has had a big facelift and a new shuffle and is so much better for it. A short wait on a Thursday night (7pm) with no booking
Décor is chic and suits the menu /​theme, Protip, if you are with a table of 6+ try book the back booth for a sexy private affair. Its dim, moody and sultry.
The cocktail list is pretty well rounded. The two that we ordered were heavy on the herb flavors and punchy.
The dishes are a touch of French with wonderful Asian inspiration. Designed to be shared. «Small beginnings» (entrees) are a great taster leaving you wanting more… Out of the three we picked the Wagyu and Lamb ribs had a pretty tough fight for best dish of the night. The Crab was excellent and an awesome start.
We picked a «little bigger» (mains) a green fish curry… no hint of which white fish it was, to us it was a little tooooo sweet and not enough zing… the entrees set such a high bar, sadly this just didn’t cut it. Our biggest mistake of the night was to pick a really bland black rice «happy ending» (dessert).
The service was fair, The bartender was short on eye contact and a tad terse. Our server was much more friendly, covering a huge area she stayed on top of things and never too far. The music was getting a dash too loud to talk over towards the end of the night.

I really love Vietnamese food and Mekong Baby gives it a good nudge. We came on a Wednesday so it wasn’t exactly pumping. The décor is fun and bright and I like the fresh colourful flowers against the dark interior. The music could have been a bit louder to create more of an atmosphere and the staff were pretty lack lustre. The girl that brought out our food didn’t even know what it was she was giving us.
The food on the other hand was really really good. Quite hot, but I love hot food. The quail egg dumplings were gorgeous and beautifully presented, the other starters were tasty and well portioned. The Pad See Ew was really good, so was the red beef curry both fragrant and well balanced.
Looking forward to coming back and trying more food and hope the staff get into more of a groove — it can make or break a place.

Foods aiight. Good actually, but I expected more of a vibe. Twas battlers boulevard on a Wednesday night but is probably much more fun on the weekend.
worth a hoon for sure.

From the street, Mekong Baby looks bit underwhelming, perhaps even drab, but from the inside this couldn’t be further from the truth. It has a New York vibe, exposed brickwork, high ceilings, a heap of lush greenery and bright vietnamese paintings directly on the wall.
I am yet to eat here but it’s a great spot to come for drinks with friends. They wine and cocktail lists are extensive to say the leas and the atmosphere is great. The layout is also v. clever in that there are lots of little areas, which means you aren’t listening to your neighbours convo’s all night.
Can’t wait to get back to try the food — i’ve heard great things!