The French Café

Glad I decided to dine here on a recent stop in Auckland! I had the tasting menu so was able to try a good number of dishes. The one that stands out most to me was the egg confit! The flavors and texture of it were so perfect! The seared duck breast and the buttermilk dessert with berries were delicious and favorites as well! I’ve been to several other fine dining restaurants of this caliber around the world and I felt like it deserves its place in the rankings.
Service was a tad slow for me personally. The table next to me must have felt the same way as they stood up to leave before dessert was served, thinking the palate cleanser was dessert for them. Everyone had a good laugh about the oops moment, but the meal felt a little too spaced out even for this type of experience. It was about 3.5 hours for 6 courses.
A nice touch they have is providing you with a copy of the tasting menu to take home. It sits on the table so you can also follow along with the contents of each course as it is served. They also have a vegetarian version and are flexible if you have allergies and need to make any substitutions. This isn’t always the case, so it was nice to know they would accommodate.
Overall, great experience and food if you’re looking for a nice night out in the area!

One of the best meals of my life — the service was impeccable — my partner does not eat seafood but I was keen to do the degustation menu — that was no problem at all to alter the seafood courses and matched wines for him and he didn’t miss out at all — every course was perfect — it’s not a cheap night out at $ 500 for both of us with matched wines but it was well worth it — we were still full the next day and the whole meal was 3.5 hours so a total night of entertainment — must do at least once a year!

I appreciate the attempts to make this «restaurant» of the year– but the flavors were just not THAT amazing.
Good food; great presentation, and yes– quite a few delays between courses, plan 4 hours, easily !
Some of the wait staff better than others…
Very loud environment; need baffles on ceiling…

No hesitation, this place deserves 5 stars. A fine dining institution in Auckland and my personal favourite. I returned recently, it’s been a couple of years. I wasn’t sure if it would be as good as I remembered, after all I’ve been eating all over town for the last year. I booked a table, requesting one in the back room (I like to watch the kitchen working — just a steady flow of action, everyone knows what they’re doing). There’s also a lovely view of the courtyard and the new private dining space you can book (complete with your own chef for the night). Service was impeccable, meals were ordered and drinks arrived on queue. We ordered four courses, but also enjoyed three complimentary ones throughout the evening. The starter of scallops with cauliflower cheese was amazing in flavour as was the crispy pork belly with langoustine. I stuck with the signature duck dish for a main, but had venison envy when the meals arrived! Desserts were really good too and full of surprises flavour wise. I had the chocolate, but tasted the lemon one too. Brilliant dining, I can’t fault it. Overall, an effortless evening with friends. French Café, you remain my number one. Sorry, no photos, I just didn’t care, the food was too good!

It’s hard to give this place any less than five stars considering it offers some of the loveliest food and definitely the best service of any dining establishment in Auckland. Clearly French nouveau in terms of cuisine, the French Café is slightly less experimental than Clooney or Sidart, and definitely less pretentious than Antoine’s. Its perfectly executed meat and vegetarian dishes (especially the signature duck and wintery venison) are complemented by an expertly selected antipodean and french wine list. Four courses can be partially or fully enjoyed or substituted by a degustation for the entire party. Amuse bouches seem to make it to the table with surprising regularity. Never napkin is our of place. The clean lines and white walls adorned with Max Gimblett paintings offer a soothing backdrop for many a special and memorable evening. The crew in the partially visible kitchen is. the human equivalent of a well oiled machine. Well done Simon, Creaghan and team. Keep up the great work and look forward to dining with you again.

I had the joy of visiting this restaurant and I was blown away with the detail in the presentation of the food and the knowledge of the serving staff. They knew with the greatest detail the menu and were happy to share there knowledge with you. This place is a must

Just had another amazing meal at The French Café. This Auckland institution for fine dining has become our regular stop when doing our annual family visit to New Zealand.
The beautiful, modern interior feels exclusive but never crosses into pretentious and uncomfortable. You can view the vegetable and herb garden from your table which I love. For tables in the back of the dining room you can just see the kitchen pass. It is a delight to witness such fine work.
The service is spotless, efficient, vastly knowledgeable and with the most genuine balance of formality and friendliness. Every staffer knows their stuff respectfully, and it makes for an enjoyable dining experience that actually inspires.
Now the food!!! The food is pure bliss. I’ve always done the tasting menu with the wine parings and its a meal that is etched into my mind the whole year until I’m able to visit again. I’m still craving the quail dish I had last night. Words are truly too small for how much I adore the food, so I’ll just say, beyond words, this food can only be experienced. Highly recommend.
It’s a fine dining establishment so you’ll pay top dollar and the tasting menu does take a few hours to enjoy, so jump in with both feet if you’re able. Also I know tipping isn’t compulsory or consistent in New Zealand but the staff here are so incredible, I can’t justify not leaving a gratuity.
In closing I’d just like to say thank you to the whole staff for being so amazing. Our family looks forward to many more memorable experiences at The French Café

After a bit of travelling we fancied dressing up for the evening and going all out with a degustation meal with paired wine. Once settled in the hotel, I did a bit of Unilocaling to find some good places nearby and the French café seemed to tick all the boxes.
The location is very central and upon entering we were met by lovely staff who took our coats and seated us at the table we had only booked an hour earlier. Considering it was a Tuesday it was very busy!
The décor is simple yet modern, with well spaced tables. We had a browse of the degustation menu and decided to go for that with the paired wine. I think for both wine and about 6 courses of food it came to approximately € 150 each which wasn’t bad at all. Especially with the quality of the food.
I started with a elderflower julep gin based cocktail which was lovely, and we were brought our first couple of amuse bouches and fresh bread. As the tasting menu courses came out of the kitchen, wine was poured just after the plates were set down on the table. A waiter explained the course, followed by an explanation if the wine and why it had been chosen. The food was brilliant, lots of fish, lots of meat. Excellent presentation. By the end we were struggling to finish off the last bites we were so full!
Overall, a brilliant evening. A great restaurant with lovely staff and brilliant food. If I am back in Auckland I will definitely be paying another visit.

Went here for a birthday. The service is pretty exceptional here. The staff are knowledgeable and know their menu well.
The food are to die for here. Everything on the menu was awesome. Love the staff coming round scrapping off bread crumbs with their little flash scrapper, love to get one of those at home.
Although is pricey, but I think for one of the best fine dining experience in the country. Is worth every penny.

French Café is often named No.1 in Auckland and my three visits over two years to this restaurant have had moments of brilliance mixed with disappointment. The Tasting menu hasn’t changed by much since eighteen months, but a rustic-​chic courtyard and a private hall where the chief chefs will specially cook for your party, are the new attractions. Service remains smooth and high-​quality but for better vigilance, more staff (and higher bills) will have to enter the fray. Egg Yolk confit with potato and mushroom scored with its looks and concept rather than taste, while the lobster, mussels and scallops here have limited depth. Simon Wright prefers to serve de-​boned beautifully sculpted and plated meat but the lamb, though tender and having zero gaminess, lacked flavour. A game changer here is risotto comprised by brunoised celeriac with myriad savoury and creamy persuasions — a triumph of technique and taste. Desserts have never disappointed: lusciously ripe vanilla panacotta was perfectly contrasted with an almond crisp, while lavender icecream nuzzled a rich brioche crowned with sauce-​drenched plums and cherries. The best from a 2012 meal of 9 courses had featured superb seared duck and an exquisite ballotine of quail. Tariffs in NZ$ — $ 30 for appetizers, $ 46 for main course, and $ 20 for desserts. F. C is an asset for Auckland but will need to step it up for reaching world-​class brilliance. ³⁄₅ =Good. Photos

For our fourth anniversary, AW and I indulged in the French Café. We had a voucher that friends had given us as an engagement present that was singing out to be used, and we thought we deserved a treat. It’s Christmas after all, right?
It was AMAZING. When AW and I went almost four years ago together, we were seated in the main restaurant part (so not the bit that looks out over the courtyard), with a reservation for 7pm. With the French Café, I say do it later — especially in summer. Our reservation was at 8.45pm, and we arrived a little early with the intention of having a drink in the bar. We were seated in the beautiful courtyard at that amazing time of night where the sun is setting but it’s still light where we indulged in champagne in front of the fire they have.
Service was perfect, not too many interruptions but always there to top up a glass.
Onto the food. It was. the best meal I’ve had, I think. I am pretty sure I can safely say that. We decided to go with the a la carte menu, given the time. Perhaps if it had been a Friday, we would’ve gone for the degustation and enjoyed the wines as much as the slurring ladies next to us (this didn’t detract from the evening, they were hilarious… they did get a little loud the more they had to drink, but it’s not like I haven’t been that person before!). I started with the scallops. Holy moly. Cooked to perfection, they came out beautifully — so tender with a sauce so amazing I would’ve slurped it up from the shell if I could have. I highly recommend. For my second course I had the beetroot and goat’s cheese tart. Now, I know that say, Little & Friday does a wonderful beetroot tart, but you have not tasted the sweet, earthy, moreish-​ness of the beetroot teamed with the tang of the goat’s cheese and the light, crisp buttery tart until you have tasted one from the French Café. It is a MUST. I then followed this up with the main dish of the night — the lamb. It was perfection. It was pink and juicy, and my knife slid right through it. I cannot rate it highly enough. You know, I never used to like lamb? That was because my mother didn’t really cook it while I was growing up (probably because she knew I wouldn’t eat it, I was basically a vegetarian until 18) and because whenever I’d had it elsewhere it was dry and disgusting and had that smell. ugh. But lamb from the French Café is out of this world.
We decided not to do dessert as I was far too full, and wanted to end the night on a savoury note. I am sure it would have been beautiful but I just wanted to savour all that savoury goodness I’d just consumed.
I cannot rate this place highly enough. It is certainly a special occasion restaurant, but given we eat out so often, isn’t it nice to have a place that you only head to on special occasions? Yes, it will cost you the earth, but it is worth EVERY SINGLE PENNY. And that’s a big call.

You’ve got to try their cocktails! My husband and I have spent the entire night there just on cocktails, this is the only fine dining restaurant in AKL that has a 5 star drink menu!

It was my wife’s 35^th birthday celebration, and what better place to celebrate than the French Café.
Nothing was to much for this faultless service team. I requested 4 Roederers in arrival and with the knowing nod from the Maitre’d on arrival we were welcomed into their warm blanket of service perfection.
Our waiter, a young French chap, took complete control w amuse bouche selections, amazing wine suggestions, and huge options wrt menu design.
FOOD: on all counts as close to perfection as you could hope for. Some serious skill shown here but you never felt it was done to wow visually but to confuse the taste buds, not here, stunning presentation w every component pulling the dishes together (yes, I pretty much tried them all) w exquisite completion.
I could write forever, but won’t, so all I’ll say is go, and appreciate an experience that delivers far more than you could hope for.

Recently I lucked out and got an invitation to lunch at The French Café with a design guru and a CEO, their shout! I hadn’t been there since they had built their new courtyard, garden and private dining area, The Kitchen, but it looks fantastic and I can’t wait for an opportunity to experience an event there!
Back to lunch, it was exactly what you expect from the French Café. Great food and superb service. The wine list was extensive and not over the top in price. Between us we had the snapper, the beef and the duckling (small concern that the duckling was a baby but I think it was old enough!). Each plate was full of interesting flavours and tastes.
As it was lunch we thought it was a bit excessive to have dessert so we settled on two desserts between the three of us. I know, big concession, right? It was tough to choose which one was our favourite — the lemon meringue or the rhubarb and toffee apple. Both looked exquisite on the plate and tasted heavenly!
I am not sure where two and half hours went but it was very pleasurable and I am looking forward to the next visit.

I went to The French Café for a birthday degustation meal with my partner and his family. The whole damn bunch of us doesn’t eat meat and The French Café offers a vegetarian version of their degustation, so we dug into it with gusto. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again — going to a restaurant that properly caters to vegetarians is a god send and shows a real duty of care to the meatily-​challenged out there… especially when you hear that a lot of chefs think vegetarians don’t deserve to eat in restaurants!
The vegetarian degustation starts with an amuse bouche before leading on to a smattering of good tasting things. Ravioli, risotto, cheeses and perfectly crafted vegetable dishes, as well as a very tasty dessert. The menu changes with regularity at The French Café so I’m quite keen to go back and do this same set menu again!

Well la de la, this is dining at it’s finest. Since it opened, The French Café has been synonymous with the best in Auckland and the fact that it has been on most top 50 Restaurant lists is testament to that.
Whenever I go here, which isn’t often due to the price, I am excited for the week leading up to it. From the moment you walk in, you know you’re in for a good night. The place is cosy and simple, and your fellow diners are usually there for a special occasion which definitely adds to the air of excitement.
The food is fantastic — these chefs certainly take their jobs seriously. The knowledge that they have for flavours and food combinations is impeccable.
The service is second to none, these guys know they are working for an institution and their skill adds to the overall impressiveness of the place.
Like I said, the only thing keeping me from coming back every week is the price — but for the whole experience and the amazing food, it; worth it.

The French Café is my favourite restaurant in Auckland. And I’ve done Meredith’s and Clooney and all the other ones in that whole ‘expensive, fancy’ category.
I don’t know what it is but it’s just an institution. The food is always incredible, the service impeccable. And to be expected — it is pretty expensive. The degustation is great but takes a long time, so you’ve got to be prepared for that. The dining room is so clean and has a good sound level (which sounds odd, but is important for me).
One thing that might be kind of depressing is that when you dine there, you’re usually in a room full of people on their anniversary or birthday dinners. I mean, it’s a special occasion type restaurant. You don’t see many people coming in just for a meal.
I recently dined in The French Kitchen, which has just opened up out the back — it’s a private dining room which has interiors done by Katie Lockhart so it looks amazing in there. There’s an outdoor courtyard with this very attractive vegetable garden. I was there for lunch and the food was being prepared just metres away from our table where we could see. I pretty much loved everything I ate. God damn it was good.

It was our five year anniversary and we wanted to celebrate it at a special place so we booked in at 7.30 for the 8 course degustion menu at The French Café. The food was absolutely wonderful, flavours we have never tasted before, textures we have never experienced before. The staff were very professional and helpful. But what I would like to recommend is to book in for the degustion menu by 6.30 as it took us about 3 hours. That aside it was a wonderful evening, and we enjoyed it so much we went back the next week too.