Chinoiserie

I was really excited to come across this new eatery in the Metro cheap eats. Everything I heard about it sounded great and it certainly lived up to my expectations.
I loved the selection of buns. The pork belly was my fav and I loved the fried squid on the side.
Give it a go and enjoy!

Easily a five star destination, even on a Sunday night it’s popular. Casual, local eatery offering food with a Taiwanese twist, the kind of place you know you’ll return to as soon as you arrive. Tonight mulled wine was on the menu, the perfect antidote to a bitterly cold evening. Ordering was easy, we weren’t going to miss out on the pork belly steamed milk buns, the fiery chicken or their signature fries with wasabi mayo. The pork belly bun was generously filled and the best I’ve had. At $ 8, I considered it great value. Everything consumed, fingers licked clean, we ordered the doughnut dessert to share. Good call, this was not one to tackle on your own. A perfect example of a neighbourhood bar and eatery getting it right.

Went to this place with my friends (one who is Taiwanese). The flavours were very good, I can probably say almost as good as the street food you find. The bao was the highlight, it was soft and fresh, above expectations. Is definitely will recommend the chicken bao — reminds me of Peking duck because of the hoisin sauce! And the coconut squid :)

Fast and cheap, crowded and cool, sassy suburban eateries are popping up everywhere. Why stay at home when you have a place like this around the corner. Mt Albert’s Chinoiserie is one such place. The café L’Oeuf (right next door) is owned by the same people.
The Matré D was good at keeping the place running smoothly and I was impressed the lady at the till knew all our groups 10 names whenever we ordered anything to, make paying the bill easier for all. There’s no table service but Chinoiserie sends the food as is ready so the service is quick.
The food on offer is simple; a mix of Chinese and Taiwanese-​inspired street snacks. The short menu lists a selection of steamed milk buns — with fillings of Szechuan chicken, five-​spice pork belly, tofu or squid. The lamb curry special was the best. Then there’s a section for sides — slaw, fries, edamame and more — and two sweet choices to finish. The fries with a wasabi mayo was great.
We finished the meal by sharing Taiwanese doughnuts and a bowl of black sticky rice which I loved much more than the heavy doughnuts and more than I thought I would with its subtle flavours and slather of salted coconut cream and pretty floral decoration.
I’ll be back. Chinoiserie oozes with too much fun to stay away.

There’s a new chinaman in town and you really should sample his wares. This Siamese twin of the fabulous L’Oeuf continues the French Asian theme well into the evening with a simple menu of deconstructed pork, chicken, lamb and tofu buns and sides of Asian slaw, fries with wasabi mayo and spicy squid rings. Chinoiserie is a fun, umbrella and bamboo clad casual venue to catch up with friends for a quick bite, even if it means a voyage to suburban Mt Albert. The drinks list includes a range of Asian themed cocktails and a small selection of beers and wine. The service is slick and super-​fast. The crowd is hip and foodie oriented. Orientalism has been successfully re-​oriented into modern New Zealand and it’s showing at a pavement near you now.

I’ve had some gua baos from other Auckland eateries that serve fusion food. The reality is that they stuff the open-​styled Chinese buns with something made in the kitchen and call it a gua bao. No.
The trick to the tasty authentic guao bao is that fatty pork must be used — the pork belly type where you can count the layers. Juiced up with a beautiful sweet sauce and a touch of peanuts, it is literally heaven in the mouth.
This is where the gua bao at Chinoiserie wins.
The bun was surprisingly soft and fluffy, both to have there and takeaway. This is interesting because this type of bun usually dries and hardens when it cools. Think of the buns you have at yumcha when no one wants to eat it, and the peer pressured one is then faced with a cold hard white Chinese bun.
The first time I tried Chinoiserie, I embarrassingly made friends take it away because I was stuck in glorious Auckland traffic. Them coming all the way from Christchurch to taste this, I was lucky the taste wasn’t compromised!
The second time I went with friends who had the authentic gua baos in Taiwan, and it was a unanimous thumbs up. The only difference is that the ones there are usually made with pickled veggies instead of the colourful Western slaw.
Unless you have a reason to:
— don’t order the tofu gua bao. The taste really paled in comparison to others. EAT SOME MEAT!
— opt out for the fries. They are really just fries with a wasabi dip. Plus they were the skinny kind and I like the manly chunky ones.
— opt out for the coconut crusted squid rings. They were a bit bland and there was no sign of coconut taste.
— go somewhere else for dessert. The black sticky rice dessert seemed to be just a sliced assortment of ingredients scattered.
Instead
— order the pork gua bao.
I normally don’t even like pork but they are traditionally made with pork and once you taste it you’ll know why.
— in fact order 2. Because if you have a normal appetite, one gua bao won’t totally fill you up. You’ll need sides.
— try Erk’s Sticky Chicken Nibbles. A touch of spicyness — so good.
— get the fresh coconut. You’ll also get a spoon to scrap the sides for coconut flesh!
I can happily say Owairaka Ave is turning into quite a trendy place to eat out thanks to Chinoiserie and L’oeuf. The menu is simple and you order at the till. No table service or waiters there to pick up white serviettes that drop when you stand up. Just satisfyingly tasty food.

Chinoiserie is the new kid on the block in Mt Albert, bringing Taiwanese fusion with a trendy and modern outfitting.
I would call this place a quick bite because the menu is limited to gua baos aka the Taiwanese burger and a few sides. I thought this would be a great place. Since the menu is simple, there is no place to hide and what they provide should be done really well. However to be honest I was pretty disappointed.
Firstly theres no table service, which I think for the size of the area and amount of tables I feel its needed. Also when we asked to order one of each bun, the girl taking the order was like «there is no squid bun», and we were like «its on the menu». We had to point to her to the menu continuously, it was very odd. Maybe some training is needed for the staff. Another recommendation is to change or update the wine list, as no one recognises where the wine comes from and knowledge is key.
The buns themselves were good. At least there was plenty of filling. A few downsides were that they don’t actually make the bun themselves which I think is a shame. If thats the main menu item, there isn’t a lot of labour that goes into the bun for them to sell at $ 8 a pop. Also nothing comes out hot. It was only just luke warm and they came out extremely quick after ordering — too quick, which makes you question your order. However I know thats an issue that doesn’t bother all diners. Some positives were the house made satay sauce found in the tofu bao, and the pork belly was cooked well and oozed plenty of flavour. Also a note, I wouldn’t bother ordering the Asian Slaw as a side if you order the boas, because its the same filling as whats in the baos.
I think theres future potential because the atmosphere and fit out is great, I think the food needs to lift its game especially now with all the competition in the Auckland area.
Rating
Food: ⁵⁄₁₀
Service: ⁵⁄₁₀
Value for Money: Ok
4 Owairaka Ave, Mt Albert
Opening Hours: Mon-​Sat 4pm-​Late

My new neighbourhood favourite — I only wish it was in my neighbourhood.
Chinoiserie kept things simple and is nailing it. Steamed buns ($ 8) with a delicious array of fillings, a small drinks list with some interesting Asian beers, a relaxed atmos and fun décor (including a mural of a chinese dragon spanning an entire wall).
We went on a wet and windy Auckland night but still managed to sit outside under the cover of the awning and big umbrellas. They don’t have table service but that didn’t worry us — we just ordered all our steamed buns and drinks in one go.
It’s hard to choose a favourite flavour but surprisingly the tofu would be up there. It’s fried so it’s slighty crunchy on the outside and silky smooth on the inside. Plus that sticky, sweet sauce… oooowee. Add lot’s of fresh herbs, coleslaw and peanuts and you’ve got one super tasty morsel.
Basically, if you haven’t been yet, get there. And make sure you have an appetite when you do — you’ll want to try at least one of every flavour

As a Mt Albert resident I am proud to say that we have one of Auckland’s coolest bars. Not in a fancy, trendy way but more like a bar/​restaurant that became the legendary place of the neighborhood as soon as it opened it’s doors. The whole concept is in my opinion quite humorous — turning a cheap local Chinese takeaway into this effortlessly awesome bar.
Interior décor — Chinoiserie is a very cozy, friendly place with a unique, hip look. Just like L’Oeuf it is somewhere in between modern and retro with a very cool dragon graffiti on the wall and the usual gorgeous plants just popping out on every shelf and hanging from the ceiling. Paper umbrellas were used in place of lamp shades to emphasize the oriental look.
Staff — lovely as always they are very helpful and organized, happy to have a chat and make you feel like at home.
Menu — very simple with 4 options for gua bao (steamed buns), some slaw, chicken nibbles, squid rings and 2 dessert options. So easy to order and yet so tasty and delicious. As for drinks they have a few beers and this summer’s favourite — Coco Loco!
Food — ordered at the counter just like a standard takeaway but then you get this great quality and high standard food full of flavours that reminds you that these guys are serious when it comes to serving gourmet food.
Price — very affordable and good value for money.
The real beauty of this place is it’s unique atmosphere — very chilled out and relaxing. You can walk into Chinoiserie and forget about the outside world. Flavours take you on a journey and when it’s time to leave you feel like you are going back home from a vacation.

Pretty little bar/​restaurant, order at the counter, informal atmosphere. The gua bao (steamed buns, of NYC Momofuku Ssam Bar influence) come in 4 flavours: chicken, pork belly, tofu or squid) and for $ 8/​each they’re a steal! We also tried the chicken nibbles ($ 12), the Asian slaw ($ 10); they were full of flavour and very fresh tasting. There are only 2 deserts on the menu: Taiwanese donut with chocolate sauce and toasted coconut and the signature black sticky rice (each $ 8) and we gave high marks to both. Today was the opening day and by 6 pm most of the seats were taken, with overflowing customers enjoying the afternoon sun at the outdoor tables. Bound to be a success!