Our very talented photographer Alex recently celebrated her birthday and with a large group we wanted somewhere that would cater for around twenty people.
After some research and recommendations from friends we decided on Culprit.
The position of the restaurant is nice and central being just off Queen Street in the city centre so was ideal for friends coming from all corners of the city.
You enter the restaurant via a set of stairs and the decor has industrial elements whilst still maintaining a welcoming ambiance.
We decided to do the set menu which was $55 for a generous amount of food and with or without a group we would highly recommend the set menu.
Purple kumara chips accompanied a slow roast onion dip.
Heirloom Gazpacho came topped with smoked mussel and cucumber. Very refreshing and tangy.
The Basil Cured Market Fish came with tabneh and tangelo and was refreshing and light.
Our favourite dish of the night was the Chicken Liver Parfait served with donuts, pinot noir syrup and chard. The parfait was silky smooth and the savoury donuts were a genius idea. You bite into them automatically expecting to taste something sweet and are pleasantly surprised.
Not one for the vegetarians but meat lovers will love the Roast Bone Marrow with dill pickle gel, old Edam toast and a shallot and caper salad.
For main course the table shared the Te Mana High Country Lamb with sumac flat bread, baba ganoush and tabneh. The lamb was served a perfect pink colour and was melt in the mouth tender.
The second main was the Culprit Roast Duck which came served with hoisin sour cream, plum sauce, peanuts and iceberg. The hoisin sour cream was a great take on the traditional hoisin sauce.
To finish we had the most photo worthy dessert we’ve ever seen! Steamed Ginger Kisses with vanilla mascarpone, stewed rhubarb and fairy floss.
We had a great meal at Culprit and would whole heartedly recommend it especially for groups as we love their set menus so much.
Culprit
12 Wyndham Street
Auckland Central
Auckland
Tel: 09 377 5992