5 Course Degustation at Number 5 Restaurant

I bought a Grabone voucher for a 5-course degustation meal for 2 person at Number. 5 restaurant recently after hearing really good things about this place. It costs only $99 for 2 person and that's a really good deal. This was also our first experience of degustation menu which is becoming a norm in most fine dining restaurants particularly in Auckland. The food here are amazing and every dish was very well-presented to us by attentive staff. My only gripe is that I forgot to bring my camera but it was maybe a blessing in disguise because we might get some weird stares from other patrons.

First course :Seared Scallops with Cauliflower Puree.  The scallops were so tender and I have never eaten a more well cooked scallop on a dollop of buttery Cauliflower Puree. This marks a good start of the night.

Second course:  Chicken Liver Parfait with Crisp Bread and Berry Compote. Fortunately both S and I love liver parfaits otherwise it  will be challenging. The combination of berry compote with the liver parfait sounds strange to some but it tastes fabulous together. My only complaint was not enough crisp bread to spread the parfait on as itwas a generous portion.

Third Course:Green Apple Sorbet. The maitre'd explained that this is to cleanse our palate before the main course. S loves the sorbet and I wish there were more in the glass.

Fourth course: Loin of Lamb with Lamb Springroll with Pea Puree. Sorry that the photo didn't turn out so well in the dim lighting. There is a springroll on the lamb loin. When this dish was brought to the table, it smelt so good and  everything was cooked to perfection. The lamb loin is so tender it's like eating marshmallows. The only component that I didn't like too much was the pea puree. It tasted like baking soda and I didn't like it however much I've tried to.

Fifth Course: Chocolate Fondant with Honey Comb Ice-cream and Coconut Shortbread.
Dessert has always been my favourite part of fine dining. I love love love the honey comb ice cream and coconut shortbread. By the time I dig into the chocolate fondant my belly was close to explosion because I was feeling so full. My hubs happily offered his 'help' to finish it for me.


It was overall a great dining experience. The ambiance is a little old fashioned and stuffy for my liking but the service is flawless and the food is one of the best I have had in a long time. We will definitely be back. Now I just need to stalk Grabone/ Groupon for another voucher.

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