If you could only eat in one place in: Wellington, New Zealand
Where
Rita, Wellington, New Zealand
Why
Rita is narrow – that’s the first impression. This Wellington restaurant is so narrow it looks like you could stand in the middle of the dining room, stretch your arms out and touch both walls. It’s set in the cutest of cute cottages, a dwelling with a shopfront dominated, space-wise, by its front door. But don’t let its size deceive you. Rita is a restaurant that’s big on heart, a great warm hug of a place, the sort of neighbourhood bistro you will very soon wish you had in your own neighbourhood.
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Here’s the deal: Rita doesn’t have a menu, but rather serves a three-course set meal every night, and you have no idea what that meal will be until you get there. Your choices, in other words, are as narrow as the dining room. There’s a vegetarian option, but otherwise you’re having what everyone else is having. This is modern Kiwi cuisine at its most unpretentious and loving, with dishes that pay attention to seasonality, if not always fashion. Rita is the Kiwi equivalent of an Italian family trattoria really, the sort of place where you will get a warm welcome and a great meal and enjoy every second of it. Make space for it on your next visit.
Order this
No need to put in any work deciding what you’re having: Rita’s three-course set menu is decided by the kitchen team in the morning, prepared during the afternoon, then served in the evening. Just relax and enjoy it.
Eat it here
One of the great things about Rita is that there’s nowhere else like it, really. However, if you’re looking for unpretentious, high-quality modern Australian cooking, try Cafe Paci in Sydney (cafepaci.com.au), Farmers Daughters in Melbourne (farmersdaughters.com.au), and Press Food and Wine in Adelaide (pressfoodandwine.com.au).
More
Rita is set on a suburban street in Aro Valley, just west of the Wellington CBD. It’s open for two dinner sittings from Wednesday to Saturday – the largest table available to book is for six, and there’s only one of those per sitting. Three-course set menus cost $NZ115 ($95) a person.
See rita.co.nz
Ben Groundwater is a Sydney-based travel writer, columnist, broadcaster, author and occasional tour guide with more than 25 years’ experience in media, and a lifetime of experience traversing the globe. He specialises in food and wine – writing about it, as well as consuming it – and at any given moment in time Ben is probably thinking about either ramen in Tokyo, pintxos in San Sebastian, or carbonara in Rome. Follow him on Instagram @bengroundwaterConnect via email.From our partners
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: www.smh.com.au
