📍 241 Tinakori Road, Thorndon, Wellington
📍 Address: 241 Tinakori Road, Thorndon, Wellington 6011, New Zealand
🌐 Website: hillsidekitchen.co.nz
Unique, sustainable, memorable! A special treat. Expect to spend at least 3 hours here and it’s much more fun if you take in all the info the servers have to share about the local farms and ingredients! The one thing lacking was ambience; could definitely be more lively and playlist was stale.
I’ve loved every visit to Hillside for almost ten years now. The delicious, seasonal, plant-based menu always showcases the land, the chef’s impressive skills and the whole team’s dedication to delivering a fantastic experience. Great to come back for a birthday treat of a wonderful multi-course meal that even my meat-eating partner enjoyed. Thank you Asher- can’t wait to come back!
Amazing experience. The food was delicious and you could see the amount of love and thought that went into each dish. Will absolutely be back. A vegetarians dream!
What an experience! We did the early dinner option and also got matching non alcoholic drinks and a non alcoholic aperitif. The aperitif was phenomenal! The food was very thought provoking and delicious. It's fine dining so don't expect huge meals, however the bread and snacks to start certainly helped. Standouts were the sour dough bread, black garlic puree and carrots, onion puree and potato and seaweed terrine, the pumpkin dumpling, and the passionfruit and mandarin drink. Some of the matching drinks were not to our taste or style, however we went there for the experience and that is certainly what was provided. We both enjoyed learning more about the food and hearing stories about the farm and waste minimisation, the server talks you through the next course when it arrives at the table. It's small and cozy, and very different to anything else we've experienced. This was certainly a treat, we would recommend Hillside to anyone who has something to celebrate or wants to be inspired. Thank you for a wonderful evening!
Fantastic and masterful! If you are looking for a unique, plant-forward dining experience, Hillside Kitchen is a must-visit. My husband and I enjoyed the ten-course (Menu B) tasting menu and non-alcoholic pairing. Every plate was beautifully presented, creative, and designed with thoughtful and perfectly curated flavor combinations. As a vegetarian, we truly appreciated how vegetables were showcased in such a celebratory and exciting way—each dish was a work of art, both visually and in taste. Beyond the food, the experience was fun and engaging. The staff are knowledgeable and passionate, taking the time to explain each dish, which made the meal even more intimate. The cozy and welcoming atmosphere added to the overall vibe. The experience felt special, yet relaxed. I highly recommend treating yourself and your favorite humans to Hillside Kitchen!
Went on a quiet Sunday night with a friend from out of town. Neither of us are vegetarian, but everything I had heard suggested we give it a try. Very glad we did. Had the limited fixed menu over about 2 hours and loved every course. The kumara sourdough and the gingerbread were the winners of the night. Warm service, friendly feel. Very simple. Highly recommended.
Hillside is honest gastronomy. It’s a creative and bold expression of seasonal produce and sustainability. The warm and softly illuminated dining room is like a comforting embrace, which alongside the welcoming service, subtly implies that you are in for a treat. The menu changes often and is heavily driven by the restaurant garden and the chefs’ preservation and pickling abilities. The wine list is brief and featured a lively selection of organic and interesting choices. Posting photographs of the food does not do this place justice, but know this; There are no gimmicks. No trickery and no misguided over-confidence of a kitchen which follows gastronomic trends. You get what you get. You get a passionate dining experience. An experience which, for the first time in years, feels like it’s pulling me back to my kitchen roots. Thank you for a lovely dinner! Looking forward to returning.
We enjoyed a really interesting tasting menu, and I even had a non-alcoholic drink pairing. The food was inventive and tasty, with lots of sweet-crunchy-fresh pairings. Thank you too for rushing for us st the end so we could get to our comedy show
TLDR: We LOVE the concept, but not the execution. Maybe we experienced a sub-normal menu, but what we had was quite bland and simple for the expectation in fine dining. Service: was solid with attentive staff. The way food was presented came from different folks, so, I'm unsure if we were in a shift change, but it felt a bit awkward with some drinks forgotten. Regardless, they were kind enough, but were not overly welcoming. Good service, nothing to complain about, but also not AMAZING 5 star service to brag about. Atmosphere: quite simple and modern. Once again, nothing to complain about, but nothing eye catching. Using a bathroom outside the restaurant is a bit scary for some folks later at night, so be aware of that. Food: this is where we wanted to love this place. The mission, the idea, everything seemed right up our alley. We love fine dining, farm to table, and of course vegan. However, each dish was very hit or miss for us. While my wife and I don't have entirely different tastes, there are many times where I may LOVE a dish and she thinks it's okay or visa versa. Unfortunately, at Hillside, every dish was just in the middle for both of us. A couple were good, a couple were not good, but most were just forgettable. I despise using "forgettable" but I cannot find another word for it. The celery dish for us would be a great example of that "meh it's okay" level. Very simple, pretty much just a barely cooked celery salad. Yes, there was a sauce, but it didn't really elevate the dish past raw celery. If you love that ultra healthy, no meat substitutes, on the verge of raw cooking, maybe Hillside is perfect for you. For us, when we drop $200+ on a meal, we want it to be something we could never even think of at home and this was not that for us.
Amazing! Stop reading this and go make a reservation. I went in early December and was told there will be a completely different menu in January. So over all the cooking techniques are very interesting, beautiful, and delicious. The cheese course was excellentand I loved the chocolate! I will gladly go again.
Hillside Kitchen is located at 241 Tinakori Road, Thorndon, Wellington 6011, New Zealand
You can find directions to Hillside Kitchen by following this map link
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