A seat at the table: a long lunch

The scene: a rather wet, grey and unseasonably cold Saturday lunch time. Noble Rot Wine Bar. Tucked away down a side street off Cuba Street in Wellington, the resturant has opened its doors to welcome guests to its Greek Long Lunch event. We enter in anticipation…

The event was organised to celebrate the heritage of Noble Rot’s Canadian born head chef Nicolas Mentzas, as well as showcasing some Greek wines courtesy of Hamilton based supplier, Cellardays.

We were welcomed with a cocktail based around ouzo, grapefruit juice and tonic water that was lovely and refreshing, and served with a cream cheese based snack covered with sesame seeds. Plates of pitta bread and bowls of tzatziki, hummus and tryokafteri (a spicy dip based on feta) were dotted around our shared table. We were lucky enough to sit next to the owner of Cellardays on one side and a woman of Greek origin on the other, who both filled us in on stories of wine and Greece.

The next set of dishes were the hot mezzes consisting of the most wonderful grilled octopus, beef meatballs scented of cumin and covered in a tomato sauce and feta and courgette croquettes with black garlic aioli and graviera, another Greek cheese. We were treated to tastings of two white wines and a rose with this course (you can see what we had on the picture of the menu above).

The main course was slow roasted lamb shank, served with lemon potatoes and a salad of roasted aubergine (eggplant), pomegranate seeds, feta and lots of fresh herbs. This was served with two very different and distinctive red wines that complemented the meat beautifully.

Dessert was a walnut cake served with a Greek coffee ice-cream that was just the perfect end to the meal and served with a dessert wine.

Verdict? 10/10 for food, service and wine. A really lovely way to spend a Saturday afternoon!

This well be entered in the What’s on Your Plate blog challenge hosted by Canadian bloggers Widow Badass and Retirement Reflections. This goes live on the first Wednesday of each month and you can join in too with a food related post, just by adding yours to their linkup.

Thistles and Kiwis is a Wellington, New Zealand based blog written by Barbara, who likes cats, summer, good food and pretends to garden.

You can find Thistles and Kiwis on Facebook, and also on Instagram @thistlesandkiwis. If you want to get in touch, email me on thistlesandkiwis@gmail.com or lofgren@thistlesandkiwis.com