Ember

Poised in Auckland City Centre, Ember offers a confident, contemporary take on classic cookery with a distinctly European accent. The kitchen favours clarity and finesse over fuss, letting pristine ingredients and well-schooled technique do the talking while keeping the mood relaxed and modern.

Seafood leads the overture: a spanner crab cocktail arrives as a cool study in contrast, Marie Rose softening the briny sweetness while king prawn, iceberg and treacle bread lend crunch and comfort. Salmon mi cuit explores nuance and temperature, its silken flesh lifted by cucumber and a split beurre blanc that hums with citrus and butter. It is food built on balance, texture and the quiet pleasure of precision.

There is freshness in the margins too: a tomato and plum carpaccio shaved thin, parmigiano reggiano adding savoury lift, and fries perfumed with garlic and parsley for simple, irresistible indulgence. Nostalgia gets a polished bow on the finale, from a peach melba trifle with raspberry and creme diplomat to a black forest sundae punctuated by cherry, almond and tuile.

An urbane spot for long lunches or an unhurried supper, Ember suits both the quick rendezvous and the lingering celebration. Book in, take your time, and let the glow build bite by bite.