Havana Bar — Restaurant in North Island

I've walked past Havana often when I used to work around this area and have always been curious about what's down the alleyway, so we came here for our Meetup dinner last night! It was another world in there, very spacious and well lit, very tastefully decorated but not overdone (bonus video of the toilet behind the bookcase!). Originally we were going to share 6 small plates and 3 large plates between the 6 of us, but then the waitstaff informed us that we could also get a selection catered to our dietary requirements for $75 pp, which would include dessert, that ruin my plan, but for the better! We trusted them to bring out what they thought we would like, and it did not disappoint! We started off with super soft and moist sourdough with this amazing garlic toum sauce. Then came the ceviche and the sauteed prawns, this is what I dreamed a good ceviche should be, I loved the tanginess of the ceviche and it was very fragrant, just the perfect flavour and texture (the fish was snapper). The prawns had a very mild chili flavour and a nice citrus flavour coming through, cooked perfectly. The arancini was very loved by the table, the tender braised beef was beautiful on top and the risotto inside was just the right texture, I personally would have liked a bit more umami flavour but everyone else at the table love it and some rated it as their favourite dish. The fried chicken tenderloin was nice but compared to all the other wow dishes, this did not stand out as much. It was fried chicken strip with a sprinkle of white pepper coming through. Then the dumplings also made great impression, this was filled with umami flavour and the filling had a good texture that you can taste the octopus. The grilled octopus, beef skewers & the snapper (fish of the day) arrived next, the beef had a nice charred flavour but we did feel the pieces were slightly too large and the texture was a bit chewy, even though when we cut into the pieces, it was the right pink colour inside. The fish however was well made with a nice citrus flavour and was very soft and fluffy. The octopus looked very impressive, not too tough and had a nice flavour, was quite happy with this! We also got a side of potatoes but they also did not stand out to me. To finish our meal we got churros and tres leches cake, the churros were very freshly made and the dipping sauce was unlike the usual chocolate dip you get, but it was a good condiment. The cake I have made before so I already knew what to expect, if you wanted something very sweet to finish this is the one to go for, but still recommend churros over this. Overall we were very impressed with this place and I am glad I finally got to try it! The service was top notch, our waitstuff answered every single question promptly and was very knowledgeable and patient, if you are like me and didn't know about this place, give them a try, I am putting this place...

We were poking around and found this- menu and vibe looked great so we decided to check it out. They seated us without a reservation- which was amazing given almost every table was filled. We ordered drinks pretty fast but here’s where it turned- we waited 15-20 for those cocktails while watching the 4 top seated after us get cocktails and their first tapas before we even got drinks. Maybe they prioritized reservations- no biggie in the long run. We had been snacking all day so just wanted some light tapas for dinner. But still it was frustrating to wait. We ordered what we thought was a rocket apple salad dish, an oyster mushrooms and prosciutto dish and the paua croquettes. Waited a bit for food as well- but no worries drinks were SO GOOD one we got them! We thought we’d get the salad first but ended up w the oyster mushrooms first which I thought was weird as it was the heaviest thing we ordered. It was good but the smoke flavor didn’t quite mix unless you had a bite w all the components. After that we got the croquettes and these were hmm not the best. Mostly just burnt potato with small tough bits of abalone mixed in- barely dressed or garnished so just an overall oystery potato flavor. Wouldn’t recommend but maybe I’m not the audience. Last the salad which we thought would come first. But it wasn’t a salad- it was apple spears with some rocket and sauce. The mustard? Sauce was extremely bitter and acidic and did not work well at all. Again maybe I’m not the target or don’t have sophisticated enough palette but they dish was near inedible. We decided to cut our losses and wrap it up. Disappointing but again maybe we just ordered the...

The other night was my first ever time dining here, and what an experience! My partner and I went for a nice mellow dinner at the secret, tucked-away, hideout that is Havana Bar, and were greeted by lovely staff, a cosy atmosphere, and a delicious collection of tapas! What I haven’t seen people comment on, however, is the pricing of the items. Sure the food was great, and unique (compared to many other spots in the Wellington area), but I was surprised to see that the prices were as high as they were. For what you’re given, it’s hard to say that the money spent is “worth it”. The portion sizes are small, which is fine, considering the idea is that you’re to share a few plates, hence the ‘tapas style’ they advertise throughout their site, and Instagram page – What they don’t advertise, is the idea that the restaurant is almost casual fine-dining in nature… A few roasted baby carrots on a plate with a side of a savoury yoghurt sauce costing $18 seems a bit ridiculous, wouldn’t you think? I don’t regret my choice of dining here, but having known the whole dinner between two people would cost upwards of $100, I might have rethought our dinner plans that evening. Overall, Havana Bar is the perfect little Latin-influenced cottage jammed between larger industrial buildings, giving it its own individual flare with a handful of carefully-crafted dishes ready to satisfy, but at quite...