Tobi — Restaurant in Waitematā

My partner and I have been reluctant to try Tobi due to the mixed reviews yet high price point but today we finally gave it a go.

We booked for 5pm on a Saturday which was perfect as it wasn’t busy. Our starters came out within 10 mins of ordering. The waiter who served us explained the menu and special dishes and he was very helpful.

The atmosphere is nice with a very high ceiling. It was a cold night and it was rather cold in the restaurant as well (there are heaters but it wasn’t on).

Food-wise, we ordered the prawn toast, grilled cabbage, Tobi tuna (new special dish), tteokbokki and the steak frites.

Prawn toast 5/5 - Our favourite dish of the night. It had a nice spicy kick with a variety of textures. The prawn was so juicy and soft and FULL and the toast had a lovely crunch. I would recommend this one. $24

Grilled cabbage 4/5 - Recommended by a friend and enjoyed it. Although I couldn’t taste any sichuan, it was flavourful and a nice addition to the meal. $22

Tobi Tuna 3/5 - Current special dish that’s not on the menu. Chips and guac with ponzu infused tuna. Liked the chips n guac but I don’t think it paired too well with the tuna. $24

Tteokbokki 3.5/5 - The rice cake has a slight crispy outside to it like the traditional Korean tteok-ggochi. The gochujang sauce was a bit too salty for me especially with the guanciale. Didn’t stand out much but my partner enjoyed it. $22

Steak frites 3/5 - Okay now I was very skeptical about getting this one. We decided to still try it as it seems like Tobi’s main dish. The fries were very crispy and well salted. The steak was well cooked albeit a bit fatty. But I found the flavours/jus very one dimensional and lacking flavour. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t good. It was alright. $48

One thing I want to mention as I am quite concerned, is when we were waiting for our food, I heard one of the chefs/BOH make a distressed groan and say in Korean “I want to die (죽고싶다)“. This was not something I expected to hear and I was taken aback. Though this was said to his coworker in an unserious tone (like how we complain about work/life stuff…) it is not something that should be said aloud especially knowing there are Korean customers/customers who understand Korean…

Overall our experience at Tobi was pleasant and we left with a full tummy. We will be looking forward to trying their...

We came to Tobi as a group of six, excited after seeing the buzz online. We were the first to arrive for the evening service and were seated upstairs, which was nicely done in terms of décor and ambience. Unfortunately, the service didn’t match the setting.

Things started fine, with drinks coming out smoothly, but when it came to ordering, our waiter got distracted mid-order and forgot to take mine altogether. He never returned, so my friend had to get up and track him down. I ordered the signature chicken (which was incredible - genuinely the highlight of the meal) with a side of the dinner rolls. The waiter mentioned they “might’ve run out” of rolls, despite it being only 6pm on a Saturday night. He said he’d check, but didn’t update us. I did receive them, but it was an odd interaction.

We tried a good range of dishes. The prawn toast was delicious and generously portioned, though it would’ve benefited from a creamy contrast to the dynamite sauce. The crispy rice with tuna was tasty but could be elevated by frying the rice fresh (we know it’s listed under the cold section, but the texture was a bit lacking compared to what it could be).

There were several issues with service. A friend’s cocktail was taken away before she’d finished it. To their credit, they did apologise and bring her another. I also ended up accidentally “ordering” a second sprite because I used the glass to pour my water into (to use the ice), then asked the waiter to refill it with water. He brought another sprite instead, which I had to pay for (likely a language misunderstanding, but still frustrating).

Two people at our table ordered the sizzling steak, which was very thin and did not feel like good value at $39. In contrast, the signature chicken was generously portioned for $50. One guest ordered fries with their main, but the fries were brought out first, and we were not told that food would be served in stages.

The crispy eggplant was another standout. Absolutely flawless. If the whole experience had matched the quality of that and the chicken, this review would be a 5-star rave.

But overall, we left disappointed. Tobi is clearly aiming high and has a few brilliant dishes, but the inattentive service, strange pacing, and uneven pricing left us cold. We wanted to love it (the hype had us excited) but for now, it feels like style...

An exceptional dining experience at Tobi Ponsonby! We started with the anchovy toast which were little morsels of delight with a hard crunch and burst of flavour, and the octopus carpaccio which had a strong, steady and consistent heat to it but wasn’t overpowering. The chilli burrata was a highlight, the creaminess went surprisingly well with the spice. We also got the potato dauphine with caviar which was an absolute treat, the layers of potato along with the creamy sauce and bursts of fresh caviar was an incredible combination. Potato croquettes offer a lovely interplay of sweet and savory as the sweetness of the candied apple (?) really complemented the goats cheese really well.

For our mains we got the half chicken with gravy and dinner rolls. I got some carrot salad to make chicken rolls with the dinner rolls which was a great call. Chicken crisp was delicious while chicken itself was very tender, I probably would’ve used a bit more salt for the skin but this can vary individual to individual. Steak was cooked to perfection and it’s so good to just get a solid and reliable steak frites meal at a restaurant. My absolute favorite though was the seafood pot, the clams and mussels had those beautiful fresh oceany tastes you want when you eat seafood! Next time I will add linguine to have with it and drown it in the remaining sauce.

For dessert we had the ambrosia, sticky toffee pudding and seven eleven slurpee. The sticky toffee pudding was different from ones I’ve had before, the slight hardness to the outer layer was like it had been toffeed/ candied and went nicely with the butterscotch while the ambrosia was just a solid and classic dessert. My favorite was actually the slurpee but I think it might be a bit of an acquired taste / for people who like shaved ice desserts. It was the perfectly refreshing way to conclude my meal!

Overall, the service was very quick and attentive and the food came out fairly quickly, with enough space between the different courses. Ambience of the place was very nice, it was busy and lively but not overstimulating and felt very easy to relax and settle into the nice vibe there. Interior decor and colour palette are standouts too. It’s sophisticated yet relaxed and just a really pleasant place to be. Tobi is a fine establishment and I can’t wait...