It calls itself a pub and definitely has a pub feel, albeit a very eclectic one - green was definitely a feature, but there were all kinds of textures and patterns - it was crazy and disjointed but pretty cool. Our waiter/server was very friendly but didn't muck around - which was really good, since we were squeezing a quick lunch into the middle of our working day. He told us the specials and gave us a few minutes to decide.
The menu was a bit crazy but in a funky way. We were a little confused about the boxes encircling the items in the middle of the lists - we decided it was a somewhat random effect (though perhaps engaged to encourage people to choose those dishes?).
The food was good, though very much pub food. The servings were very generous but in some cases less is more if you know what I mean. ;-)
Mr Cake had the Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich - a baguette with beef, onions, mushrooms and cheese, served with fries. It was tasty though perhaps a bit over the top with the cheese. The bread was nice and fresh and the fillings all melded together nicely apart from the dairy overload.
I chose the fish and chips; the fish of the day was bream. The fish was delicious - fresh and perfectly cooked, and the batter was lovely and crispy, if a tad on the oily side (but perhaps that is what I get for ordering a deep fried meal...). It came with tartare sauce, which I'm not a huge fan of though I'll have a little with my fish. It was fine (for tartare sauce!) but I wanted something else to go with my fries, so I asked for some aioli, which was brought to me very quickly - but it was pink and we think perhaps had salmon in it, which was not really what I was going for. They didn't charge for the aioli though, which I had expected they would.
All in all it was a nice Friday lunch - the service was excellent and speedy and our food was delivered pretty promptly, despite the fact that the pub was pretty full of diners. The food was a bit on the greasy side but we asked for that when we ordered what we did - and I can't say anything else against the food (except maybe the weird aioli). And the Entertainment Book voucher made it very good value, with one of our meals being free. Definitely a good spot for a quick and dirty Friday lunch!
The Green Man is located on the corner of Victoria and Willeston Streets, Wellington, ph 04 499 5440, www.thegreenmanpub.co.nz
Hi! I'm Rosa, a.k.a. Mrs Cake, and I live in Wellington, New Zealand. I love food in all its forms, my fabulous family, and a bit of good old-fashioned Kiwi DIY. This blog started around food but has evolved to include some other bits and pieces - I hope you'll join me for the journey!
Do you think perhaps they gave you taramasalata by mistake?
ReplyDeleteYeah, maybe - would seem a strange mistake to make and I've never had taramasalata but from the sound of it that could have been what it was. Thanks - now I've learnt something new today. :-)
ReplyDelete