Arbitrageur
125 Featherston Street
Wellington CBD
Just in case you were unaware, 'arbitrage' is the practise of buying an item (usually stocks or currency) in one market and selling it for a higher price in another, making a profit from the difference between the two. Those who engage in arbitrage are known as 'arbitrageurs'.
This bit of information is considerably more interesting than the meal I had at this restaurant.
Don't get me wrong, it wasn't mind-numbingly boring in the same way that say, Avatar was, it just completely failed to blow me away. The food was nice, the service was adequate and the atmosphere was fine. But that's just it, I can't think of anything that really stood out for me about this experience that would make me want to recommend it whole-heartedly to someone. Apart from the wine list, and more on that later.
Walking in on a Friday night off a busy Featherston Street, I was greeted by a warm handshake, a friendly smile and was whisked away to my seat. Actually that's what I would have liked. Instead I had to wander cautiously well into the restaurant before anyone realised I was there. No matter, after that I was quickly (almost off-handedly) shown to my seat and given a menu and the wine list.
Ah, the wine list. The first time I had seen it was after a sumptuous degustation at Martin Bosley's and it was no less impressive given that this time I was sober. There is an excellent selection of wines on offer - well organised with a range of budgets and tastes in mind.
The food? Well it was alright. I began with the Pâté de Tête (pig's head pâté), which was served with brioche, Dijon mustard, cornichons and a pickled onion. For mains, I chose Roast Poitrine of Pork, which was incredibly tender but was a little salty and a bit overpowered by the dried cherries. Both courses were accompanied by bread, which was, well, fine.
Before I get to dessert, let me talk a bit about the service because the two are linked. On the positive side, they weren't bothering me every three minutes asking me how my meal was (which is a pet hate of mine). However I never got the impression that the staff were enthused with what they were serving; they described it, but didn't seem interested in selling it. I think this lack of enthusiasm showed particularly with the way the order was taken - the waiter had to come back and re-confirm it, as if the thought had become bored with life and committed suicide halfway to the kitchen.
The atmosphere? Usual for somewhere like this. The lights were fairly dim (either an intentional effect or a by-product of requiring electricity to keep the waiters awake) and the music was made up of inoffensive remixes of music I had heard before (and would hear again as it was on its third loop in the 90 minutes I was there).
Anyway, dessert. It took quite a while for the waiters to realise that I was sitting with neither plates nor wine in front of me. In fact, I swear I heard one of them give a small exclamation as he realised that yes, I was still there and yes, I might want to order more food. The chocolate mousse was light, with a white chocolate interior and went well with the 2007 Mill's Reef Gimblett Gravels Port.
At the end of the night, I was pointed in the direction of the place where my bag had been stored and retrieved it myself; another testament to the indifferent service that had punctuated the evening. I left disappointed - not because anything had been wrong with the experience, but because I was expecting so much more. I haven't been particularly scathing (like I was with Voodoo) or full of praise (as with Sweet Mother's Kitchen) because Arbitrageur failed to make me fly into a rage or fall in love. It's like getting John C Reilly when you were expecting Meryl Streep - the movie's not awful, but there are no Oscars on the horizon and at least it's not Megan Fox.
I'll leave it at that, as you go off to Google who John C Reilly is (I've saved you the trouble). If I go back, I think it will be to pick up where I left off with the wine list.
Although self service might need to be an option in the future.
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