Ponsonby News talked to the owners and life partners at this very popular cafe/restaurant.
We want our customers to feel like they are at a home away from home. A place to go when you want to dine out and don't want to feel like you have to be formal. We want our guests to leave feeling satisfied in every sense having had outstanding food, great company and fabulous service.
What are your favourite dishes?
Tobias - My favourite dish changes weekly. I totally adore our Coromandel mussels in Central Otago chardonnay and parsley sauce - they're an indulgent delight in any weather.
Brad - I'm a huge fan of the beef cheek, cooked for eight hours at 110ºC in an Argentinian malbec. Served with soft, creamy polenta and garlic greens It's a real crowd pleaser.
Any menu changes planned?
Absolutely, our menu is seasonal. Our concept from the start has been to use fresh, locally sourced, ethically farmed produce delivered fresh every day. We don't have a freezer on site so daily delivery of fresh, seasonal produce means our menu is tweaked often. We are currently working on our winter menu with our chef which we hope to be released in May.
How about wines, beers and cocktails?
Our entire wine list was built by choosing the favourites we share at home. We love wine and feel that great wine doesn't have to come at a huge price. It’s for this reason our wine list is entirely affordable and super delicious. We also have wine of the month which we use to introduce our guests to new wines, for example our winemaker's Wife Reisling, the first vintage of our friend Olive Hill and her husband in the Waipara Valley. We love to support local, hardworking individuals like ourselves.
It’s tricky to have a place which is open from morning until night - how do you make that transition?
Monday to Thursday we open from 5pm. Friday is 10am and the weekends we serve brunch from 9am. Since we opened we have adapted our space to make it a little cosier. With the introduction of some dim lighting and a gold wall alongside our plush velvet booth seats. As the sun starts to set we turn down the lighting, put out candles and change the tempo of the music. We have guests that visit at both times of the day who don't recognise us in the evenings.
Congratulations on your recent wedding. Did you have plans to take time off from the business?
Thank you very much, we had such an awesome day! We actually enjoyed six weeks part time where we worked just weekends and the rest of the time we walked the dogs on the beach by our house on Waiheke. We've since returned to working full time and are at the restaurant six evenings a week.
Any future plans to open anything else?
Our dream was to open a restaurant, serve food and drinks and have fun whilst we did it. What we've actually found is that we've made such incredible friends with some absolutely wonderful people. Locals and people who pop in while they're in the city. We love opening the doors and saying hello to all the friendly faces. Though we would certainly consider other business opportunities we think there'll only ever be one Adam Arnold - and our place will always be in the heart of Ponsonby.
ADAM ARNOLD, 171 Ponsonby Road, T: 09 361 1619, www.adamarnold.co.nz
Pictured above: Tobias and Brad with British TV star and antique dealer, Ian Towning.