For the inaugural Restaurant Hub’s Critics’ Choice Awards, New Zealand Herald restaurant critics Jesse Mulligan (Viva) and Kim Knight (Canvas) have considered their favourite dining experiences of 2017 and picked their respective top five restaurants, including their overall winners.

Jesse Mulligan for Viva

Jesse is the Eating Out Editor for NZ Herald - Viva, reviewing a different Auckland restaurant each week since 2015. Prior to that he was restaurant reviewer at Metro magazine, during which time he judged a number of Restaurant of the Year, Cheap Eats and Top 50 Cafe competitions.

Kim Knight for Canvas

Kim Knight, restaurant critic for the New Zealand Herald’s Canvas magazine, has been a journalist for 29 years. She is a multiple Canon Media Award winning feature writer and is currently two-thirds of the way through completing a Master of Gastronomy at AUT.