Amano

Hip Group’s newest restaurant is also its grandest, with an open kitchen spanning almost 20 metres, a bakery, multiple sumptuous seating areas and a bar. Dried flowers hang from exposed timber beams and mother-of-pearl, limestone and marble surfaces glitter on the periphery, a rustic yet sophisticated backdrop for food that’s all that. Printed daily to accommodate the best of the day’s fresh seafood, meat and vegetables, Jo Pearson’s extensive menu is characterised by dishes with three to four hero ingredients. They’re elevated to the heights of excellence by a perfectionist’s hand, with fresh pasta made using grains milled on site. The wine list is a lesson in terroir — there’s an Italian and New Zealand version of each variety — while classic cocktails are dressed for the seasons, from summer citrus kiyomi twists to autumnal feijoa.

"Diners may be divided into two groups: those who have eaten at a Hip Group place and those who should," wrote a fellow observer of Auckland's restaurant scene.

After we ate at their newest venture, the Italian-themed Amano, I'd have the gall to suggest they may be divided into three parts.

Scott Brown and Jackie Grant's hospitality partnership has acquired a near-religious following since they opened their first cafe in 2004.

It’s not often I find myself wandering through Britomart in the middle of the day with time on my hands but I was recently called up for jury service, which ended in the best possible outcome: challenged and released too late to go to work but early enough that I could still get to a restaurant in time for lunch.

Mamma mia! It’s a Hip Group takeover. Well, not quite — but if you’ve stopped by the Amano Bakery in Britomart recently for a coffee and a hand-milled Italian sandwich, you may have wondered what was going on next door. The company responsible for Ortolana and Milse, a few steps away — not to mention several of Auckland’s most popular cafes — is finally throwing open the doors to its showcase eatery Amano this week.

The cavernous 420sq m space in the Quay Building is now home to a 120-seat Italian-inspired bistro and aperitivo bar. It also has its own mini-market, where customers can buy fresh produce, flowers, handmade cheeses and pastas — while watching the chefs rolling them out through the sheeters and extruders behind the pass.