The Northcote Point favourite opened to fill a gap but went on to inspire a neighbourhood boom. <\/p>\n
The Engine Room opened, as many restaurants do, to fill a gap. <\/p>\n
\n Specifically, it was opened by Natalia Schamroth and Carl Koppenhagen to fill their own personal desire for a local
\n bistro in Auckland like the ones they had regularly dined at when living in cities like London, Melbourne and Sydney.\n <\/p>\n
It turns out, Aucklanders were crying out for exactly that too. <\/p>\n
\u201cOur original vision was just to have a place, like you do in Europe, where you can just have that place forever,\u201d Schamroth says. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe didn\u2019t want to be on trend, we just wanted to serve food that we wanted to eat and the kind of service that we wanted to receive. And that vision has never really changed.\u201d <\/p>\n
It truly hasn\u2019t. The Engine Room celebrates 20 years this year, and in the best way possible, it remains committed to that ethos that motivated them to throw open their doors in the North Shore suburb of Northcote in 2006. <\/p>\n
More importantly, though, it has solidified itself as one of Auckland\u2019s true gems \u2013 inarguably one of our best restaurants, and a place that cemented a new definition for what it meant to eat well in this city. <\/p>\n
It\u2019s partly why the restaurant\u2019s absence from Tuesday night\u2019s Michelin awards was such a surprise to many. For their part, though, Natalia and Carl don\u2019t operate The Engine Room seeking that kind of validation. During our interview (which took place over a month before the Michelin ceremony), they said that, for them, it\u2019s never been about the awards. <\/p>\n
\u201cFor those who are into that, it\u2019s awesome, but for us, we\u2019ve never been about chasing awards,\u201d Schamroth said. \u201cWe won Metro\u2019s restaurant of the year [in 2019] and it was almost one of the worst things that\u2019s ever happened to us. <\/p>\n
\u201cSuddenly we ended up with all these people with expectations of what we should be. They expected us to be fine dining. So for us, it\u2019s not what we\u2019re chasing. But we think for those who want it, we totally get it.\u201d<\/p>\n
When they first opened, the other side of the bridge wasn\u2019t often seen as a dining destination. In fact, at the time, there was really just \u201cthe theatre across the road and [now closed] Sausalito\u201d. <\/p>\n
The Engine Room celebrates 20 years this year. Photo \/ Babiche Martens<\/p>\n
Opening The Engine Room here was somewhat of a risk but Schamroth and Koppenhagen say they were struck by the building\u2019s classic bones \u2013 it used to be a post office \u2013 and its character. <\/p>\n
It\u2019s a risk that paid off, too; it didn\u2019t take long for people to start crossing the bridge in droves to dine there. <\/p>\n
Not long afterwards, the neighbourhoods around them started to boom, too, particularly in Birkenhead, where Sarah and Jordan MacDonald have carved out an incredible niche for themselves on Hinemoa St, with three exceptional venues; Duo, Bon Pinard and Osteria Uno. <\/p>\n
\u201cI honestly think a lot of what we\u2019re seeing now in Birkenhead and Northcote stems from that shift Natalia and Carl helped create 20 years ago,\u201d Sarah MacDonald says. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt was one of the very first restaurants on this side of the bridge that genuinely gave people a reason to travel over for dinner. They proved that you could create a neighbourhood restaurant with incredible food, service and atmosphere outside of the CBD and people would absolutely support it.\u201d <\/p>\n
The enduring success of The Engine Room gave the MacDonalds the confidence that hospitality businesses on the shore could have longevity. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think The Engine Room is one of Auckland\u2019s truly iconic neighbourhood restaurants. It\u2019s helped shape what people expect from modern New Zealand dining,\u201d MacDonald says. <\/p>\n
\u201cTheir influence extends far beyond the Shore, I think they\u2019ve played a huge role in shaping Auckland\u2019s dining culture as a whole.\u201d <\/p>\n
Carl Koppenhagen and Natalia Schamroth.<\/p>\n
Schamroth agrees Northcote looked a lot different back then. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe did feel like we were on an island for quite a long time,\u201d she mentions when asked about the impact of the restaurant on the surrounding area. <\/p>\n
An island geographically, yes, but metaphorically, too \u2013 there truly wasn\u2019t anyone out there like The Engine Room when it first opened. <\/p>\n
\u201cThat initial concept of a local bistro was quite big in Sydney 20 years ago, but no one was doing it here,\u201d Koppenhagen says. <\/p>\n
\u201cNo one was doing blackboard menus, and just focusing on high quality ingredients pared back, with no tablecloths and high end service in a relaxed environment.\u201d <\/p>\n
The Engine Room kitchen. Photo \/ Babiche Martens<\/p>\n
It seems to be this dynamic symbiosis of Schamroth\u2019s warm service and Koppenhagen\u2019s exceptional food that makes The Engine Room so special. <\/p>\n
To be welcomed into a deceptively informal environment and receive the quality of service you\u2019d expect from crisp tablecloths and degustation menus echoed much-loved places overseas like St John in London, while the food genuinely helped establish modern bistro dining in New Zealand. <\/p>\n
The infamous blackboard menu is influenced by their travels; the couple call it \u2018global bistro food\u2019. <\/p>\n
They\u2019re clear that it\u2019s not fusion, but it features flavours from across the globe; falafel, eggplant and harissa sit alongside five-spiced tofu and chicken liver parfait. There\u2019s a legendary steak frites classically served with maitre d\u2019hotel butter, and a pork schnitzel that has gained legions of fans <\/p>\n
The restaurant’s infamous cheese souffle. Photo \/ Babiche Martens<\/p>\n
Inevitably over two decades, though, a restaurant\u2019s reputation tends to precede it in the context of a dish. There will be one thing on the menu that is so beloved it becomes synonymous with that place. <\/p>\n
At The Engine Room, it is undoubtedly the cheese souffle, which has remained on the menu pretty much since they opened. It is golden and bubbling and featherlight; elegant and decadent in equal measure. <\/p>\n
It started its life as a goat\u2019s cheese tart, which was, in Schamroth\u2019s words, \u201cvery cost ineffective\u201d. When the winter months rolled around they thought, why not a cheese souffle? <\/p>\n
Unsurprisingly, it was a complete hit, and it has stayed steadfast on the blackboard since. Some people, Schamroth says, even eat it twice in one meal \u2013 once for their entree, and then again for dessert. <\/p>\n
The prawn salad on the menu at The Engine Room. Photo \/ Babiche Martens<\/p>\n
Being open for as long as The Engine Room has, you brew your fair share of stories, too. <\/p>\n
The couple tell me about the time Richard E Grant came in and sat at the bar with a book, and when a famous Kiwi opera singer came in for dinner and just started serenading the restaurant in the middle of his meal. \u201cPeople\u2019s jaws just dropped. You\u2019d pay a fortune to go to an opera like that.\u201d <\/p>\n
Then there are the juicier titbits; the diner who made off with all of their hand soap, the midnight proposals, and the love stories that began over a plate of steak frites. It\u2019s not surprising celebrities like Grant find themselves drawn to The Engine Room \u2013 it\u2019s built two decades of success by treating diners like friends. <\/p>\n
\u201cFor us, it\u2019s like people are coming into our home, and you need to look after them as if they\u2019re in your home. You welcome them in, you say hello, you take their jacket. It\u2019s actually quite easy to be hospitable, it\u2019s just the little things,\u201d Schamroth says. <\/p>\n
\u201cExactly,\u201d replies Koppenhagen. \u201cAttention to detail is huge. All the little things add up to big things and make for good memories.\u201d<\/p>\n
More dining out<\/p>\n
From new openings to trusted favourites.<\/p>\n