The Engine Room
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Restaurant Open Dinner Tuesday to Saturday. +649 4809502 . Private lunches and events by arrangement Private lunches and events by arrangement, please enquire
Carl started his working life as a signwriter, before a nasty accident involving a skill saw put an end to it.
The handwriting on the board is his natural handwriting, after years of obsessively trying different styles throughout school life. Amazingly, those lines are impossibly straight!
Long before The Engine Room, we spent years writing postcards and aerograms to each other from different countries. We have both always loved handwriting!
When we began talking about opening a restaurant, we knew what we wanted it to be: a neighbourhood bistro serving honest, straight-up, delicious food.
We wanted the room to feel relaxed. The menu would be on a board, not paper. The service informal and snappy. The chefs in T-shirts. Unpretentious, but particular.
We were never interested in trends. We wanted to build something that would still feel right twenty years later.
And the menu is still on the wall.
See you soon đź’™
28/09/2026
Duck confit, kumara purée, pickled cherries, jus.
A French bistro classic, with a nod to home.
Tonight, from 5pm đź’™
Not to get cheesy about it... but we do love this one.
24/09/2026
Spaghetti Vongole - the first recipe from The Archive, and one of Natalia's favourite dishes.
Here's how we make it.
We especially like it served with the small vongole in Italy, but New Zealand cockles make a pretty good version, too.
More from The Archive soon.
22/09/2026
Introducing The Engine Room Archive.
In 2012, we published a cookbook capturing life at The Engine Room. While the book has long since sold out, the belief behind it remains unchanged: sharing our approach, our inspiration, and our recipes has always been part of who we are.
Over the coming months, we will be sharing some of the recipes, stories and dishes that have shaped life at The Engine Room.
After all these years, this feels like the best place to begin.
Welcome to the Archive đź’™
A good place to start.
Crisp, salty, ocean-fresh flavour and a creamy finish. Served natural on ice with Chardonnay mignonette.
From 5pm.
17/09/2026
Soon đź’™
📸 Kieran E Scott
There's the menu, and then there's the schnitzel.
The team behind the buzz.
Slow braised beef cheek, crispy buckwheat, polenta, salsa verde.
The last of winter comfort food.
Soon, something new.
This is The Engine Room.
Our passion for good, damn honest food is at the heart of everything we do. But the best meals are about the experience - where you ate it, who you were with, the surroundings, the ambience. These are the things that stay with you.
A room alive with laughter, conversation, music. The aroma of delicious food. The clink of plates, cutlery, glasses. The kind of night that becomes a memory.
Thanks to New Zealand Sotheby's Realty for capturing an evening at The Engine Room.
04/09/2026
Two Hats. One amazing team.
Thank you Cuisine Magazine and cuisinegoodfood.
03/09/2026
A warm welcome, a buzz in the air, and a soufflé on the way (of course!).
Just how we like it.
After all these years, it still feels pretty special đź’™
Profiteroles, vanilla bean ice cream, chocolate sauce.
A little nostalgic, utterly delicious.
29/08/2026
Cheers to that ✨️
25/08/2026
We're honoured to be recognised with Two Hats in the Cuisine Good Good Food Guide 2026.
Thank you Cuisine Magazine for this recognition.
And a big thank you to our suppliers, producers, team and guests for your support, trust, and enthusiasm.
We're proud to keep doing what we love from Northcote Point đź’™
West Coat whitebait. Durham Farms eggs. That's it.
From 5pm.
20/08/2026
Our last winter lunch is on Friday, 28 August.
The kitchen is embracing deepest winter, while the bar team continues its quiet obsession with making seasonal syrups and infusions from scratch.
Join us for one last winter afternoon of delicious food, fabulous cocktails, and no particular need to be anywhere else.
Head to the link in our bio to book.
18/08/2026
There are some who order the steak frites every time.
Others insist they are trying something else this time.
We know how that usually ends...!
Our steak frites: Hereford scotch, mâitre d'hôtel butter, mountain of shoestring fries.
On the The Engine Room menu long before The Engine Room even existed.
Calm under pressure. Serious about food. Sharp eye for detail.
We're looking for a Chef de Partie to join The Engine Room.
You bring:Â desserts and cold larder experience, at least three years in a busy Ă la carte kitchen, plenty of initiative, a sense of urgency, and good energy. You're a natural at creating consistently delicious food.
Email: Chloe at [email protected]
Twice baked goat's cheese soufflé - straight from the oven, impossible to ignore.
The GOAT? We'll let you decide.
06/08/2026
Schnitzel, but make it Holstein.
Crisp, golden, topped with a soft egg, Ortiz anchovies, and capers. Twenty years and counting.
Team classic or team Holstein?
Tuesday mood: getting ready to do it all again đź’™
See you from 5pm.
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115 Queen Street, Northcote Point
Auckland
0627
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