Restaurant 88 : Tales of Wellington VI

Fangie and I chanced upon Restaurant 88 one evening after our shopping and we just hopped into the restaurant.  Helmed by chef-owner Luke Duong, Restaurant 88 dishes out vietnamese cuisine with a modern twist.  The decor of this dark, dark restaurant is almost like a pub with green lanterns which I somewhat still unable to comprehend the vietness of it.  Thankfully, my gripe about this place simply ends there.  

Stuffed Chicken Wings

I like how neat the chicken wings were arranged in a row.  The wings may appeared light in colour but they were adequately fried to a comfortable level of crispiness.  The juices remained in the meat as well as skin and the vegetable stuffing was refreshing and crunchy.  I found the sauce drizzled on the wings a tad too heavy and synthetic in taste.  Otherwise, this could jolly well be the best stuff chicken wings I ever have in my life.  


 

Grilled Chicken on Coconut Vermicelli 

Grilled chicken was well-done with a good balance of smokey taste without overpowering the liberal use of lemongrass in seasoning.  The vermicelli was really unique as it was infused with coconut milk but tasted really light.  Vermicelli did not stick together at all!  Fish sauce at the side was mildly saltish and we used it for both the vermicelli and crackers.  The idea of bbq lemongrass chicken on coconut milk vermicelli may seem too heavy on the palette for me.  This dish was surprisingly easy on stomach and we enjoyed the kaleidoscope of flavours.  Excellent execution from the chef indeed. 

Sticky Rice Pudding

Another coconut milk overload dish without making us sick in stomach.  The rice pudding was totally soft and the use of kiwi was not just to give a NZ rendition of this southeast asian dessert but also a tart dimension to it.  Fangie and I savoured every bite of our dinner and swept our plates clean.  I could not remember how much the food was and checked their site.  Generally the main courses are from NZ$25 to NZ$29 for dinner and lunch is about 2/3 the price.  If I were to go back to Welly, I will definitely drop by 88 again. 

It is rather sad that the Tales of Wellington series will end abruptly at this post.  Basically, my computer died along with photos from Welly last week and I am still struggling to cope with an imac.  Thank goodness I drafted this meal in blogger some time ago, a meal that I totally enjoyed and very much want to share with all of you. 

Restaurant 88 (Home of the Green Lanterns)
88 Tory Street
Wellington
Tel: 04 385 9088
www.restaurant88.co.nz