AvroKO Hospitality Group (AHG) has announced its acclaimed seafood and rosé-focused restaurant, The Poni Room will be open for soft launch in New Zealand on Thursday 11 June at Auckland’s new downtown dining destination – Commercial Bay.
Famed for the strength of its under-water style interiors, The Poni Room is one of four renowned NYC hospitality concepts joining AHG’S line-up of new restaurant and bar venues. Overseen by AHG partner and Michelin-starred chef Brad Farmerie, it derives inspiration from Japanese and South-East Asian cuisines with a high-low approach to dining – a cheerful experience that sees diners sharing and conversing with a mate, or ten, over the dishes’ eclectic, messy, sticky, sweet and salty flavours.
Opening in Commercial Bay as one of over 37 new dining experiences, the owners say it will bring the flavours of New York to Auckland with ‘never-before-seen dining and drinking experiences,’ alongside incredible harbour and CBD views. The Poni Room will be joining Auckland’s world-class hospitality scene alongside Ghost Donkey and Liquorette, which are also set for soft launch on 11 June, with Saxon + Parole opening later in the year.
The Poni Room is an all-day, Asian-inspired eat-and-drinkery with an atmosphere set to lift the energy of Auckland’s dining scene. A place for get-togethers, much of the space is designed for large, private bookings and events to be remembered with the design concept evoking feelings of being tucked inside a coral reef.
The interactive beverage programme gives the offering its socially-inclined personality – a place to mix, mingle, be and be seen. A spot to let your hair down, guests will be invited to venture into The Rosé Room to take a peek at whatever takes their fancy from the extensive wine list – and serve themselves – before partying through the night to a rotation of leading DJs.
Taking the traditions of Japanese Izakaya and combining them with an under-the-sea fantasy world look and feel, The Poni Room offers a seafood-focussed menu that celebrates the best New Zealand has to offer.
With award-winning restaurants and bars in New York, Las Vegas and London, AvroKO is delighted to finally bring a taste of The Big Apple to Auckland’s dining and hospitality industry.
AHG partner Marion Emmanuelle says, “we have admired Auckland’s ever-evolving hospitality industry and abundance of world-class produce for a long time. In partnership with local hospitality group Public Assembly, we are looking forward to marrying the unique dining experiences of New York and AHG’s holistic, human-centric approach with quality Kiwi ingredients and the country’s very best bar and restaurant staff. We’re here to offer New Zealand food lovers playful dining and drinking experiences and The Poni Room is guaranteed to deliver on this.”
“Our executive chef Brad Farmerie is overseeing the menus for all four AHG venues and has worked alongside his Kiwi mentor Peter Gordon for many years at the Sugar Club in London and AHG’s first restaurant, the NZ-influenced PUBLIC in NYC,” says Emmanuelle.
Farmerie says, “The new restaurants and bars have a uniquely New York feel with a New Zealand twist. Kiwis are passionate travellers and foodies and love experiencing the culinary ideas of international cities when dining or drinking. Each of the four AvroKO eateries and bars will whet their appetite for global flavours and experiences. We have also worked very closely with a team of Kiwi hospitality experts, employed and trained over 150 local kitchen, bar and wait staff and supported local suppliers to offer Kiwis food lovers the best of both worlds when they dine or drink at one of AvroKO’s venues.”
The Poni Room, Ghost Donkey and Liquorette are due to soft launch in Commercial Bay on Thursday 11 June 2020, before opening to the general public on Monday 15 June, with Saxon + Parole opening its doors later in the year.
