Te Akau Roa
Tutukaka marina setting, amorphous vibes. A magnificent yolk moment let down by a thick hollandaise and a rosti so small one egg was sleeping rough. Coffee was goated — just fashionably late.
Scores
Somewhere in the world it was time for sunday brunch. Drawn to the sea, the wifey and I found ourselves at the Tutukaka marina, brunching at an amorphous restaurant/cafe named Te Akau Roa — The Long Shore.
The interior was austere and the feng shui a mismatch for a waterfront brunch spot supposedly frequented by barefoot seafarers. The service was lukewarm, and once seated we were given a flower vase of lemon flavored water, yet the lemon flavor was unusual. Upon inquiry we learned there was no lemon flavoring?!
Shortly after, brunch was served and the presentation was flash in the sense that the meal looked pretty while leaving enough extra space on the plate to land a fleet of rocketships. Bemused by the absence of my coffee, I broke my fast and feasted upon my $26 benedict.
As my blade pierced the soft white flesh of egg, a molten magma of yolk enveloped my meal in delectable red golden glory. Good stuff. The hollandaise on the other hand was a smidgen thick and creamy for my sagacious taste buds.
The salubrious side salad had sufficient color to revive dormant gut bacteria enduring the desolate wasteland that is a sailor's gut biome. And as I bore arms and waged warfare on my meal, I found a hearty portion of well prepared spinach, bedded beneath the eggs and well cooked, yet not quite crispy bacon.
The rosti was a binary of potatoes and kumara giving a sweetness that was yummy and unique, yet it was so small that one of the eggs slept on the metaphorical cold hard ground of the plate. A ratio of about 90:10 mush to crunch — despite the pleasing flavour, a meal devoid of a satisfying crunch.
The coffee was goated, receiving a 10/10 for flavor, and a 5/10 for punctuality. But tbf, rural New Zealand is asynchronous so who knows how long it really took? $9 though. Oof.
As for a sailor's port of call, I probably wouldn't have the gall to walk in unshowered; also the meal probably lacked a bit of self-indulgent goodness. Conversely, for a gaggle of sunday mums out for a swan, it's probably some kind of strange dichotomous match made in heaven — so a 7.5 / 10 for the benedict. Overall, the final jury ruling reveals a madrosti_ score of 7.4 / 10.