Chihuahua, Takapuna, Auckland

Chihuahua is a reasonable mexican restaurant located in Takapuna. Jane had come across it in Channel magazine (a local magazine for Takapuna) and we decided to give it a go.

We started with the rattlesnake salsa that was absolutely superb. It is thoroughly recommended.

I had a burrito for my main and was a bit disappointed. It was smaller than I expected and I found it to be lacking in flavour. I did spice it up with the chilli sauces that were available on the table but I was still underwhelmed.

Jane enjoyed the half short ribs she had which was accompanied by corn encrusted in parmesan and chilli that she also really enjoyed.

We also had some buffalo wings, that were nicely cooked but I thought lacked anything special. I would however order them again.

For dessert Jane had the soft centred chocolate pudding with chilli that was perfectly cooked and the chilli had a decent kick to it. A magnificent dish that I obviously needed to help her with.

The service was good and the food arrived in a timely manner. We would return, but I will order differently.

Pakwan Indian Restaurant, Devonport, Auckland

We had a superb curry out with friends last week at Pakwan Indian Restaurant in Lake Road in Devonport (well actually it's more Bayswater). This is a very small restaurant in which the vast majority of people were Indian and they were more-so set up for takeaways. It is not a flash restaurant by any means (in fact it's quite the opposite) but the curries were very flavoursome and enough for two people. I did however find that my hot curry wasn't hot at all and was in fact closer to mild; maybe specifying Indian hot may have been a better idea.

The service was very genuine. It's definitely not trying to be anything special and the dishes are delivered when they're ready and if that means the rice comes out 5 minutes after the other dishes come out then so be it.

It is worth noting that they are BYO and do not sell liquor.

Fuego, Hamilton

We had dinner out with friends in Hamilton at Fuego in Rototuna on Saturday. This is a casual restaurant that also catered well to the 3.8 year old that was part of our group. I'm not used to getting colouring in stuff when I go out to dinner.

We started with the garlic bread and a selection of dips. The dips were a hummus, a butter and an olive oil with balsamic vinegar. These were okay although the olive oil was a little bitter.

I had the lamb rump for my main. This was char-grilled and beautifully rare. It was accompanied on top of a nice mash with Ratatouille and a nice red wine jus. It was a nice dish.

Jane had the pork belly that she really enjoyed. It was a good hearty meal.

One of the other members of our group had the fish of the day which was a Salmon dish that she enjoyed.

The chicken nuggets with chips were apparently "really yummy".

For dessert I shared a flavoursome crumble with Jane

and the others shared a chocolate brownie that looked nice (and a decent portion too).

The wait staff were friendly and efficient and the meals all arrived in a timely manner.