Paris Butter

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#9 of 2,242 Restaurants in Auckland Central

What is Travellers’ Choice?

Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.

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Travellers’ Choice Best of the Best

2024

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Herne Bay

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4.8

621 reviews

Excellent

523

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Wirrramirra

31 contributions

A delightful evening at one of New Zealand's most acclaimed restaurants and Chef of the Year in the kitchen!!

Aug 2023 • couples

If you're wanting to enjoy a classy evening with modern New Zealand fine dining, you need to book Paris Butter! It is a Cuisine three hat restaurant with 2023/2024 Cuisine Chef of the Year Zennon Wijlens at the helm - it doesn't get any better. The term "snacks" doesn't do justice to the delightfully crafted, creative combination of flavour and texture you will enjoy. The presentation of these delicious "snacks" will surprise and delight you! New Zealand seasonal produce is the hero of the changing menu so be prepared to be wowed by the quality and freshness of the dishes. The wait staff are friendly, professional and very knowledgeable about the dishes and there is an excellent wine cellar to tempt. Don't just keep Paris Butter for a special occasion dinner. Enjoy one of life's great pleasures - being served up a visually delightful and delicious experience - because you deserve to spoil yourself and your special people when you need just to celebrate being together. If you are visiting New Zealand, dinner at Paris Butter will be one of your fondest memories of your stay.

Written 21 August 2023

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Paris Butter

Hi Thank you so much for taking the time to leave such an in depth and well crafted review - and for all of your kind words. We are so happy you enjoyed your dining experience with us and hope to see you on another occasion soon

Written 3 October 2023

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Dane B

7 contributions

Someone has to be number one!

Apr 2024 • business

This spot is hands down the best food in New Zealand, Zennon the head chef personally comes to the table to explain the dishes multiple times throughout the evening. The rest of the wait staff treat you like royalty and the Sommelier paired the wine perfectly with every dish. The whole experience would be hard to beat anywhere in the world and is certainly worthy of the title of the #1 restaurant in the country.

Written 16 June 2024

Paris Butter

Hi There, Thanks so much for your kind words, we look forward to seeing you again the future!

Written 23 June 2024

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

MattFranX

Queenstown128 contributions

Flawless dining experience

Oct 2024 • couples

Amazing celebratory dinner here in November 2024. My wife and I had the set 'evolution' menu, and found all aspects of it excellent. Really varied flavours and textures throughout - favorites were the duck and kingfish, but honestly it was hard to decide. Thoroughly recommend the wine pairing, which enhanced the experience. The staff were friendly, and made the experience feel quite personalised - a goodie bag to go, with some local recommendations, menu from the evening, and a few other bits and pieces was a really nice surprise. Recommend without question.

Written 26 November 2024

astropig

Auckland583 contributions

Overrated, swathed in Hubris

Feb 2025 • couples

Just got home and am little upset about tonight. The emperor has no clothes !!! We arrived on time to be told a large party were taking up all their time so there would be a delay in the snacks and service. Not quite sure what this had to do with us since we are all paying the same for the service & degustation. Got seated in Economy at the rear end of the restaurant - should we not be told this room does not have a chandelier like the front rooms ?? Tik Tock - 45 min The snack tasted of pickled herring (was salmon apparently), The Hapuka tasted like herrings in tomato sauce from a tin for $3.45 at New World. The palate cleanser in a 1/2 orange skin was nice but best to remove the little sticky fruit label thing first ? The chocolate mousse thing was an unimaginative gloop in a small white eggcup size ceramic. NZ$360 for two plus $120 for wine. The wine list is stupidly expensive btw. Lovely staff but terrible terrible value for money .. sad.

Written 28 February 2025

Esther S

1 contribution

boring, bite size portions.

Jul 2024 • couples

We booked the Evolution menu with 6 course to celebrate my birthday. They call it courses, and are served on a plate, but are actually bite-sized hors d'œuvres to offer a glimpse of the chef's style. The style is boring. It's nothing you haven’t seen before if you have visited a hatted or Michelin start restaurant before. After every course you expect the volume of the course to build, but it doesn’t. To not let you leave hungry, after course 5, suddenly the waiter appears and presents two truffles, suggesting they can offer you an extra pasta dish with truffle for an extra $25 per person. Never experienced this before. Knowingly being under fed and offering a “filler”. Bizarre. I confirmed our attendance with the staff at the day of our dinner, confirmed the occasion would be my birthday. From entering the restaurant till we left, my birthday wasn’t mentioned nor did they wish me a happy birthday. Days after I sent them an email to query why they would like to know the occasion if it wasn’t followed up by anything. They never answered. Rude. Do not recommend and will not visit again.

Written 3 October 2024

Paris Butter

Hi Esther, Thank you so much for the feedback we greatly appreciate it. We are sorry to hear you did not enjoy your experience with us and found our portions to inadequate for your personal expectations. As truffles are a rare and exclusive product we are unable to incorporate them into our traditional menu as they are a very scarce product. For this reason, we offer an additional course dedicated to showcasing the truffles. That’s why this additional course was offered to you as well as the rest of our patrons. We are also sorry to hear your birthday was not acknowledged on the evening or your query answered when questioned after the experience, this is not up to our expected standards and will be internally investigated to ensure this does not happen again. Again, we are very sorry and do wish your birthday was a good one! If you have any further questions or feedback please feel free to reach out to me personally at ben@parisbutter.co.nz where I will be more than happy to discuss these further. Kind Regards, Ben Carmine Restaurant Manager

Written 3 October 2024

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Becs

4 contributions

One of the best!

Jul 2024 • couples

One of the best meals we have had in Auckland or overseas in years! We don’t normally write reviews but Paris Butter warrants it. I could not pick a favourite dish but when the snacks came out and the flavours were everything we would order off an a la carte menu, Paris Butter could not go wrong. Service was impeccable (thanks Xavier) and I would recommend not ordering off the wine menu- just chat to the sommelier (Ben) and leave it to him to recommend interesting choices. This is one of New Zealand’s best fine dining restaurants.

Written 17 July 2024

Paris Butter

Hi There, Thank you for your kind words, we love to hear you have enjoyed the experince and the service provided by the guys on the floor! We look forward to seeing you again in the future!

Written 30 July 2024

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

BMo

1 contribution

Birthday Celebration

Oct 2022 • none

Food was excellent as always and great service from our waitress. We were a group of six celebrating my daughter's birthday party. Surprising dampener was being told it would cost $15 per person to serve a small birthday cake we'd bought with us ie $90! Having already spent $1240 we declined and enjoyed the cake with more wine at home. I am a local who strongly supports local restaurants, this was a bad call.

Written 6 October 2022

SteveBonnici

9 contributions

Stunning Food Experience

May 2023 • couples

What an awesome food experience. The tastes were exquisite and the service amazing. My wife has food allergies and the team catered for these exceptionally well. All of the wait staff were passionate about the food and were able to answer any questions we had about the various flavours.

Written 29 June 2023

Paris Butter

Hi Steve Thank you for taking the time to leave such a complimentary review and we are all so glad that you enjoyed your dining experience with us. Hope to see you again

Written 6 July 2023

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Jason L

28 contributions

Most expensive meal of my life and totally worth it

Apr 2022 • none

Every course was stunning and they just seemed to get better as the evening went on. And while each dish looked amazing, they tasted even better. Too many fine dining restaurants miss the mark on flavour; dishes that look and sound great in theory end up being disappointing. This was not the case at Paris Butter. Every dish was harmonious and well seasoned. The varied combinations of the different elements threw up new and delightful surprises for the palate as we worked through each course. And the cherry on top was the wine matches. Each one added a new dimension to its course. The service and pacing were also faultless: friendly, attentive, helpful, knowledgeable. (We had the Menu de Chef: 7 courses plus bread with truffle butter and "treats"after dessert. We also had the wine matches for 1 but got them poured half each into two glasses which, for us, was a perfectly adequate amount to go with the dinner.)

Written 16 April 2022

Paris Butter

Thank you Jason for the amazing review, we hope to see you again soon! Team Paris Butter

Written 26 April 2022

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

ElsaMiro

275 contributions

The very best way to celebrate our 40th anniversary

May 2021 • none

A special weekend staying in Auckland and so many places to choose for our special dinner, so pleased after lots of searching chose Paris Butter, A magical experience which will last as a memory for many years. Paris Butter would be 5 * plus anywhere in the world, and while we were in Auckland could have been at some exclusive Parisian restaurant. As well as exquisite food there was a real sense of theatre too, bit like molecular gastronomy, what you see is not necessarily what you taste or experience. The skill and precision of so many of the dishes we had just remarkable. The snacks and extra treats to go with dessert so beautifully presented and a total surprise- all added to what was fine dining with finesse! Waiting staff so knowledgeable about wine and every element of the food, great that they could speak with experience as to what the combinations etc were. While at the high end of dining out and certainly a place for a celebration you couldn't get better. Paris Butter you stand out as one of the best meals we've ever had!

Written 22 May 2021

Paris Butter

Hi Elsa, We really do put a lot of hard work into creating each morsel of food so I'm glad to hear that you really enjoyed everything. Our staff really appreciate this and it makes our hearts soar when we know we have made someone this happy! -Sam

Written 8 June 2021

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

JNLD

2 contributions

One of the best fine dining in a long time

May 2022 • none

We went for the 7 course menu and every dish was truly deliciously inspired! We have gone to a number of fine dining restaurants, mainly in Auckland, sometimes in Queenstown/Wanaka and often in the U.S. and honestly this is one of the best places. We really could not fault them on any of the three categories that we consider important for a good restaurant. Food – I enjoy adventurous dishes as they are difficult to replicate, so when they are done well, they are just incredible. Paris Butter was spot on, they were interesting but most importantly incredibly delicious! Some other places we have eaten at that tried to be adventurous, ended up with a weird combination of flavours that did not work. Whereas, even the few less adventurous dishes at Paris Butter were perfectly executed. The trevally coconut koji was a favourite for the grown-ups. While the kids couldn’t stop raving about the quail, in fact quail has now replaced duck (due to another amazing restaurant in Wanaka) as their favourite poultry. Service and Drinks Selection – The service was impeccable, with the right amount of attentiveness without being smothering. They really knew their wines and had a good selection of high quality wines. They were also very friendly, knowledgeable and went out of their way for our kids to tailor a mocktail they would enjoy. We didn’t try any of the cocktails this time so can’t comment. The mocktails were not exactly for kids’ tastes (who would prefer fruity sweet options), however, that is expected as they aren’t exactly designed with kids in mind! Ambience – It felt and looked elegant and clean, and yet still cosy. The lighting was warm and not harsh. The music was soothing, background but still noticeable and perfectly suited the setting. The décor matched the food and did remind me a bit of Paris, but just more pristine. The temperature inside was comfortable for a cold evening. Definitely a place you want to take someone you want to impress.

Written 26 May 2022

Paris Butter

Hi there, Thank you so much for coming in, we love the positive feedback. We are pleased to hear you enjoyed the Trevally dish and the kids loved the Quail so much so that it is now the favorite! We look forward to seeing you in the future. Thanks again, The Paris Butter Team.

Written 27 May 2022

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

LibbyB

1 contribution

Delicious food and friendly service

Mar 2022 • couples

We went to Paris Butter to celebrate our wedding anniversary and it was a very special meal. We had the 8 course chefs menu and were blown away by the gorgeous plating, delicious and complex flavours and attention to detail. The cheese course in particular was a standout! The staff were all knowledgeable about the menu, the preparation of food and the wine list and they were very friendly, making us feel at ease in this lovely atmosphere.

Written 12 March 2022

Paris Butter

Hi Libby, We are overjoyed to hear you had a great time with us. Our chefs put a lot of work into creating unique dishes every day and to hear that you enjoyed each morsel of food is amazing. We look forward to seeing you again soon!

Written 16 March 2022

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Kirsty C

7 contributions

Faultless and memorable

Nov 2024 • couples

Exceptional. In an overcrowded market Paris Butter stands out. Stunning food, caring and thoughtful team - the execution of our evening was faultless. Premium local and international food and wine was showcased in an unpretentious way. Overall, we were made to feel like very special guests.

Written 14 November 2024

RossY415

Brisbane519 contributions

Passion evident on every plate

Dec 2020 • none

A thoughtful and precise approach to every morsel, where love and passion was evident throughout. Staff were charming and attentive. It is expensive at $160 per person but represented good value given the level of care and technical expertise. The plating was also generally beautiful and involved natural elements such as rocks and wood, similar to the best restaurants in Copenhagen. The casually named "snacks" were delightful and included veloute served in an eggshell, oysters with coconut foam and other delectable morsels that literally covered the entire table. The kingfish crudo with apple was delicate and tickled the tongue, the trevally and scallop was perfectly cooked, the duck breast rested beautifully with a rich umami sauce and the following cucumber granita and gin was simple and surprisingly maybe my favourite as it was a perfect counterpoint to the duck. Black forest dessert looked and tasted sensational and was texturally complex as well. The petit fours were strong whisky jellies which I loved and small and rich chocolate truffles. It is great to be somewhere that showed such dedication and consistently set and achieved the highest of stadards

Written 30 December 2020

Marion

Hi Ross, Thanks a lot for your review (and message). It really means a lot for us that you had a great time with us and noticed the little details that we are offering to develop the experience. We can't wait to have you in again !

Written 7 January 2021

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Kavita_P

1 contribution

Amazing food and service!

Apr 2022 • none

My partner and I did the 5-course menu. Me being pescatarian and my partner vegetarian, they had a special menu in store for us so that we could enjoy what their current season was offering. The staff were super friendly and explained the dishes well when presenting what each item was. To top it off, we even got a present at the end, some delicious truffle butter to take home, to say thank you! Would highly recommend Paris Butter! :)

Written 3 April 2022