Lilius Restaurant

Dined here with my husband for a special birthday; and it’s been a long while since I could truly say I’ve had such consistently spectacular food in Auckland. It’s five star without being pretentious; just enough whimsy to be surprising; and the matching wines were all extremely well considered. More people should be enjoying this hidden treasure! We are also both gluten free and they made everything for us perfectly (we did let them know in advance) - everything was amazing

Omg yum! The decor was understated luxury. And if you’re into tiles go visit the bathrooms 😂 Great date night location. Could not fault the food and I tried everything. Personally I preferred the Wapiti entree, lamb main and pumpkin dessert. But man it was tight. The menu is seasonal so these options may no longer be available. Highly recommend!!!!

Lillius is by far the best fine dining restaurant I’ve tried and want to keep going back. Fraser is such an amazing chef that anytime he comes up with a new menu, you’ll never disappoint. Everything is creatively put together that brings a little surprise in every bite. The space is cosy and service is always welcoming. Highly highly recommended 🙌.

We had the 6 course menu, food and service were both amazing. 5/5 experience and taste. The egg custard & crab starter was a highlight for me, as well as all their other starters. Butter was super soft & creamy. And each dish was absolutely delicious - fave being the lamb. As it was our anniversary it got written on a plate in chocolate with a candle which was so cute 😍.

I was excited to finally dine at Lillius after much anticipation and wonderful feedback. The restaurant upon entering is highly impressive and sleek, with polished concrete floors and matte walls with pops of gold and royal blue in the seating and booths. It was very aesthetically pleasing and the staff was simply exceptional, so hospitable, warming and engaging. The options within three course menu were exciting and featured NZ sourced produce at its best. I was so excited to sample the food and the wine, starting off with a North Otago Pinot Noir which was smooth and silky on the palate. As a prelude to my first course, I was offered some starters of sweet corn smoked custard with popped rice, tuatua with hollandaise and smoked pork finger and cured pork with creamed egg in rice wafer and these were mouth watering and the perfect preparation to dinner. Next to arrive was their home baked warm sourdough bread with buffalo milk butter and that was extraordinary. My first course was pressed arrow squid with layered smoked trevally in buttermilk with radishes. This dish was a cold dish and the textures were lovely with the squid being the highlight. For my main, I thoroughly enjoyed the Houhora pork featuring pork belly and pork loin with parsnip purée and an assortment of charred brassicas featuring Savoy cabbage, cauliflower stems and broccolini. The pork loin was simply heavenly and so tender. The entire dish was so loving and nurturing with the various textures and flavours which complemented perfectly. It was my favorite pork dish I’ve had in a very long time. I ordered a rose hip hibiscus gin cocktail with freeze dried berries and dried hibiscus atop, it was simply delightful and to accompany my closing dish of NZ cheeses with lavosh, crusty sourdough bread and preserves, I ordered a chilled Yarra Valley Syrah. The entire dining experience was exquisite and truly memorable from the cuisine to the the beverages and the spectacular service. I will most definitely return and am happy to have discovered a new favorite restaurant. What I appreciated most about the dishes was reminiscing about childhood food flavour memories that evoked at a more elevated level. The use of local produce was front and center stage. This really is a 5 Star restaurant and it was a true privilege to experience dining here. Highly recommended with distinction!

What an outstanding restaurant Lillius is! The service was polished, the team at Lillius hosted our rather large and somewhat raucous group with much patience, grace and humour. The dining room is visually beautiful and befits the food which is similarly attractive. The food was exquisite, technically accomplished and cleverly uses textures to great effect. Some interesting ingredients were incorporated into our 5 course tasting menu, especially in the dish that was for us the highlight- grilled white asparagus with green asparagus purée, a sesame brittle, cultured cream and rimu oil, yes rimu oil! In conclusion, a highly recommend restaurant in the upper echelon of dining experiences in the country. It was a pleasure supporting the young owner/operators and I implore you to do the same, you won’t be disappointed. Sadly for me, no bread will ever measure up to Lillius’ sourdough with buffalo milk butter, I can only hope it’ll be the same next time!