Last night, we celebrated a birthday at Gina’s Italian Kitchen on Symonds Street. It’s not a place like Ponsonby or even Takapuna where you’d expect quality restaurant with top-notch food, however it’s never right to judge a book by its cover, or in our case, its location! We had such a fun time at Gina’s where service was impeccable and the food can’t be more authentic Italian than what you would get in Italy. The brick walls, dim lighting as well as cute tables with red checkered table clothes worked perfectly to create your ideal dining environment somewhere in Europe.
We kicked the night off with some Polpette di Carne. They say the secret to these handmade beef and pork meatballs is the tenderness of the meat as well as the flavour and I believe Gina’s have got the secret recipe of success. There were 4 in each serving and you’re definitely left wanting for more! The tomato sauce was on point and I loved the slightly melted mozzarella cheese on top that gave the meatballs another layer of richness in flavour.
Our mains all came very quickly, for the night we ordered:
- Hand-made “Capos Favourite” Pizza with pork & fennel sausage, mushroom, caramelised onions and gorgonzola cheese: super crunchy crust, generous amount of toppings and LOVELY LOVELY cheese pull. The flavour was a bit on the sweeter side for me (perhaps due to the onions?) but I asked for chili to balance off the flavours :). Having been to Italy, I’m a big fan of adding Parmesan cheese and chili flakes on top of my pizza, unfortunately Gina’s didn’t have chili flakes, instead they have chili paste- which was interesting as it reminded me of certain Asian dishes!
- Having tried one of Gina’s special dishes- the beef cheek gnocchi, I decided to try something different by opting for the lamb ragu gnocchi. This was flavoursome, the gnocchi was tangy, not too smooshy while the slow-cooked lamb ragu was faultless. Compared to the beef cheek one that I’ve had before though, there could be a bit more lamb to go with the gnocchi!
- Hero of the night: Bistecca Mare e Terra (Medium rare scotch fillet topped with pan-fried prawns and mushrooms). This was a completely new combination to me and it just made my night! Never knew that prawns, mushrooms and steak could go so well together! The creamy (white wine) sauce from the mushrooms seeped into the steak which was cooked perfectly. The prawns was juicy and slightly sweet that gave more flavour to the slightly creamish steak that were super tender and easy to cut. We also added a side salad for only $3 on top of the crispy roasted potatoes that came with the dish. The portion size was huge but somehow we still managed to devour it… I would strongly recommend this dish and pairing it with a glass of Pinot Noir.
Finally, an Italian dinner is incomplete without dessert as we all know just how much Italians love their wine and dessert! Having read reviews elsewhere, I knew Gina’s are quite well-known for their (again, HANDMADE) tiramisu. It was priced at $15, which was quite reasonable compared to what you would pay at dessert parlours. We were SO pleasantly surprised by this huge piece of tiramisu slice pictured below.
The presentation may be minimal, but the quantity and most importantly the DIVINE taste triumphs it all. The tiramisu was airy and extremely creamy. Each layer was well made, the rum-infused sponge, cream, and chocolate textures all came through and was executed to perfection.
Let’s just say, a night at Gina’s is always a night to remember (maybe except the rolling home part after stuffing ourselves with their delicious food)!
A Treasure Chest 