craft_man

We just returned from a 5 week trip to NZ and OZ. I posted a complete trip report including where we dined and recommendations. See Nov - Dec Trip Report in the Fodors Forum - http://www.fodors.com/forums/ As far as we were concerned, far and away the best restaurant was Tetsuyas in Sydney.

Adding a couple of recommendations - L'Escalier in the Breakers is one of the best overall restaurants we have been to. Service, food, eberything was A+++. The nightw we went, they had a special Foie Gras that was SUPERB! They will be closed until 9/30/2004 because of renovations. Another upscale but casual place is Les Mistral. On Rte 1 just north of PGA Blvd. Excellent food. Closed the month of Sept. And, Kee Grill. Not as upscale as Les Mistral. EXCELLENT food. Usually a wait because they don't take reservations. Corner of Rte 1 and Donald Ross.

My wife and I lived in Princeton for about 40 years. Over that time, only a few restaurants have lasted and had good reps. Lahieres - Very expensive - Not one of OUR favorites but highly recommended by many people. On Witherspoon St. Ferry House - Very good. Used to be in Lambertville. Fairly expensive. On Witherspoon St. Carousel - A TINY place that used to be open only for breakfast and lunch. I think they are now open for dinner. If you went with the entire group, you would just about fill the place. On Nassau St. A&B - (Alchemist & Barrister) - Went infrequently. Can be noisy. However, they have a couple of smaller rooms in the front. On Witherspoon St. If you like Chinese food, try Sunny Garden. They do have a smaller back room for family functions. On Farber Rd. (Off Rte 1 just South of Meadow Rd.)

We have reservations for Claudes the end of November. Please keep us posted as to whether they keep up to the previous standard. If necessary, we will change our reservation to one of the other fine dining establishments.

I'll try to give a full report upon my return. However, that's not until the end of December. The trip is from the middle of November to the middle of December. Thanks for all the suggestions.

Romaney - I contacted the Hotel d'Urville because of your raves about their Cook's Discovery Tour. That sounded like something we would really enjoy. Apparentyly they have stopped doing the Discovery Tour. I did make a reservation at Saffron. In the Queenstown area, I also made a reservation at Gantley's. http://www.gantleys.co.nz/ Have you heard anything about them? Made reservations at Pescatore in CC - http://www.thegeorge.com/Pescatore/default.asp Have you eaten there? Heard anything about them? That's the only place we have found so far in CC. Thanks for all your help. BTW we lived in London for a year. However that was in 1958. LOVED IT!

Thanks Helen and Romaney. Saffron looks great. We'll defintely get there for one dinner. I've started looking at the wineries around Nelson. Do you have any specific recommendations? I know when we visited Sonoma and Napa valleys we found some fabulous restaurants. It had never occurred to me that the same might be true in NZ. Great idea. I'd still like to get some ideas for CC and Rotorua. If you think of something, please pass it on. Romaney - I've seen lots of raves about Tets. I've also seen a number of comments that it's not worth the BIG bucks. I think that we'll probably pass on Tets although between now and December (When we'll be in Sydney.) I might change my mind.

Thanks all for your posts. I think we're pretty well settled for the Australia portion of our trip. In Sydney we're going to Claude's, Aria, Wildfire and Pier. In Melbourne we'll be going to Flower Drum and Da Noi. In Adelaide probably the Grange. Still need a lot of help with New Zealand. Looking for the good places in Rotorua, Nelson and Queenstown.

We lived in Princeton for MANY years. Happy City was good but uneven. Also might try Sunny Garden. When it's good, it's quite good. It's on Farber Rd. Just South of the mall where Barnes & Noble is. You have to get off Rte 1 South at Meadow Rd. and wind around the back. Farber Rd. doesn't exit off Rte 1 any more.

Hi All - This is a first for me. I came across this forum while doing some surfing for our upcoming trip. My wife and I will be visiting New Zealand and Australia in November - December. We like to eat WELL! We like ALL cuisines as long as they are WELL prepared. We like to try the local foods and as such often eat local fish. We like lamb which I assume is a must in NZ. This is our first visit and we need HELP! Any suggestions for restaurants in the following places - (We know NOTHING about NZ restaurants.) Auckland Rotorua Nelson Christchurch Queenstown Sydney We have reservations at Claudes and Aria Considering Pier at Rose Bay and/or Wildfire Melbourne We have a reservation at Flower Drum Adelaide Would also appreciate comments on the places we have already reserved. This far ahead, they could always be changed.