Head chef Alfie Ingham and restaurant manager Sophie Beaton settled in Auckland after moving here together from Lancashire, working at many of Auckland’s great restaurants before arriving at Hugo’s Bistro in 2019. Although the food is still suitably Hugo’s — the overall approach, modern takes on bistro classics, has not changed — it now tends to lean a little richer, with a lovely decadence that is right at home among its elegant fit-out.
Unlike at a traditional bistro (if such a thing still exists), the plates are all meant to be shared. Proteins lap up accompaniments like anchoïade or vadouvan butter; the vegetarian main is often some sort of pasta (like ravioli); and, to start with, the raw fish or tartare will always be a good bet. Of course, what’s on the menu is dependent on the season, so specific dishes may have been swapped out by the time you read this. But for something you can come back to every time, look to the sides: blocks of confit potatoes, crispy and fluffy and simply delicious, have become something of a staple dish at Hugo’s.
Happily, the wine list is also a highlight, with a short, curated menu that comes with little tasters and recommendations from Beaton. Keep an eye out, too, for the Hugo’s Bistro “cellar club”, a BYO night without corkage on the last Tuesday of the month.