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Noodling About
by Niki Bezzant
Otto Woo, 47 Ponsonby Rd, Ponsonby
This place is in a different league from the others, largely because it's
on
Ponsonby
Rd and therefore looks like a prime venue for a fashion shoot
and serves up its noodles in those cute trendy little boxes. This also
means
you'll pay $10 or so for most dishes. However, the food is a little flasher
than
your average Joint. You'll find chilled noodle salads as well as fusion
dishes
loaded with exotic fresh vegetables - the tempura prawn noodles are a
favourite. They also do fresh juices and smoothies. This is the perfect
place
to get food for watching-videos-but-don't-want-to-slob-out-completely
date.
Those wee boxes are sure to impress.-
9/12/00 - Cuisine
Magazine
http://www.cuisine.co.nz
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flasher
than your
average Joint
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Auckland's best
looking takeaway outlet
by Jonny Cortizo
Otto Woo, 47 Ponsonby Rd, Ponsonby
Dismayed at the lack of choice for residents, owners Grant Vincent and
Joanna Clarke
offer a healthy alternative to the usual deep fried takeout fodder.
The Prawn Tempura and Bok Choy dishs are bestsellers, they all come in
the authentic
white American noodle boxes, a la Friends.
22/3/00 - The New
Zealand Herald
http://www.nzherald.co.nz
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Woo dares wins
by Cameron Williamson
Otto Woo, 47 Ponsonby Rd, Ponsonby
Scorching back into the big smoke after a week down-country, the usual
call is for full-fat fast food from under those ubiquitous golden arches.
But bursting with fruit and sunshine from healthy Hawkes Bay, family
consensus required something just as fast, but altogether fresher.
The solution? A box of noodles from Otto Woo on Ponsonby Rd.
For the past year, the minimally modern, blue-lit restaurant has glowed
alluringly, but never seemed to offer the reassuring impression of an
eatery full of satisfied customers. That's because they'd ordered, eaten
and got on with their lives. No need to linger. Otto Woo is created
in the
style of Sydney noodle bars such as Fu Manchu and Wockpool - serving
Asian-Pacific chopstick wokfood to take away or eat at the bar-height
pair of communal tables.
The menu is comfortingly familiar and well-priced. Noodle and
rice-based dishes feature pan-Asian ingredients in bright combinations
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Indonesian leaning satay noodles (peanuts and shoots), Thai-style
chicken with bok choy, herbs,lime, sweet chilli, Japanese-influenced
udon noodles with chicken, leek and sunflower seeds, Chinesey beef
and greens bound in almond and ginger on fried noodles.
There are plenty of no-meat dishes - tofu, miso, vege combos,
mixed leaf salad, side orders of sweet rice balls, vegetable wontons
and
spring rolls.
Best of all from the family's point of view was the Little Otto, a
thoughtful combination of noodles, wontons, spring rolls and rice balls
-
at $5.50 ideal for palates not quite ready for the spicy treats in the
main meals.
The 7-year-old and 5-year-old perched on their white vinyl stools and
tucked in like a pair of seasoned noodle-munchers, enjoying the food
but saving highest praise for the freshly squeezed apple juice.
The mother plumped for the Chicken Bok Choy and delighted in the
colours (matching sticks of celery, spring onion, carrot on top) and
the
clean flavours.
I took the lip-scorching Chilli Beef with mushrooms, sesame and mirin,
Enough heat to remind me of the dish two hours later: sweet, sour and
satisfying.
The usual restaurant side issues - wine and coffee - don't figure here:
drinks are fresh juice (apple, orange, spinach, carrot) and Blu
(great colour match) bottled spring water. Funky music though.
The service? Zen-calm, pleasantly detached.
10/6/00 - The New
Zealand Herald
http://www.nzherald.co.nz
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For
the past year, the
minimally modern,
blue-lit restaurant
has glowed
alluringly
|
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|
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