Waqu

Working through the adventurous multi-course set menu at Waqu is like going for a fast ride in an expensive car. The highly engineered, innovative food sounds almost dizzyingly complex when described by your waiter. There's olive oil powder atop prosciutto consomme jelly in a cherry tomato gazpacho; translucent squares of egg-yolk film over crunchy quinoa and chilled shabu shabu beef with mustard sauce, quinoa and chickpeas; and yuzu foam and beetroot daikon balls with rare Crystal Bay prawns in a potato crust. Yet somehow the flavours and textures fuse with that famed Japanese attentiveness into something entirely unthreatening and elegant that won't muss up your hair (that's a reference to the fast car ride, above, for those of short attention span). With its soft lighting, soothing timber tones, well-spaced tables and restrained service, this is a great place for a date. Finish with a fruit punch featuring mint-lime espuma, annin blancmange, and sangria gelato.