The Restaurants Celebrating the Technique and Flavour of Pacific Cuisine – And Where You Can Find It

Selected for Aotearoa’s highly anticipated MICHELIN Guide 2026, Metita is a must-try. The menu is inspired by owner Michael Meredith’s upbringing in Samoa: sustainably caught seafood and fresh, locally sourced ingredients are front and centre, while dishes dance between traditional Pacific flavours and contemporary techniques. This Auckland Restaurant Month, you can try Metita’s take on Pacific cuisine for yourself with the $60 set menu: think snapper with yellow kari, almonds, coconut and chili, and braised lamb in a spiced coconut gravy. The desserts are an absolute highlight: the coconut rice pudding is delightful, while the signature panipopo – a traditional Samoan roll baked in sweetened coconut milk – with spiced rum caramel and banana sorbet comes highly recommended. 

Tala’s reputation precedes it. It recently made history as the first restaurant in the world to receive a MICHELIN Star for contemporary Samoan food, and was featured on Time’s World’s Greatest Places list earlier this year. According to the MICHELIN Guide, Samoan culture and cuisine “have no greater ambassador” than executive chef and owner, Henry Onesemo. Inspired by his childhood and stories of Samoa, the multi-course set menu takes guests on a journey through the island, from its villages to the vibrant food stalls. Here, traditional cooking meets modern technique, where staple dishes are refined and reinterpreted.

Helmed by award-winning chef Ben Bayly (also of Origine and Aosta), Ahi offers a refined dining experience that celebrates the very best of Aotearoa. The menu is designed to tell “an authentic food story,” with a focus on fresh, seasonal ingredients sourced from local suppliers and growers (the organic vegetables, for example, come directly from the Ahi Kitchen Garden in South Auckland). Dishes are elevated yet accessible, complemented by a carefully curated list of New Zealand wines. Kau, Ahi’s take on a “backyard BBQ”, is an absolute highlight: think 500g of Greenstone Creek scotch fillet with Marmite brown butter, crispy agria potatoes and Kiwi onion dip.

Also featured in the MICHELIN Guide 2026 is Kingi, a beloved all-day dining destination that celebrates the terroir of Aotearoa. From sustainably caught seafood to game, this is a menu that highlights local, seasonal produce in considered yet approachable ways. Each dish is built around New Zealand’s bountiful landscapes, from our oceans and rivers to the soil and forests. This Auckland Restaurant Month, experience a taste of New Zealand cuisine with Kingi’s $30 and $55 set menus. Highlights include an elevated fish and chips, wood-roasted forest mushrooms, and roasted parsnip semifreddo with kawakawa.

Another selection in this year’s inaugural MICHELIN Guide, Mr Morris is owned by celebrated culinarian (and Metita executive head chef) Michael Meredith. Mr Morris’s bold and innovative approach – a marriage of Pacific, European and New Zealand flavours – has been recognised with several awards and accolades, so you know you’re in safe hands. The menu champions “local, ethical and seasonal produce” with “a devotion to flavour”, according to the team. For a taste of modern Pacific fare, try the $65 Auckland Restaurant Month set menu. Or, current à la carte offerings include delectable seafood, Royalburn lamb, and salted coconut with smoked banana caramel.