This unabashedly luxurious fine-dining restaurant on the fringe of Wellington’s CBD is surrounded by high-rise office towers which provide its core clientele. With elaborate cuisine and a 376-strong wine list, it literally fills a gap left by the closure of Whitebait in early 2019, in that Atlas’s owners sought out head chef James Pask and transplanted him to their new venture, along with his kitchen team. Indulge in a whole Chatham crayfish tail with Champagne and caviar beurre blanc or try thin slices of their signature Wagyu rump cap, cooked in a combi oven for 14 hours but emerging still perfectly pink, and served with nuggets of bone marrow, a textbook-perfect bordelaise, and braised beef cheek cooked with liquorice and cauliflower couscous. Hand your wine-matching decisions over to sommelier Yong Yan and chances are you will discover a delight from an obscure corner of the wine world.

IN BRIEF Inspired food and fine wines in an intimate setting