IN BRIEF

Honest, elegantly executed old-school French cuisine.

WHY CHOOSE THIS RESTAURANT?

P&S creates classical French dishes in a humble cottage setting, in one of the so-called Six Sisters along Napier’s Marine Parade. While both service and setting may feel sufficiently homely and familial for certain men to rock up in shorts, the dining is distinctly hoity-toity.

ABOUT THE FOOD

Apart from significant concessions to vegetarianism, the meal experience is classical and rich, with gestures to haute cuisine – from the complimentary amuse-bouche to the miniature loaf of brioche with the duck liver mousse and the tiny house-made baguette with its rod of rosemary butter for the table.

ABOUT THE CHEF

Samuel Goslin was born in Dunkirk but cooked for many years in Cannes and Nice. These influences show in his snapper with a fragrantly aniseedy pastis and fennel beurre blanc, courgette and tomato ragout, and the cubes of the unctuously soft chickpea flour, water and olive oil cake known as panisse.

ABOUT THE TEAM

Opened in late 2019, P&S is a family affair, with Samuel plus just one assistant in the kitchen and Madame Goslin running the front of house with her daughter and young son. They previously sited P&S in Whitianga – on account of Samuel’s passion for spearfishing – but after four years concluded that a town of 6,000 wasn’t the ideal location for an upscale French restaurant.

OF NOTE

While the menu has the appearance of being à la carte, diners are obliged to order at least two courses. The menu’s wine matches, naturellement, are all French and, despite being cheapish, they can impress: there’s a seriously minerally rosé and a meaty Burgundian-style gamay beaujolais.