Jesse Mulligan Reviews Springs Tavern, The New Gastropub Near Mt Smart, Where Everyone Is Welcome, Including Your Dog

This gastropub has something for everyone, including your dog.

The Springs Tavern appears suddenly on a dark Onehunga street, as if somebody dropped a large pub into an industrial zone, then quietly backed away before anyone could ask about parking.

First impressions are pleasant. There is a living wall to your right as you enter, and a large tree in the centre of the front courtyard that is either dead or deciduous (it’s difficult to tell in autumn). The main room is a little less picturesque, being essentially a large box, with downlights and tables in rows that put you faintly in mind of a school cafeteria or, possibly, a prison with a good craft beer list.

But there is a lot to like and, judging by the crowd, The Springs is well appreciated by those living nearby. It’s essentially a flash pub near Mt Smart, with a solid menu, plenty of flatscreens, and enough room for sports teams, families and grateful locals all to coexist. The staff were nice, if not exactly bursting with enthusiasm, and the music was upbeat and decent, if occasionally a bit too housey for chips and a pint on a Tuesday night.

Somebody in the events team has plenty of energy - maybe they’ve been listening to the house music. Monday is quiz night, Sunday brings a roast with “rotating proteins”, which means either the meat changes weekly or is cooked on a rotisserie spit (either works for me). There are acoustic sessions in the courtyard, a sophisticated takeaway pick-up system, and even a “Pooch and Pint” promotion, one of the few concessions to dog-people I’ve come across in the Auckland dining scene.

The menu is as mainstream as mainstream gets, but there’s room in our city for that as well; a good pub doesn’t need to reinvent dinner. It needs to offer fish and chips, burgers, tacos and something for the kids. I offer bonus points for dishes that won’t send people with sensitivities into anaphylactic shock, and Springs does well here - their designations Low Dairy Option and Low Gluten Option are refreshingly realistic from a kitchen where some trace contamination is inevitable.

My wagyu burger made all the right noises: cheese, pickles, lettuce, burger sauce, plenty of grease and a soft buttery bun. The patty was overdone but wasn’t fatal to the experience (if an overcooked patty ruined a burger, McDonald’s would have collapsed in the early 1970s).

The lamb taco was one of the stronger dishes. The shoulder meat was decently cooked, tender and rich, tucked into what looked like freshly-made soft tacos with slaw, dressing and pink pickled onions. It was simple, but it worked, and in a pub like this you don’t need anything more ambitious than that.

Salt and pepper squid was surprisingly delicate. Instead of the usual rubbery curls, the squid was cut straight, almost like French fries, and coated in a pale tempura-style batter. It came with a good tartare sauce and disappeared quickly. The panko chicken schnitzel was less successful, a bit too dark and a bit thick for a schnitzel, though I did like that it came with gravy, absolver of many sins.

My daughter had difficulty finishing the fish and chips, which sadly used hoki - a species even my local takeaway now seems embarrassed to offer. The batter was decent so I’d recommend the person in charge of food costs springs at least for gurnard - if not one of the lesser-known white-fleshed options tucked into an icy corner of the fishmonger’s counter for those who know value when they see it.

The best dish was blackened, blistered pizza bread served with genuinely spicy harissa, sweet pickled jalapeño and hummus. I’m not sure these things are ever found together in the wild, but they worked extremely well. It had the chaotic confidence of a supermarket deli in the early 1990s, when New World combined coriander with cashews into a pesto and changed a generation.

Dessert was churros, which followed the theme of the night: almost impossible to stuff up, and not stuffed up. I liked the little jug of pouring chocolate - this dish was basically schnitzel and gravy for the sweet of tooth.

Drinks are mixed. There are lots of beers on tap, not much wine by the glass, and a surprisingly extensive cocktail list. Does a bar whose USP is proximity to a stadium really need a margarita menu and three types of martini? Possibly not. But if someone wants to toast a Wahs win with an Amaretto Sour who am I to stand in their way?

The Springs is not a destination restaurant, but it is a useful one. It is big, family-friendly and trying hard. Some of the food is better than it needs to be, some of it worse than it wants to be, but most of it sits comfortably in the middle. For Onehunga locals, sports crowds and anyone wanting a beer, a burger and somewhere to bring the dog, that may be enough.

Cuisine: Gastropub

Address: 177 Captain Springs Rd, Onehunga

Contact: 09 942 4688

Drinks: Fully licensed

Reservations: Accepted

Kitchen Hours: Sunday–Thursday, 11am–9pm; Friday & Saturday, 11am–9:30pm.

From the menu: Salt and pepper squid $21, lamb tacos $23, fish and chips $33, wagyu burger $25 , chicken schnitzel $31, churros $16

Rating: 15/20

Score: 0-7 Steer clear. 8-12 Disappointing, give it a miss. 13-15 Good, give it a go. 16-18 Great, plan a visit. 19-20 Outstanding, don’t delay.

More restaurant reviews

According to dining-out editor Jesse Mulligan.

The world-class restaurant Ponsonby Rd has been missing. Return has been highly anticipated but does it live up to its promise?

You’ll only discover some of this restaurant’s best elements by chance. Take your pick of 20 meats, 10 starters, 30 mains, 10 hotpots and a ‘special menu’.

The West Auckland restaurant where the food looks so good my review won’t do it justice. The food here is as beautiful to eat as it is to look at.

This one-man wagyu bar could be Royal Oak’s next cult restaurant. Find Auckland’s new $50 wagyu feast that turns a low-profile spot into destination dining.

‘The best meal I’ve eaten this year’: Jesse Mulligan finds his own way in Remuera. Locals love this modern Italian restaurant, and Jesse did too.

‘Italian for people who have no interest in Italy’: Jesse Mulligan reluctantly reviews a new K’Rd restaurant. The food tastes good but it’s ‘the wrong restaurant in the right place at the wrong time’.