Wai, Queenstown

Tuesday February 5

We had tried to get into Wai on Saturday, when we'd ended up at Fishbone. It looked so nice that Holt forethoughtfully made reservations for the night we'd be back in Queenstown, after our day cruise on Milford Sound. It's a very dressy place, so we burnished our wind-chapped selves and put on some fancy duds to walk out to Steamer Wharf, where we were ushered to a white-clothed table overlooking patio, lake, and mountains.

Wai aims for a sophistication atypical of New Zealand; they do that bit about their choice of waters, and actually charge for bread. But the bread was a procession of five faultlessly tender little rolls, to be dipped into good oil and balsamic. We did plenty of that, with a bottle of 2007 Rock Ferry Sauvignon Blanc - peachy keen.

We started with a half dozen Nelson oysters, meaty and sweeter than their musky Pacific cousins. They came with mignonette, shredded dilled cucumber, and white balsamic; the latter was best at not disguising their slight briny tang. Even better was a starter of pan-seared Wahoo, perfect circles rolled in chopped green herbs, along with pinwheels of panko-crusted calamari dusted with fleur de sel. Amazing.

Holt was still eager for what he'd missed at Redcliff, so he ordered a braised leg of Bendigo hare in vanilla sauce. That was an intense dark demiglace, just this side of toasted, with the long slice of vanilla bean still garnishing it. Little pillows of potatoes and french beans helped soak it up, and a glass of Gabriel's Gully Pinot Noir went with it.

Barbara went for the new fish of the day: Fiordland grouper, which is apparently different from other groupers throughout the world, and from the "groper" they also serve around here. This was rich fish, its crisp skin dusted with almonds. Its complex, well-balanced flavors reconciled us to that trite trout-amandine combination. So yes, Wai aims at sophistication; but it really is sophisticated.