Prolific Auckland restaurateur David Lee has always loved noodles. “Not just from an Asian origin, but any dough stretched and rolled into long strings.”

Today, he opens Aigo – a new noodle bar on Ponsonby Road that deals in Korean flavours with a European and South American bent. Think seared Wagyu with a kimchi chimichurri and chewy rice cake noodles (tteokbokki) in a cacio e pepe and truffle sauce.

“Aigo noodle bar started with my desire to prove that noodles are not just ‘fast food’,” Lee tells Broadsheet, “but, when accompanied with the right drinks and enjoyed in the right ambience, they are in fact an elegant and respect-worthy dish.”

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Lee is known as a savvy and innovative figure in the local hospitality industry. He’s currently running six popular venues aside from Aigo, including CBD Korean restaurant Gochu, speciality micro-roastery Camper Coffee and Newmarket cafe The Candyshop. Tom Hong and Jaeho Cho of The Candyshop have also collaborated on this new venture, with Kevin Choi as head chef.

He says Aigo was a food-first approach, designing the interiors himself to complement the dishes. “I was inspired by a shabby local bistro I visited during my trip to Paris [Lee was in Europe in early October]. This place was unpretentious and cosy, fitting into the city like a glove, yet serving kimchi stew on the menu. I could instantly understand the concerns and hopes of the owner – to break the barrier towards a foreign dish, yet give it respect.”

Open for lunch and dinner, Aigo seats up to 60 in a charming, plaster-walled space with shades of deep forest green and terracotta tiles. Varying lampshades cast a warm glow over the front and back rooms, and exposed brick in places adds to the textural effect.

Hand-pulled noodles are the menu's star – you can eat them with Cloudy Bay clams in a seaweed mussel broth or with pork, wood ear mushrooms, chilli and spring onion oil – but Lee says he also “threw in some nostalgic Korean street food” to further introduce the cuisine to mainstream Kiwi diners.

This includes soondae, a type of blood sausage which is served here with spicy ssamjang sauce and caviar. There’s also galbi jjim, braised short ribs that are eaten on special occasions such as Korean Thanksgiving, and mandu – Korean dumplings.

As he has done with many of his other venues, Lee worked with Dan Gillett of natural and organic wine distributor Wine Diamonds to create a wine list that would complement Aigo’s flavours. There’s also a cocktail list that includes a Somaek, which is a beer-soju bomb, an Earl Grey Highball and an Aigo Negroni.

Lee says he hopes people realise this place is different to anything else in town while not labelling it too quickly. “As it is my wish, every time I open a new eatery, I hope people can come to enjoy the food and space without preconceptions – but with an open mind.”

Aigo
168 Ponsonby Road, Auckland
(09) 877 6230

Hours
Tue to Sat 12pm–10pm

@aigo_akl
aigo.co.nz