Located near the Viaduct Events Centre and in Wynyard Quarter, Miss Clawdy has become one of those places that you always see on your Instagram feeds with their soul food and rustic decor. You instantly feel welcomed as you walk in and are served a bowl of cinnamon popcorn while you mull over the menu.
Miss Clawdy, inspired by soul and South American food, is made for group dining with their platters made to share. It takes a while to flag down someone who could take our order but one we could consult with our lovely waitress, Su and I decided to get a bowl of jambalaya and a side of hushpuppies with corn and chorizo.
It's a nice atmosphere as we wait for our meal with the environment very casual, only getting busier the longer we're there. Baskets and vines hang from the rafters, with the bar to one side and an open view to the kitchen on the other. The staff are a bit hard to get attention from when they're busy chatting to each other, but I guess they are the unfortunate people working on a Saturday night.
First to arrive is our hushpuppies, and I've never had hush puppies before but they're a good little starter. It's a little bit like a breadball, but made with a dough/batter of corn and then deep-fried. We tucked in quickly and I forgot to take a photo... but the salsa that was served with it was delicious too and complimented well.
The waitress described the jambalaya as fragrant with lots of flavours, and she was spot on. Colourful with little bites of flavorsome rice and meat made each mouthful delicious. And while I thought the bowl of jambalaya was going to be not enough for the two of us, it ended up being the perfect serving. And it's tasty to be able to bite into these different bits of vegetables and meat, and have rice that could just stand on its own in flavour too.
The only disappointment I had was not being able squeeze in dessert. We had tried to return later that night after our designer showcase, but sadly there was no table free at 8pm.
Overall it was actually a reasonably priced dinner between two people when you split the costs. The food has exciting flavours and I know I'll end up returning to make sure I try the desserts. Who wants to come with me next time?
Food Tour Party review:
Money friendliness - Reasonably priced bill when we shared half the meals.
Purchase fun - there was pretty much one hard working waitress on all the tables, and she was really helpful with helping us choose meals. Also, cinnamon popcorn.
Deliciousness factor - I don't know many soul food places in Auckland but this is a great place to eat.
