Forest

Forest is an intimate, produce-led restaurant in Mount Eden led by self-taught chef Plabita Florence, offering a fully vegetarian menu that evolves with the seasons. Ingredients are sourced locally wherever possible, with the majority of vegetables coming from nearby Kelmarna Community Farm, a certified organic urban farm in Ponsonby. The kitchen also works with select artisan producers such as Mahoe Farmhouse Cheese and a range of New Zealand distillers and brewers, ensuring transparency and quality across both food and drink.

Forest operates with a strong environmental ethic, using preserved ingredients, in-house growing, and occasional foraging to reduce waste and make full use of what the land provides. The menu intentionally highlights less-celebrated vegetables and overlooked parts of plants, reframing them through careful technique and balance. This thoughtful, restrained approach has earned Forest national recognition, including two hats at the 2025 Cuisine Good Food Awards, and has positioned it as a quiet leader in Auckland’s plant-forward dining landscape.