Gao Asian Fusion is a contemporary Asian fusion restaurant on Dairy Flat Highway in Albany, Auckland, opened in December 2018 with a vision to weave the diverse threads of Asian culinary tradition — Korea, Japan, the Philippines, China and beyond — into modern dining experiences. The kitchen honours traditional recipes while embracing modern cooking methods, resulting in a menu that moves easily between the street-food flavours of Seoul and the vibrant tastes of the Philippines.
Every dumpling, bun and sauce is handcrafted in-house by a dedicated dumpling chef, and the wider menu stretches from Gao Pad Thai, roast pork Sichuan noodles and koji cured sirloin to house-made curries, a raw-and-fresh selection and desserts like the twisted donut with miso butterscotch and Whittaker's dark chocolate.
Sharing is central to the Gao experience. There are set menus for groups of four or more, the Trust The Chef banquet of ten dishes for two or more, and a weekend bottomless brunch — a communal boodle feast of favourites served on banana leaves with unlimited sides, running Saturdays and Sundays from 12pm to 3pm (bookings essential). The team treats its popular cocktails as an extension of its culinary artistry, and they have built a following among locals and beyond.
Dinner service runs Tuesday to Sunday evenings, closed Mondays, with reservations available online or by phone, plus online ordering for takeaway. The restaurant also welcomes function and catering enquiries, and the team describes Gao as an award-winning Auckland restaurant.
On Dairy Flat Highway in Albany, Auckland, Gao Asian Fusion has been quietly redefining what an Asian restaurant can be since December 2018. The idea behind it is simple but ambitious: take the diverse threads of Asian culinary tradition — Korea, Japan, the Philippines, China and beyond — and weave them into a single, modern dining experience. Traditional recipes stay at the heart of every plate, while the cooking methods and setting are unmistakably contemporary.
The result is a menu that reads like a tour of the continent. Bites that evoke the bustling streets of Seoul sit alongside dishes that pay homage to the vibrant flavours of the Philippines, all served in a space the team describes as contemporary, relaxed and both modern and traditional at once.
Start with the dumplings, because they are the heart of the operation: every dumpling, bun and sauce is handcrafted in-house by Gao's dedicated dumpling chef. Wagyu beef dumplings come with a sweet dumpling sauce, the pork and prawn version arrives ten to a serve with chinkiang vinegar and soy, and there is a vegan vege dumpling with sesame soy. The bao buns head further afield — Korean fried chicken with Korean chilli sauce, kewpie and slaw, and a Fillet O Fish bun built on snapper with Taiwanese spice, tartar and cheddar.
From there the menu opens up. Larger plates bring the Gao Pad Thai with shiitake, beansprouts and peanuts (choose chicken, prawn or vegetarian), roast pork Sichuan noodles with wok hey and crackling dust, chicken nasi goreng finished with truffle oil, and a koji cured sirloin with crying tiger sauce and charred eggplant sauce. Gao fried chicken — served small or large with a choice of hot n sweet, sweet soy or creamy onion — and crispy pork ribs in a sweet sticky glaze are natural shared centrepieces.
House-made curries run from a seafood curry with snapper, NZ mussels and prawns to a massaman built on beef cheek, potato and kaffir lime leaves, plus a vegan yellow curry with cauliflower, pine nuts and capers. A raw and fresh section offers sesame seared tuna with wasabi ponzu and pear, green papaya salad and a cos and kimchi salad, while smaller plates span wok-charred edamame, peking duck pancakes and Filipino-style grilled pork belly with spiced vinegar and pickled papaya. Save room for dessert: the twisted donut comes with miso butterscotch and Whittaker's dark chocolate, and the 'Turon' banana spring roll layers jackfruit, coconut chocolate, bourbon caramel, hazelnut and vanilla ice cream.
Gao is built for sharing, and that is most obvious in its set formats. The set menu caters for groups of at least four, with entree and mains or entree, main and dessert combinations drawn from the kitchen's favourites — Korean fried cauliflower, sesame seared tuna and peking duck pancakes among the entrees. For the full experience, Trust The Chef hands the reins to the kitchen: a minimum of two people, ten unique dishes, served banquet-style for the table.
On weekends the same spirit gets a midday slot. The bottomless brunch, every Saturday and Sunday from 12pm to 3pm, is a communal boodle feast of GAO favourites served on banana leaves with unlimited sides to share. Add bottomless drinks and, as the team puts it, let the afternoon flow. Bookings are essential, by phone or through the reservation page. The cocktails are treated as an extension of the kitchen's culinary artistry and have built a following among locals and beyond.
Dinner runs Tuesday to Thursday from 5:30pm to 9:00pm, Friday and Saturday from 5:00pm to 9:30pm, and Sunday from 5:00pm to 9:00pm; the kitchen is closed on Mondays. Reservations can be made online or by phone, and there is online ordering for nights you would rather stay in. The restaurant also welcomes function and catering enquiries.
Since opening in 2018, Gao's team has stayed motivated by the same thing that started it: a love of authentic yet progressive Asian flavours, and the belief that a meal can be a voyage of taste, culture and connection. Whether you come for the handcrafted dumplings, a long weekend brunch or the ten-dish chef's banquet, it is a philosophy you can taste.