Osteria Uno

About Osteria Uno

Osteria Uno is an Italian restaurant on Hinemoa Street in Birkenhead, built around small plates and fresh pasta, and recognised with a Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand listing.

The dinner menu runs from freshly shucked oysters and burrata with spicy nduja caramel through to a full range of house-made pasta - rigatoni alla vodka, casarecce with goat cheese and hazelnuts, and a prawn and Fraser Isle spanner crab cappelletti among them - alongside simply grilled vegetable sides and a short dessert list that includes tiramisu and affogato.

On Saturdays, Osteria Uno also runs a set-menu Long Lunch with a glass of prosecco on arrival and a shared run through the kitchen's dishes, with a vegetarian version available on request. There's a dedicated kids menu for dinner service, and a beverage list covering Italian-leaning cocktails, an extensive New Zealand and international wine list, and a cellar list built up over the years.

Osteria Uno takes walk-ins for groups under five; larger groups and Saturday lunch bookings go through the reservations page. It's open Tuesday to Saturday evenings (Saturday from midday), closed Sunday and Monday.

Osteria Uno: Michelin Bib Gourmand Italian Dining in Birkenhead

Osteria Uno sits on Hinemoa Street in Birkenhead, a small plates and fresh pasta Italian restaurant that has earned a place in the Michelin Guide as a Bib Gourmand pick.

Small Plates First

The dinner menu opens with a run of small plates built for sharing: freshly shucked oysters with a prosecco mignonette, steak tartare with wakame cracker, house-made focaccia with balsamic butter, and burrata finished with a spicy nduja caramel. Arancini, crispy halloumi and tapioca, and calamari fritti with a condensed milk aioli round out the starters, giving the table plenty to work through before the pasta arrives.

Fresh Pasta at the Centre

Pasta is where Osteria Uno puts most of its focus. Rigatoni alla vodka with stracciatella, casarecce with goat cheese and hazelnuts, and a prawn and Fraser Isle spanner crab cappelletti in crustacean jus all sit on the menu, alongside heartier options like creste di gallo with lamb shoulder ragu and mafaldine with beef cheek and shiitake. Simple vegetable sides - bitter leaves with orange dressing, brussels sprouts with ranch and pangrattato, grilled broccolini with salsa verde - balance out the richer pasta dishes.

Saturday Long Lunch

Saturdays bring a set-menu Long Lunch, a shared run through the kitchen's style of cooking that opens with a glass of prosecco and moves through focaccia, stracciatella, a daily crudo, arancini, crispy eggplant, a tiger prawn mafaldine and a green salad, with oysters available as an add-on. A vegetarian version of the Long Lunch is available on request, and it's one of the few sittings that needs a reservation regardless of group size.

Dessert and Digestivo

To finish, there's coconut panna cotta with passionfruit espuma, a focaccia pudding with banana whip and caramel, and the restaurant's own tiramisu, alongside affogato with an optional liqueur. The 'to finish' list of Italian digestivi - limoncello, amaretto, frangelico, amaro, grappa and Fernet Branca - along with a frangelico sour cocktail, gives the meal a proper Italian close.

Drinks Beyond the Food

The beverage list runs well past the food menu. Cocktails lean Italian - a Garibaldi, an Aperol Gin Spritz, an Uno Dirty Negroni - alongside a house wine carafe list and a much longer wine list spanning New Zealand, Italy, France, Australia and beyond, plus a constantly evolving cellar list the restaurant has built up over the years.

Room for the Kids

Osteria Uno also runs a kids menu for dinner service, with simple pasta dishes - a plain buttered pasta, a mac-and-cheese-style creste di gallo, and a bolognese rigatoni - plus a vanilla ice cream dessert, with gluten-free and dairy-free options available on request.

Getting a Table

Walk-ins are welcome for groups under five. Groups of five or more, and anyone wanting the Saturday Long Lunch, should book ahead through the reservations page. Osteria Uno is open Tuesday to Thursday from 4pm to last table 8:30pm, Friday from 4pm till late, and Saturday from midday till late, and is closed Sunday and Monday.

For anyone in Birkenhead after Italian small plates, house-made pasta and a wine list worth taking time over, Osteria Uno's Bib Gourmand recognition is a fair signal of what to expect at 140 Hinemoa Street.

Signature items

• Freshly Shucked Oysters
• Burrata
• Calamari Fritti
• Prawn & Spanner Crab Cappelletti
• Creste di Gallo
• Tiramisu

Menu

Wine

• House Wine - Bianco — Pinot grigio, by the carafe
• House Wine - Rosso — Montepulciano, by the carafe

Pasta

• Rigatoni alla Vodka — Stracciatella, basil
• Casarecce — Goat cheese, celeriac crema, hazelnuts, salted egg yolk
• Prawn and Fraser Isle Spanner Crab Cappelletti — With crustacean jus
• Creste di Gallo — Lamb shoulder ragu, pecorino espuma
• Mafaldine — Beef cheek, shiitake, egg yolk

Dessert

• Coconut Panna Cotta — Passionfruit espuma
• Focaccia Pudding — Banana whip, caramel
• Tiramisu — The house tiramisu
• Affogato — Optional added liqueur

Cocktails

• Garibaldi — Campari, freshly squeezed orange juice
• Aperol Gin Spritz — Aperol, Clarity gin, prosecco, soda
• Grape Sour — Clarity vodka, grape, Cointreau, lemon, egg whites
• Italian Paloma — Amaro del Capo red edition, tequila, pink grapefruit tonic, lime
• Limoncello Marg — Limoncello, tequila, Uno's limonata, lemon
• Yuzu Spritz — Yuzu, non-alcoholic blanc de blanc, soda, mint
• Grapefruit Grove — Seedlip Grove 42, grapefruit, lime
• Mandarin Gin Martini — Mandarin Napoleon, Clarity gin, citrus
• Uno Dirty Negroni — Clarity gin, Campari, Antica Formula vermouth, olive brine

Kids Menu

• Curlywurly Plain Jane — Pasta with butter sauce and cheese
• Creste di Gallo — Mac n cheese sauce and pangrattato
• Rigatoni — Bolognese sauce and cheese
• Vanilla Ice Cream — Chocolate sauce, sprinkles

Small Plates

• Freshly Shucked Oysters — Prosecco mignonette, lemon
• Steak Tartare — Chile, capers, wakame cracker
• House Made Focaccia — Served with balsamic butter
• Burrata — With spicy nduja caramel
• Arancini — Butternut, rosemary, brown butter aioli (3pc)
• Crispy Halloumi & Tapioca — With black pepper aioli
• Calamari Fritti — Lemon and condensed milk aioli

Vegetables & Sides

• Bitter Leaves — Orange dressing, crispy buckwheat
• Brussels Sprouts — Ranch, parmigiano pangrattato
• Grilled Broccolini — Salsa verde, buttermilk, fried garlic

Saturday Long Lunch (Set Menu)

• Glass of Prosecco on Arrival — Included with the set menu
• Housemade Focaccia — Part of the shared set menu
• Stracciatella — Spicy nduja caramel
• Crudo of the Day — Changes daily
• Arancini — Butternut, rosemary, brown butter aioli
• Crispy Eggplant — Agrodolce, whipped feta and mint
• Mafaldine — Tiger prawn, chili butter
• Green Salad — Vinaigrette, parmigiano
• Freshly Shucked Oysters — Available as an add-on to the set menu

Frequently asked questions

Is Osteria Uno Michelin-recognised?

Yes, it holds a Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand listing.

Do I need a reservation?

Walk-ins are welcome for groups of fewer than 5. Groups of 5 or more and Saturday lunch require a reservation.

What is the Saturday Long Lunch?

A set menu running through several shared dishes with a glass of prosecco on arrival, served on Saturdays.

Is there a vegetarian option for the Long Lunch?

Yes, a vegetarian version of the Long Lunch is available on request.

Is there a kids menu?

Yes, a dedicated kids menu is available with pasta dishes and a dessert, with gluten-free and dairy-free options on request.

What are the opening hours?

Tuesday to Thursday 4pm to last table 8:30pm, Friday 4pm till late, Saturday 12pm till late. Closed Sunday and Monday.

What kind of food does Osteria Uno serve?

Italian small plates and fresh pasta, alongside a large wine and cocktail list.

Tips

• {"body":"Groups under 5 can walk in; larger groups and Saturday lunch need a reservation.","title":"Walk in for small groups"}
• {"body":"The set menu is a good way to sample a broad run of the kitchen's dishes in one sitting.","title":"Try the Saturday Long Lunch"}
• {"body":"Beyond the standard wine list, there's a constantly evolving cellar list worth asking staff about.","title":"Ask about the cellar list"}
• {"body":"There's a dedicated kids menu with GF and DF options available on request.","title":"Bringing kids?"}

Good to know

• {"family":"Dedicated kids menu available for dinner service","dietary":"Vegetarian Long Lunch available on request; kids menu offers gluten-free and dairy-free on request"}