About

Restaurant 88

OUR HISTORY!

After many years of contemplating and job-shifting, Luke finally decided to take the leap of faith. On 21 June 2004 Restaurant 88 opened its door to their first customer.

THE OWNER

Luke, the owner, was born in Saigon and came to New Zealand in the early 80’s with his family. He has always been involved with food with his late grandfather running a successful noodle cafe in Saigon, where Luke spent a lot of his time growing up. When he wasn’t in the city enjoying his grandfather’s handmade noodles, he would be with his mum and dad on their family farm in Bien Hoa.

Restaurant 88

Ever since Luke can remember he’s always wanted to open his own Vietnamese restaurant. It was his dream from an early age. It all started one day when Luke was helping his mum in the kitchen cooking Vietnamese Chicken Curry for their family dinner. After that night, Luke was hooked on cooking and the birth of Restaurant 88 was inevitable.

Luke still often cooks his mum’s curry dish for his staff at the restaurant. A lot of Luke’s inspirations came from his mum and Luke’s grand master teacher Lim Bian Yam: a cooking teacher in Malaysia who invited Luke into his home and showed him the fundamentals of food, cooking, harmony, peace and humanity. Luke largely considers himself a self taught chef with a lot of passion and curiosity.

Happy Customers

  • Restaurant 88
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    Restaurant 88
    TripAdvisor Traveller Rating
    Based on 410 traveller reviews
    TripAdvisor Ranking #44 of 1010 places to eat in Wellington
    Most Recent Traveller Reviews
    • 13 May 2018: “Great Vietnamese food, good ambience, nice relaxed dining. Pho is brilliant and there is an interesting...” more
    • 5 May 2018: “I have never had a bad meal here. Where can I start? The prices - these...” more
    • 7 Apr 2018: “Was the most authentic Vietnamese restaurant I have been to in New Zealand since far. The...” more
    • 17 Mar 2018: “Not sure whether it is the change of the ownership or the lady was already too...” more
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Our restaurant is fully licensed and we take great pride and pleasure into offering you a great dining experience.