Return of the Classic: Barbara Lambert’s New Chapter in Ponsonby

Barbara and Matt Lambert, photo by Babiche Martens

Barbara Lambert’s vision for great service was forged long before she ever set foot in a high-end dining room. The seed for her career in hospo was sewn during her university years in a seasonal Rhode Island town. “I just really fell in love with it from when I was 17 or 18,” she says. “Made a lot of cash, had a lot of fun, and kind of always enjoyed it more than any kind of internship or just desk job that I had.”

When she graduated with a double major in fine arts and communications, she found herself at a crossroads, torn between summer art internships and taking off for a gap year. “I decided I wasn’t really ready to start my career,” she admits. “I knew that time was kind of fleeting on not having to make a decision on what I wanted to do in life. So I just kind of took the opportunity and moved to New Zealand by myself.”

Auckland, NYC and Back

Landing in Auckland in 2005, her first job was at The Grove: a trial by fire at what was at the time one of the most exacting establishments for staff in both the back and front of house. Having grown up in an “Average, middle class family,” Barbara says high-end dining was unchartered territory. “That was a new experience, The Grove – oh, one hundred percent!,” Barbara laughs. “I hadn’t experienced that kind of place. A nice restaurant was like the nice local Italian restaurant or a nice seafood restaurant on the water. It wasn’t this kind of haute cuisine.”

The work was intense, but it changed everything. It was where she met her husband, chef Matt Lambert – the pair married just a few months later, and eventually relocated to New York City, where together they founded the critically acclaimed The Musket Room in Soho. The restaurant was awarded its first Michelin star just a short while after opening. After returning to New Zealand and Matt leaving owner-operated world behind for a while, they’ve now come full-circle,  launching Return on Ponsonby Road earlier in 2026.

Soho Energy in Ponsonby 

For Barbara, Ponsonby felt like a natural fit, evoking the same electric neighborhood spirit as their NYC stomping ground. “I didn’t look at Ponsonby as just the hospitality strip; I looked at it as the Soho of New York,” she explains. “It has a distinct identity; the neighborhood felt similar to the one we built the Musket Room in. We wanted to be surrounded by all different types of shops, and part of a street that had a sense of community and life to it, that didn’t fall asleep at 6 o'clock.”

Inside Return, the energy strikes that sweet spot between refined craftsmanship and easy warmth. When it comes to labels, Matt calls their approach “intentional dining.” Barbara expands on that ethos: “For me, fine dining is sterile. If you were to go by traditional measures, I guess you would say we’re fine dining – you know, the price of the tasting menu, the room’s a little formal, but I want this room filled with laughter. We want people having a good time; this isn’t a sterile, quiet dining room, where if a knife drops, it stops the room.”

White Linen and Hiring by the Heart

In an era where service can tilt toward either stiff formality or careless indifference, Barbara looks for genuine heart when hiring. “I can’t teach personality. I can’t teach pride. And I can’t teach genuineness,” she says. “My questions when I interview people are like, What’s your story? Tell me about you... Are you a lost boy? I don’t need someone to be in hospitality for the rest of their life, but while they’re working for me and in my presence, to give it their all. Our guests deserve that.”

Her commitment to the diner experience also meant sticking to crisp white table linen, despite industry trends moving away from it. “Matt and I always knew we wanted a white tablecloth restaurant,” she states. “It says that you’re here for an experience, here for a purpose... We’re giving you something you don’t do for yourself at at home.”

Keeping the Fire Lit

Running a high-tempo restaurant with your spouse requires keeping to a rhythm. While Matt brings an artistic focus to the plate, painstakingly sketching dish presentations in his notebook beforehand, Barbara anchors the front-of-house vision. “He is so focused on plating... His brain is that way. He can’t spell for the life of him, but he can play the drums, he can play the guitar, he loves photography,” she laughs.

What keeps her keen on the game after all these years isn’t online reviews – “I can’t not sleep at night thinking about these reviews,” – it’s the human connection, the buzz of a dynamic room, and the simple joy of doing what she loves. “At the end of the day, I need a busy restaurant,” she says. “If I’m busy, I know I’m making people happy.”

Dining room at Return, photo by Babiche Martens

Matt’s impeccable plating on show, photo by Babiche Martens