Auckland
Formerly starring at markets and food-truck pop-ups around town, Tiger Burger has graduated to a hip permanent space in the city-fringe suburb of Grey…
Must-see restaurants in Auckland
Kingsland & Mt Eden
Mondays' humble outward appearance segues to a sunny ivy-framed courtyard that's perfect for enjoying some of Auckland's healthiest cafe fare. Brunch…
Auckland
Texas-style barbecue comes to Auckland at this smoke-infused shrine to superb brisket, pulled pork and ribs. Rubs and sauces are prepared in-house, and…
Kingsland & Mt Eden
Classic ska or soul is usually bubbling away at this cool eatery, which combines spins on classic Thai dishes with an easygoing vibe right at home in…
Auckland
From downtown Auckland, make the short ferry journey to Devonport to visit this laid-back cafe packed with Turkish influences. Combine harbour views with…
Parnell & Newmarket
Modern updates on Chinese classics and some of the city's best dumplings combine at Tao, in the inner suburb of Newmarket. Amid chic Shanghai-inspired…
City Centre & Britomart
It pays not to expect too much from restaurants stuck up towers, but when the executive chef is NZ's most famous culinary son, Peter Gordon, you can…
Auckland
Bringing hip decor and tasty Taiwanese street food to a nondescript strip of suburban shops, Chinoiserie specialises in gua bao – oversized steamed buns…
Viaduct Harbour & Wynyard Quarter
Eating seafood by the water is a must in Auckland,and this modern gastrodome boasts an unbeatable see-and-be-seen location. The raw bar features tuna…
Ponsonby & Karangahape Rd
Hand-rolled, boiled and wood-fired, Best Ugly's bagels are a thing of beauty. Call into its super-hip bakery in a converted heavy-vehicle workshop and…
Auckland
It's an effort to get to, but this suburban cafe serves some of the prettiest and best breakfasts in Auckland, with dishes such as 'the Nest' (a filo nest…
City Centre & Britomart
Good, authentic, reasonably priced Vietnamese eateries are in short supply in NZ, which makes this surprisingly upmarket-looking place a real find. There…
City Centre & Britomart
One of the more affordable eateries in the big, brash SkyCity casino complex, Gusto excels in delivering fresh pasta dishes, all of which are made from…
Ponsonby & Karangahape Rd
Tucked away in an odd block of shops down the hill from Ponsonby Rd, Nishiki serves up a tasty array of dishes to a largely Japanese clientele. A picture…
Ponsonby & Karangahape Rd
Specialising in delicious tandoori dishes and lamb curries, this top-flight Indian eatery has a wide-ranging menu with plenty of vegetarian selections and…
City Centre & Britomart
Primarily a coffee roaster, Eighthirty's High St branch serves the inner-city's best coffee and a tasty array of fresh sandwiches, salads and sweet things…
Parnell & Newmarket
Polished concrete floors, beer-crate tables and colourful oversized lampshades set the scene. There are plenty of enticing cooked items on the menu, but…
Ponsonby & Karangahape Rd
Kiwiana reigns supreme at this eccentric corner cafe with one wall devoted to a 1950s paint-by-numbers Māori maiden mural. The food is a step up from…
Auckland
Shared tables and colourful wall art give this informal eatery a bohemian edge. Isaan classics including chicken laab, som tam salad and fiery northern…
Ponsonby & Karangahape Rd
This friendly and stylish Italian restaurant covers all the bases, with a fireplace in winter and a courtyard in summer. Speaking of bases, there's a…
Parnell & Newmarket
Rosie is a swish spot for a cooked breakfast, an inventive bistro-style meal, or coffee and cake after a stroll around the rose gardens. Service is…
Ponsonby Village International Food Court
Ponsonby & Karangahape Rd
Japanese, Malaysian, Chinese, Turkish, Thai, Lao and Indian flavours are all on offer here, and excellent Vietnamese and Indonesian. Beer and wine are…
City Centre & Britomart
Fresh and bright, this little cafe is a popular coffee-and-pastry stop for harried office workers. Look forward also to a concise menu of French classics…
Kingsland & Mt Eden
Gourmet pies, healthy salads and wraps, and drool-inducing cakes. Arrayed across several levels in an old house, there's plenty of room to stretch out and…
Auckland
This Devonport cafe is set a little back from the main tourist strip, and serves a tasty mix of cafe classics and Southeast Asian dishes to locals in the…
Ponsonby & Karangahape Rd
This stylish and buzzing restaurant and bar offers excellent Southeast Asian flavours, mainly from Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. Try the Madurese goat curry.
Auckland
Part of a culinary makeover of a former department store, the Commons is a spacious and sophisticated combination of elegant restaurant and buzzy bar.
Kingsland & Mt Eden
Owned by a friendly Jordanian family, Petra serves up light, healthy kebabs. The dips and salads are also worth the short train ride to Kingsland.
Ponsonby & Karangahape Rd
Hugely popular, this humble-looking and humbly priced eatery has the best dahi puri (chickpea, potato and yoghurt on a pappadam) in town.
Auckland
The highlight is the 'lump rice', a prosaically named but very tasty array of curries cooked with spicy rice in a banana leaf.
Parnell & Newmarket
A branch of a small local chain serving good-value, authentic Vietnamese food.
City Centre & Britomart
Vegetarian heaven with an enticing salad bar and economical daily meal deals.
Ponsonby & Karangahape Rd
An excellent homegrown gourmet burger chain, with branches all over the city.
City Centre & Britomart
The constant queue outside tells you all you need to know about this hole-in-the-wall eatery. It does only one thing and it does it well: delicious crispy…
Auckland
Roughly cut hand-pulled noodles are the speciality here, with a menu that leans towards the flavours of China's Henan province. Also a few Chinese Muslim…
City Centre & Britomart
Quirky inner-city spot with excellent coffee, average-looking counter food, made-to-order bagels and sandwiches, and the old-school thrills of a book…