Restaurants in New Zealand
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Honey Pot Cafe
One of the first CBD cafes to relocate after the earthquakes, the Honey Pot Cafe set the scene for the emergence of Sydenham as a dining destination. Great eggs Benedict for breakfast give way to spiced lamb and feta salad for lunch, and sirloin steak and chunky, hand-cut chips for dinner. Christchurch's very own 3 Boys beer is on tap.
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Little Bistro
Très petite, très chic and very tasty. Look forward to classic bistro style given a proud Kiwi spin with local seafood, South Island wines and Canterbury craft beers. The menu changes seasonally, but usually includes favourites like pistachio-encrusted lamb or Akaroa salmon terrine; vegetarians are not ignored. Booking ahead is definitely necessary. Sometimes open for lunch in summer – check the blackboard out the front.
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Mackenzie's Bar & Grill
Serving up interesting spins on steak, chicken and seafood, everything at Mackenzie's comes with a side order of stellar lake and mountain views. Robust dishes like lamb shanks and beef Wellington are the perfect response to an active day's adventuring. Even if you're dining somewhere else, pop in for a Monteiths Summer Ale or glass of sauvignon blanc.
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Run 77
Relax on chunky wooden furniture and enjoy Tekapo's good coffee, or sandwiches, burgers and pies made from local salmon and organic, free-range beef and venison from the owner's high-country spread (the real Run 77). Soups, salads and anitipasto platters tick both the healthy and tasty boxes.
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Serious Sandwich
Serious in name and serious in flavour. Concealed in Sydenham's new Colombo shopping mall, this compact kitchen dishes up tasty gourmet sammies, including the breakfast BLAT (available from 9am) and a meatballs-on-toasted-ciabatta variant (available from around 11am). Look forward to a serious attitude to good coffee, too.
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Simo's Deli
Part cafe and part deli, Simo's in Addington is popular for its takeaway bocadillos (grilled wraps filled with a huge selection of Middle Eastern and African-inspired fillings, sauces and toppings). Other tasty offerings include small plates of grilled calamari or spicy merguez sausages, or more robust tagines (Moroccan casseroles) and beef kofta with pomegranate sauce.
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Topkapi
Grab yourself a cushioned, low-slung bench in the tapestry-draped interior and enjoy some great Turkish food, including a wide range of meat or veg kebabs and the all-important baklava finisher. The takeaway counter also does brisk business.
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Vic's Cafe & Bakery
Always busy, Vic's attracts a wide cross-section of Christchurch folk – we even saw the city's mayor there on our Sunday-morning visit. Pop in for a robust breakfast on the big shared tables, or grab baked goodies and still-warm artisan bread for an affordable DIY riverside picnic. Get there early (before 10am) for Vic's world-famous-in-Christchurch nutty porridge ($10.50).
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Berlins
Berlins is a stylish cafe-meets-backpackers on the site of the old Berlins Hotel. A recent re-fit has spruced the place up a bit too. You’ll also find a restaurant (mains $14 to $17.50; open 9.30am till late) that doubles as a damn fine pub. Berlins is a well-positioned stop for cyclists en route to the West Coast. Don’t miss the pics on the wall of the Buller River flowing at dangerously high levels.
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Ham’s
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Jackson’s Tavern
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Red House Café
One of the best highway pit stops round these parts is this fire-engine red cafe 5km south of Otaki. Inside it’s all warm polished wood, all-day breakfasts, excellent baking and an extensive blackboard menu. Bargain two-course roast and pudding special on Sunday.
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Flatwhite
Funky, licensed and right by the beach, Flatwhite has a lively brunch menu and serves decent pizzas.
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Porch
Waihi Beach’s coolest chow-down spot, serving sophisticated, substantial mains.
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Ali's Eating & Drinking
Offering little in the way of ambience other than a splash of deep purple, Ali’s atones with all-day food made from scratch. Salads, soup and homemade cheesecake make an appearance, although our pick is the chicken parmagiana and the $15 pasta which filled us to the brim.
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Ambeli
Seriously good, super-fine fare served in the refined surroundings of an inner-city colonial cottage. Exciting dishes flavoured with seasonal, top-end ingredients (confit pork cheek with hand-pounded broad beans; citrus-cured salmon) are complemented by a wine list much-lauded maître d' Shae Moleta claims to know better than he knows his mother. Exquisite desserts. Bookings recommended.
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Arthur's & Martha's
Run by the McLeods, whose roots in this neighbourhood descend several generations, this pair of Ladies & Gentlemen tearooms commemorate their heritage in delicious style. Martha proffers finger sandwiches, delicate tarts, and tea in fine bone china, while Arthur wears plaid and dishes up a manly fry-up and pork crackling snacks.
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Atomic Roastery
Coffee hounds should follow their noses to this, one of the country's best-known coffee roasters. Tasty accompaniments include pies served in mini-frypans, rolls, salads and cakes.
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Basque Kitchen Bar
It doesn't look like much but this dark little bar serves delectable tapas accompanied by a large range of Spanish wine and sherry. The stuffed squid is sublime.
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Bistro Lago
Under the long-distance tutelage of Auckland-based celebrity chef Simon Gault, the Hilton's inhouse restaurant delivers inventive Italian-influenced dishes using quality regional ingredients. The view, stretching over the lake to the distant mountains, only adds to the magic.
reviewed
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BJs Bakery
This outpost of one of the Bay’s biggest bakeries is stacked with handsome cakes and sandwiches as well as arguably the region’s best pies. It also offers hot meals, good espresso, wine if you fancy it, a pleasant environment, and whip-cracking service.
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Broadway Tearooms
This rustic old joint gets by far the most day-time traffic, and for good reason. The bakers out back turn out everything from cream-filled donuts to decent meat pies to meticulous golden shortbread. Hot meals range from egg breakfasts to a whitebait lunch. Good alfresco, or eat in and survey the cute cruet set collection.
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Burgerfuel
City; Parnell; Mt Eden Kiwis love their gourmet burgers so much that they've taken the concept to the world; you can find Kiwi-run chains from Auckland to Edinburgh, by way of Oman and Athens. Burgerfuel are exemplars of the art, filling their buns with high-quality, fresh ingredients and giving them petrolhead names like Studnut Stilton and V8 Vegan.
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Burgerfuel
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Burgerfuel
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