Auckland Dining and Drinking
If you're heading into Auckland and are a bit of a gourmand, you couldn't have chosen a better time. The citys international events over the last year have seen a phenomenal growth in new eateries in the city. Add this to an already abundant and well-established restaurant scene in Auckland, and you have perhaps the finest dining experience in the Pacific Rim.
Auckland has it all: a thriving coffee culture that manifests itself in stylish pavement cafes that seem to be everywhere; vineyard restaurants set amongst the grapes; a heady mix of Asian food led by the citys large Oriental and Fijian-Indian communities; Mediterranean-style eateries in the form of Turkish mezze bars, Italian wood-fired pizzerias and the best that France has to offer. And unlike most cities, these cuisines are not grouped in ethnic districts but are wonderfully blended, so you can find what you want, where you want.
Then look at the ingredients the citys chefs get to play with: seafood straight out of the gulf, unsurpassable New Zealand lamb, lush vegetables and fruit?many considered luxuries elsewhere in the world, but found in profusion here. And match all of this with the fabulous local wine.
Take these elements into account and you're left with an overwhelming array of culinary opportunities and tastes to suit any budget. Here are a few nibbles to help you on your way, all within a short walk, bus, or taxi ride of the centre of Auckland.
Parnell
One of the twin 'Ps? of Auckland dining (the other is Ponsonby), Parnell is a
long-established foodie enclave, with restaurants, bars, and cafes dotted all
the way along the rise. There are venues lining the pavement, in brick-lined
back street courtyards, and tucked away in charming warren-like old buildings.
Try Non Solo Pizza for an al fresco meal that runs the whole gamut of Italian
food. Thai Friends is a local favourite that has both a 'fast-food? cafe on the
street and a more serious dining room set in traditional Thai decor at the back.
Further down the hill is Oh Calcutta considered by some to be the best Indian
food on offer in the country. Or stick your head in at Iguacu: a smart
Cajun-fusion restaurant and bar offering live jazz on the weekends, and which
you'll find packed most nights.
Ponsonby
Up till the recent developments in and around the Americas Cup Village, at the
Viaduct Harbour, Ponsonby was Aucklands most popular eating district boasting a
string of eclectic places stretching for several blocks along Ponsonby Road.
Though the buzz has died down a little, this is still the heart of cafe culture
in the city. Walk down Ponsonby Road and see why. The Atomic Cafe is one of the
citys busiest and most well established cafes, known for its legendary coffee
(they supply many others) and its choice menu. Across the road is trendy SPQR -
a favourite of the mobile phone brigade for well prepared light meals washed
down with lots of wine. Or try nearby South American owned and operated cafe
Santos. For Indian meals in a modern brasserie setting Masala is a safe bet.
Central City
Find yourself in downtown Auckland at lunch time, and you'll see the place
thronging with workers enjoying cafe society; evenings and the city is awash
with the noise of Aucklanders out to have a good time. Paramount on Lorne Street
in the ground floor of the New Art Gallery blends Asia and the Pacific: a strong
aspect of modern Kiwi cuisine. Nearby, Columbus Coffee roast their own, so sit
down in this beautifully designed cafe and breathe in the heady aroma. Step into
the Occidental on Vulcan Lane and you're in Belgium. They have a good selection
of imported beers on tap, which you can accompany with a massive bowl of
green-lipped mussels. At the local watering hole, the Shakespeare Tavern, on
Albert Street, they brew their own award-winning beers.
The city also boasts numerous food courts, where you'll find the meeting of many cuisines under one roof. If you're on a bit of a budget then this is the way to do it. Food Alley on Albert Street is the best place for Asian food with Thai, Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Indian, Malaysian and Indonesian all on offer. Downstairs at the Force Entertainment Centre on Queen Street there is another food court with a blend of European and Asian cuisine, albeit in more flash surroundings.
Viaduct Harbour
Hosting the Americas Cup in 1999/2000 totally rejuvenated Aucklands downtown and
waterfront area, and thrust up a myriad of new places to eat and drink. Evenings
and weekends find the streets and wharves around the Viaduct Harbour swarming
with Aucklanders as they sample a side to their city that until year ago did not
exist.
Euro, on Princes Wharf, was recently voted 'best in New Zealand? (in its first year in operation) and with celebrity chef Simon Gault at the helm you are in safe hands. Just around the corner is newly opened Leftfield, an immense sports bar and grill with televisions galore that even has stadium style seating in one area. For the carnivore Wildfire is a Brazilian-style joint, boasting succulent spit-roasted beef and lamb. Prefer seafood? Wander over to Kermadec in the Viaduct Quay complex. This long-established, high-end restaurant puts the Pacific on a plate, in dining rooms that overlook the water.
Just remember, however, these enclaves and eateries give you merely a taste: the tip of the culinary iceberg. There is much more to be discovered if you dig a little deeper. Places such as Waiheke Island - jewel of the Hauraki Gulf, with its vineyards and sea-view cafes. And the suburbs of Newmarket, Devonport, Takapuna, Herne Bay and Mission Bay haven't been unfurled.
Browse through Dining, Drinking and Entertainment - the diversity of restaurants, cafes and bars will astonish you. Auckland has never had it so good.
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