Can’t be beat for a high-end romantic dinner. The stylish interior is matched by the unbelievable food & elegant service. Prepare to be blown away!

A sexy, low-lit bar with fabulous tapas. The brainchild of Peter Gordon. You gotta try the Pedro Ximenez!

Delicious hand-pulled noodles & dumplings. And BYO too!

This place is a refurbished service station, now serving food with a smile. Awesome breakfasts & a great selection for vegetarians.

My favourite Japanese. Their teriyaki chicken is insane! I love the way they greet you with a gong on your entry and exit.

It’s for pizzas like that why I miss being in Europe. Thin with a yummy topping and a nice presentation. And the people are nice too :-)

This is not your usual Turkish fast food store, it's a real restaurant and it's a good one! The service is good and the food is fantastic. If you like kebabs, don't miss out on Jaan. The grilled flavours are awesome.

Nice staff, great food, overall really good experience and many Indian friends recommend it. They know what's good around here :) Highly recommended.

That's some of the most amazing food I've ever eaten. We went for 9 courses with matching wine and I must admit, the chef knows his stuff. It looks simple but it's full of amazing flavours and the presentation is stunning! Also, the service is really great. You'll get all the background info about the matching wines and they really complement the amazing food. Hopefully, we'll get a chance to do it again some time.

We went here for our anniversary and what a great night out it was. The chefs are amazing, very entertaining to watch and all of a sudden scrambled egg is flying through the air :) You have to experience it yourself. I'm sure you'll walk away with your own funny story what happened with the scrambled egg after all :P And the YumYum sauce, OMG. It's so effin' delicious! Oh, and have you ever had fried ice cream? One of the best dinner nights ever...

Their pizzas are to dies for!!! Yummmmmmmmm!!!!

Awesome memories and great food! Love the ambience!

OMG!!!! Just the experience of picking your own meats and then adding your own sauce combos....it's amazing!

Their quantity ans taset is divine!

The whole idea of mobile mexican food is awesome!

I heard of this place first through my Howick friends who go on and go about it, so I had to get it with them one night. The annoying thing is I don’t think there is an online menu for this place so my friend spent about an hour going through all her paper menus trying to find Fong Mei’s one and by the time she found it the place had closed. So the next night we phone ordered then went and picked it up and brought it back to her house. The food was delicious, I ordered the fried noodle with black pepper beef and it was very authentically Asian and absolutely delicious and equally filling. Definite 5/5 for this place and highly recommended to anyone who appreciates genuine Cantonese cuisine.

This place is pretty cute, came here the other day and was greeted by a girl in Spanish (Hola) although it was ultimately quite weird because she put on a thick Spanish accent to say Hola, gracias and adios then switched back to a New Zealand accent… oh well it was a cute façade in the name of the restaurant anyway. Anywho so we got the Grande nachos with chicken and it was soo good, the ones I attempt to make at home could never compare. The topping to chip ratio was extra pleasing as well, definitely do not get ripped off here. The beef quesadilla was really delicious and the pinos gris was very crisp. The lizards sitting in the tank by the register were a treat for the eyes too.

Nishiki was the port of call before a night out in Ponsonby and our friend arranged for us all to come here beforehand to eat and drink before heading out as it is BYO. It is always quite fun ordering from here, everything is very cheap and you choose a whole bunch of little things to eat at one time. A must get is the chips with maple syrup - sounds so weird and that is what I thought but it is SO yum. We got so many dishes I can hardly remember most of them but I do remember there was nothing I did not enjoy. So we ended up getting quite drunk and gave the waiters some grief with our drunken antics and we have been too scared to return since. Hopefully by now they have forgotten our faces. Definitely one of my favourite Japanese restaurants.

I came to Bona Pizza with my two girlfriends one night before heading out because they both love the place. Upon seeing it had colourful fairy lights splayed across the store front I was already sold. It is a small and humble restaurant with only a small number of tables but it suits it perfectly. It is byo which made my experience even better, but I was impressed by their pizzas. We ordered the Ponsonby VIP Grande and the Al Pollo Affumicato. Simply delicious. The first pizza had tomato sauce, cheese,chicken, eggplant and sundried tomatos and artichokes while the second had tomato sauce, cheese, smoked chicken, green peppercorns, capsicum, parmesan cheese and sweet chilli sauce. I had never seen pizzas with such ingredients in my many years of pizza trialling so this was a pleasant and delicious surprise. HIGHLY recommended. Also the owner is SO sweet, such a lovely woman.

This place was simply divine. I went here on a date (yay for me) and I am so glad I listened to my friends recommendation on this one. Situated in Auckland’s trendy Britomart square, this little slice of Vietnamese heaven is one of the best restaurants I have been to. We turned up without reservations on a Wednesday night and had to wait for an hour to be seated so be sure to book in advance. We got a couple of shared plates which included a hotpot of caramelised pork belly and chicken skewers. We ordered the herb tray for a laugh but turned out to be a really good idea to mix with the mains so be sure to get that as well. We finished with a dessert wine each which was absolutely delicious. The service was great, it was a great environment and my company was certainly great (thank god for that). Also the toilets were located underground down numerous staircases and around a labyrinth which eventually took you to the bathrooms which were styled like boutiquey powder rooms with candles as lighting. Very cute. Love this place.

The $40 buffet is amazing for a family on a budget.

The buffet has over 3 different meats perfect for fussy foodies!

The fire you see in the middle of the night while standing next to the hotplate is an experience to remember.

Everyone loves a bit of spice and herbs in their chicken a true ethnic food made with love!

This is a gem if you want to go to thailand just go here it is a hidden gem you have no idea you are in the middle of a suburb once you enter the doors to the secret thai garden.

I always get the same thing whenever I come here - the braised pork biang biang noodles. It’s a big bowl of chewy noodles and melt-in-your-mouth pork with a hint of sharp coriander and chilli heat. It’s cool how the chef hand-pulls each order of noodles before tossing it in the wok. I love it so much that I have cravings for it when I’m away from home!

Whatever kind of mood you're in - sad, happy, angry, or hangry (the worst) - you'll only feel much better once you're seated with a steaming bowl of fragrant pho at Hansan. To borrow from that cheesy series of books from the '90s, it's chicken pho for the soul. Choose any of the varieties of pho (rice noodles are better than egg noodles), load up your bowl with crunchy mung beans, your choice of condiments for level of spiciness, and dig in. Your life will seem a whole lot better afterwards. Just don't get chilli oil in your eye, because that ish burns.

I always get the pad thai at the Thai stall here. There's a choice of chicken, beef or pork for $10, or for $12 you can get prawns. Whichever you choose, it comes with scrambled egg, tofu puffs, beansprouts and peanuts all tossed through rice noodles and their great pad thai sauce. It's better than ones I've had at restaurants, and there's usually so much I can never finish it on one sitting!   

The combination of delicious food, great prices and proximity to where I live means that Mentatz usually sees me stopping by at least a couple of times a month. Love the pork katsu don, but the ramen is also great for when I’m in a noodle mood.

I’m pretty sure this is the best laksa I’ve had in Auckland. I’d heard so many good things about this place, and when we arrived on a Thursday night we had to wait for a table as the place was packed - always a good sign. Try the roti too, so good!

Friendly staff great service

Lovely food friendly staff

Great Indian Cuisine

Totally different experience

For a quick time out

The food here is just divine, amazing Asian-fusion flavors!! I recommend going in a group so you can try all the different dishes and it will be a bit cheaper too - its a bit pricey if its just two of you. Been a few times now and its my favorite Asian spot!

Great Asian-fusion dishes! They also have a lovely coconut rice option instead of white rice which I love! Delicious food - reasonable price ranging from 15-30 depending on what you choose.

Hands down the best yum char in Auckland!! I’ve been to alot of yum char places and this is the best. Be sure to book because it is always BUSY. Go with a group so you can try all the delicious dishes :)

Delicious food, BYO and reasonably cheap if you go in a big group!

Great Thai food, lovely atmosphere, friendly service. I usually find thai food is pretty standard in most places but the pad thai is pretty good here :)

This place has saved me on so many occasions! Such a filling meal for less than $10. I usually have to pace myself so I have room for dessert! Delish!

So cheap. So good. Oh my god. So good. Their cabinets are always well stocked with delicious noms. The chargrilled vege bap is one of my personal faves.

One of my favourite things about dumplings from New Flavour is everyone making their own dipping concoctions out of all the various sauces. New Flavour dumplings are a great way to feed a lot of people for not a lot of money.

Excellent cheap kebabs. Open late. Can’t go wrong.

By the slice, Sal’s is a pretty good cheap eats option! $4 for a cheese slice and they’re a very decent size. Great to soak up the cider or to eat while soaking up the sun! Go nuts with the chilli flakes I say!

What a meatatarians heaven this place is. We booked for a leisurely lunch and as true beef addicts we thought it was about time we tried Aucklands premier Steak house. We were not disappointed. We decided to exercise our gluttony right and have a starter - salt & pepper prawns and the calamari snitzel. These were delightful but not too exciting in that I felt the prawns were great but there was too little of the yummy sauce to taste fully and albeit a unique concept , the calamari snitzel was good but not fabulous. The aoli with it was ordinary. But then…. the mains arrived. My partner had the sirloin and I had the petite fillet. One word…. Perfect. Then we tried the sides and sauces… OMG good is not appropriate. We got 4 sauces and although each was great… we settled on our 2 fav’s - The spinach and gorgonzola blue cheese….. AND the Brandy and green peppercorn… combined were out of this world. The sides were even better… we went for the perfect mix of candied kumara and the JSH creamed spinach. These 2 sides have now been voted as the best sides ( separately and even more so together) in New Zealand.. in fact perhaps just the world. We went a week ago and I am craving this divine meal every day. Fab service, fab wine and it really doesnt get much better than this.

Outstandingly Good! This was my 3rd visit to Soul and was by far the absolute best.  Not sure if booking helped plus being lunch it was a lot quieter than the usual hectic dinner crowd and queues.  Either way we were welcomed to Soul and received wonderful service as we  were shown to our table in the lovely flower pot adorned atrium setting showered with sun. The menu is not huge but still takes a lot of careful deliberation due to the innovative nature of the meals.  Divine...divine... divine.. they all look divine!!! We settled on the Scampi cocktail with whipped avocado & Moroccan ketchup to share as our starter.  I wish I'd got one each but at $28.50 it was not going to happen  It arrived in a martini class (nice touch) and had about 4 large prawns in a divine avocado mousse with salad and had a large crumbed scampi on top.  Divine! I then chose Roasted Savannah beef fillet, smoky potato purée, beef marrow + horseradish pesto (excellent value @ $38.00).  As a self proclaimed beef connoisseur I can honestly say this was one of the best steaks I have had in many many years.  Divine does not do it justice.   My partner ordered the Merino lamb rump with mini lamb & pumpkin pie.. Again another wonderfully good meal.  We had the Creamed feta spinach with fried almonds as our side ($8) which was the perfect accompaniment to this fabulous meal. Having discovered gluttony is a wonderful sin.. we proceeded to share a dessert.  Our waiter insisted the bittersweet chocolate was the one but knowing our own minds too well we settled on  the Hazelnut meringue, praline parfait, Valrhona milk chocolate brulee & pear confit ($16.50).  We both had to agree this is the best dessert we have had.  ( Admittedly we are not huge dessert people but do love sweet things).  This was a subtle sweetness with heavenly flavours of praline and pear which worked so well together in presentation & taste that we have made it our top choice for a dessert.   So as you can see I'm not sure whether the moons were all aligned in the right places or we had an extra dose of happy that morning .....I apologise but I can only say one word... Divine.. over & over & over... Soul delivered us a little slice of awesome today....

If you've ever been to Italy you will know its about dining with warmth, family, friends and fantastic food.   Prego epitomises this and never disappoints.  It is the hub of the colourful Auckland people scene.  You never know who you are dining with but you know you've seen them on TV, in magazines or just know they people who want to share in that buzz of I'm an Aucklander and I'm special.   We strolled up at 2.30pm looking for a late lunch and were greeted by the wonderfully efficient staff.  We chose to sit outside (I mean who wouldn't on a gloriously sunny day).  We sat under the gorgeous canopy of a huge yellow tree (hate to admit I don't know its breed) but the setting has a reminiscence of Italy. We ordered the calamari to start which arrived fairly promptly (what you want at 3pm) and was beautiful.  A light batter and scrummy aoili on rocket salad.  Perfection!!  We added two glasses of a strange sounding red wine which the waitress assured us was good...she was right,  it was excellent.  (Don't you  love staff you can trust). As self proclaimed steak connoisseurs we couldn't order anything but the Surf and turf.. a prime piece of beef adorned with 2 grilled prawns and surrounded with the (yep an OMG good) bernaise sauce... on a bed of polenta which was a new experience and one in which I want again as soon as possible.. OMG yum!  We accompanied this with a rocket salad (with shaved parmesan and balsamic dressing)- a must when having a good steak. Yep I can die now and go to heaven ( again!!)  it truly is a 10/10 meal. Cause we are crazy and have discovered gluttony is a wonderful sin- we went on to try the Tiramisu for dessert (sharing one of course- we are not that crazy)...  It was presented beautifully and was good.  Possibly could have been a bit sweeter in the syrupy parts but the mousse-like majority was divine.    Perfect food, wonderful atmosphere and excellence in all things Prego keeps this as my number 1 Italian (well #1 in most categories)  in Auckland.

As a last minute Mothers Day treat we rang and luckily got in. Being part of the Sky Hotel complex parking was straight forward albeit not cheap. The restaurant is dark, alluring and different with an array of delectable meats, cheeses and seafood out in all its glory as you walk in. Try to not stop & look. I came for one thing and one thing alone… the Sunday roast beef and Yorkshire pudding ( for $40).. although I confess there were a lot of other divine sounding dishes I could as easily ordered… but being true to my British upbringing of roast beef & Yorkshire pud every Sunday lunchtime while I grew up on the farm… I stayed true. We started with the Queensland prawns ( some cold (@ $9.50 each) & some hot to share ( $38 for the hot). They kindly gave us extra since they were not as large as they should be. These were superb with a capital Sup The kids had a maccas & cheese ($12) to share & fries cooked in duck fat ($12 I think)… it was plenty after the starters. ( and VERY tasty I might add). My partner had the sirloin which was huge and I the roast. Well I have to admit it was the best roast beef I’ve ever had. A huge slice (or chunk) of rare beef with a blob of Bearnaise and a jus.. roast potatoes and a large carrot. The Yorkshire pudding itself rivaled my Mothers and thats no mean feat!!!! The food superb, the service exemplary, the environment dark, warm and very very comfortable in a fine dining kinda way. PS: I noticed 2 very sexy little booths I am definitely going back to sit in one of those… soon I hope.

A fab addition to our neighbourhood & what a little gem in Blockhouse Bay. Excellent steak & bernaise sauce for $25.. comes with giant crunchy fries, an egg, vine tomatoe and a little jug of gravy (tasted very similar to the one at JSH). This place is our regular spot for lunch.

Hansan has a good vibe about it, it feels like eating at an upmarket eatery but without the price tag. I had the noodle soup with fried pork. What arrived was a massive bowl of pho’ish soup and what looked like a large pork schnitzel. Although the soup needed a lot of seasoning (spoons full of chilli) both were tasty and for $12 you can’t go wrong. Both of my comrades opted for the chicken noodle salad, they both gave glowing reports. I’d recommend this place to anyone wanting a nice meal but who doesn’t want to bust the bank.

Mutiara is the bees knees when it comes to eating Malaysian. We sat outside and tucked into the beef rendang (pictured) and the nasi goreng. Both were delicious and the portions were generous (we had to take ours away). On the menu is a wide selection of noodle dishes, curries, seafood and other Malay treats. Mutiara makes a mean roti, so make sure these are an addition. If you’re not around at dinner stop in at lunch as they do great lunch specials aswell.

If you're in the Britomart area and are looking for something to warm you up to the very core you can't go past Daikoku Ramen. It would be easy to go past this small poky Japanese establishment but it would be a foolish mistake. When I go there I tend to choose the ramen soup combo that comes served with a side of gyoza dumplngs and of course a Japanese beer. The soup, chicken based with home made egg noodles is served with bamboo and generous hunks of pork, is delicious and the dumplings are always tasty and fresh.  

I was introduced to the spicy squid salad from Otto Woo while interning for a communications company while studying. My boss there would shout me a salad when she was feeling generous. The salad, complete with crispy squid, is made up of fresh slaw, crispy noodles and a spicy, tart dressing. It's one spicy kick in the mouth that's always welcome.

When it comes to first dates I don't think you can go wrong with Japanese, and when it comes to Japanese Tanuki's is the perfect destination. The extensive menu has a wide variety of dishes that are perfect for sharing and the informal bustling atmosphere and friendly service is perfect for anyone feeling slightly nervous. There's plenty of alcoholic beverages available, I'd recommend getting a big Asahi to share and perhaps a sake if you are that way inclined. My favourite dishes that I'd recommend are the karaage chicken, the broccoli with peanut sauce, the sashimi platter, the raw beef and the deep fried cheese. Also if your date is a vegetarian there are plenty of vege options to keep them happy.

If I want a whole load of healthy nutrients, lots of tasty food and I don’t have much money to spend on it, this is my number one place to go! The $6 lunch is the best, you get a little bit of everything, including dessert!!

Best vege burger I have ever had. For serious. Really unusual type of vege burger, I think that’s what makes it so great. It’s some kind of seed and grain patty, delicious. Also the deep fried pickles are so amazing! And it’s open…. late!! :D

The Thai food here is so freaking good. And so cheap! They have a huuuuuge selection of vegetarian dishes, the most I’ve seen probably anywhere in Auckland! Almost too many! Haha. The vege Tom Yum soup is amazing too.

Don’t be fooled by the shabby decor, dinner here is a taste-bud sensation! Yes, the staff are very friendly and the seating is comfy, but it’s the food itself that takes the prize. I’d highly recommend the Dahi Puri, pictured. It’s a hard, crispy shell with potato inside, topped with yoghurt, tamarind paste, chutney, fresh herbs and ground spices and oh my god is it delicious. I also love their Dosa, a thin pancake with crispy edges, with curry inside, rolled up and served in slices. So yummy! Good prices and you can even BYO wine, like we did! Loads of great vegetarian options! Get into some scrummy South Indian cuisine!

AMAZING DUMPLINGS!!! Great selection of vegetarian options. There are two different kinds of aubergine they do and both are inconceivably tasty. Are they wizards? I suspect yes. Every time I’ve been here we’ve had to order more aubergine because all the meat-eaters kept eating it! Beware though, if you order a plate of dumplings, do not let the price fool you into thinking it will be a small amount! This place is cheap and you will get a mound of dumplings. They are really good and I have eaten so much every time I’ve gone here cos it’s all just so hard to resist! The décor ain’t so glam, but they do have those nifty lazy susan tables and extra seating available upstairs. The star of this show is defo the food though!