Waiheke Island
Up a winding driveway framed by grapevines, Waiheke's newest vineyard restaurant and tasting room channels an Iberian ambience, but the savvy and diverse…
Must-see restaurants in North Island
Ponsonby & Karangahape Rd
Hot in both senses of the word, this super-fashionable restaurant focuses on the fiery cuisine of the Isaan and Lanna regions of northern Thailand. The…
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Coromandel Peninsula
Get pleasantly lost in the Refinery, a spacious showcase of 1960s and 1970s Kiwiana style including a turntable where customers are encouraged to play the…
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Ponsonby & Karangahape Rd
No one in Auckland produces creative degustations quite like Sid Sahrawat. It's food as both art and science but, more importantly, food to fire up the…
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Waikato & the Coromandel Peninsula
Around 3km from town adjacent to surf beaches, Rock-It Kitchen combines rustic decor – it's housed in an old woolshed – with the area's best food. New…
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Auckland
Modern Filipino food is the star at Nanam in the North Shore suburb of Takapuna. Dine on innovative updates of traditional Filipino food that made UK chef…
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Coromandel Peninsula
Luke’s Kitchen has a rustic surf-shack ambience, cold brews including hyper-local craft beer from Kūaotunu's tiny Blue Fridge Brewery and excellent wood…
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Coromandel Peninsula
Bringing cosmopolitan cool to Coromandel Town, Wharf Road offers the opportunity to ease into another day equipped with excellent coffee, interesting…
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Parnell & Newmarket
Greek cuisine is rare in Auckland, but Gerome's modern interpretation of traditional Hellenic flavours make it one of Auckland's best restaurants…
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Napier
This long, floorboarded room with its green-tiled bar is the pride and joy of the Napier foodie scene. Hip and slick but not grossly unaffordable, with…
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Auckland
The Persian heritage of the Lolaiy family combines with game meat and foraged ingredients at Cazador. Decor such as stuffed animal heads is largely…
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Wellington
Deservedly ranked among Wellington's best restaurants, Logan Brown oozes class without being overly formal. Its 1920s banking-chamber dining room is a…
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Ponsonby & Karangahape Rd
Located amid the restored heritage architecture of St Kevin's Arcade, Gemmayze St presents a stylish update on Lebanese cuisine. Mint, orange blossom and…
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Ponsonby & Karangahape Rd
Nikkei cuisine, an exciting blend of Japanese and Peruvian influences, is the focus at Azabu. Amid a dramatic interior enlivened by striking images of…
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North Island
Stocked with home-baked goodies (chubby muffins, bagels, pastrami-stuffed baguettes), this bijou deli and wood-fired pizzeria is heaven-sent for the…
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Waiheke Island
Referencing the first three digits of Waiheke phone numbers, Three Seven Two's oceanfront location includes an outdoor deck and a shaded rear courtyard…
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Taupo
Taupō's coolest cafe is just outside the town centre, filling an old plumbing store over two warren-like levels. Indoor plants drape over warehouse beams…
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Parnell & Newmarket
Pasture is unlike any other dining experience in the city. You'll need to book a few months ahead – the compact space has just two seatings per night and…
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Wellington
A Cuba St institution for caffeine-craving rebels, Fidel's cranks out eggs any which way, pizzas, panini and fab salads, along with the city's best…
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Coromandel Peninsula
On the outskirts of Waihi Beach, the Surf Shack is definitely worth a detour for its plate-filling salads and quite possibly the best burgers in New…
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Wellington
This warmly lit, atmospheric wine bar serves some of Wellington's best food. Euro influences pervade the menu, featuring the likes of charcuterie plates,…
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Coromandel Peninsula
Sleek Scandi style makes the Port Road Project a standout in sleepy Whangamatā. Join the locals on the sunny, shared tables and partner the all-day menu…
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Coromandel Peninsula
The Bistro at the Falls Retreat is located in a wooden cottage under a shaded canopy of trees. Gourmet pizzas and rustic meat dishes emerge from the wood…
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Rotorua
Overlooking the village green, this bright and breezy restaurant sources herbs and edible flowers from its own yard. Doors peel back to merge the indoor…
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Taupo
Under the same ownership since opening in 1993, this fabulous spot is one-half cafe and one-half shop selling designer kitchenware, ceramics and souvenirs…
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Bay of Islands & Northland
Beyond the rough wooden exterior is a corrugated-iron-lined speakeasy where staff dressed as flappers deliver cooked breakfasts, gourmet burgers and…
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Tauranga
Our favourite Tauranga cafe pairs an appealing front deck with hip baristas who really know their way around the coffee machine. A huge array of counter…
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Bay of Islands & Northland
At this beautiful riverside villa turned restaurant, grab a table on the wraparound veranda overlooking yachts bobbing in the neighbouring marina. The…
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Tauranga
Zingy pan-Asian, shared-plate flavours take centre stage at Tauranga's top restaurant. The dark booths are ocean deep, and menu highlights include ginger…
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Waikato & the Coromandel Peninsula
Huhu combines expansive terrace views and contemporary NZ food. Sip a Kiwi wine or craft beer – including brews from the local King Country Brewing Co –…
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Rotorua
Channelling Mexico and Morocco, sociable Abracadabra is a magical cave of spicy delights, from beef-and-apricot tagine to the grande burrito. There's an…
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Wellington
Olive boldly attempts to be all things to all Wellingtonians: breakfast cafe, nocturnal bistro, wine bar, craft-beer joint and live-music venue...and…
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Wellington
Watch the top-knotted bakers baking through the big picture window, then head inside to taste some scones, biscuits, cakes and lovely loaves, plus simple…
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Napier
Seemingly always busy when everywhere else is half-full, Hunger Monger is a funky seaside seafood diner with sheepskin-covered seats, quirky tablecloths…
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Wellington
Italian? Fusion? Wine bar? Loretta is a hard gal to categorise, but she's won leagues of fans with her classy, well-proportioned offerings served in…
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Wellington
Mounted trout, salty portraits, marine-blue walls and Egyptian floor tiles cast a Mediterranean spell over Ortega – a magical spot for a seafood dinner…
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Taupo & the Ruapehu Region
After a day of play in the mountains, there's nothing better than these beast-sized burgers cooked on a custom-made manuka wood-fire grill. A burger’s…
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Taupo & the Ruapehu Region
Bagels, innovative salads, and tasty American and Tex Mex–influenced dishes combine with the best coffee in town at this modern, white-as-snow spot on…
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Bay of Islands & Northland
This heritage cottage at Waipu Cove covers all the bases, from coffee and breakfast bagels to pizza, gourmet burgers, a small bar and healthy smoothies…
Ponsonby & Karangahape Rd
Japanese elegance infuses everything at this excellent restaurant, from the soft lighting and chic decor to the delicate flavours of the artistically…
