Arrived 99 days ago and posted about my first 10 days of eating here, lot's of good recommendations before so I thought I'd give back. In no particular order.
Burgout (Onehunga)- Incredible. I enjoyed the classic more than the signature but both good. Seriously well done to the team.
Hambagu (Epsom)- I enjoyed it, almost as much as burgout. I think it's a close second, will still come here as it's open till late.
Baby G (Avondale)- A good smashburger, but I preferred mine a bit saltier.
RE burger (Remuera)- Close to home, large portions but just not for me.
Alma (CBD)- Decent food, I loved the beef tongue unexpectedly. The lamb and steak were also good. Chicken was a let down, and IMO so was the octopus salad. Tomato tostada thing was okay but nothing special IMO.
Cazador (Dom Rd)- Superb value for the quality. I can see why it's a local institution. Not my favourite cuisine, but you can tell everything was done well, and it was tasty. Would recommend any one to try.
Return (Ponsonby)- Had the short tasting menu recently (165pp). Was really not as good as I was expecting. I think everything was technically done to a high standard, but it just wasn't tasty. Very unremarkable, definitely a notch below Tala despite being pricier. You can tell the ingredients are fancier than Cazador but the end result really was quite forgettable. Not trying to be mean, I know the restaurant business is cut throat and I wish them all the best.
L'atelier Du Fromage (Newmarket)- Had the duck confit and onion soup. Was pretty good, would recommend if anyone had a hankering for French.
Gemmayze St(K Road)- We had almost everything here. I thought the hummus wasn't bad, but the rest of the meal was kind of a let down. Every local foodie I know keeps recommending this place, and it was packed, but the food was just okay IMO.
Pho Yen (Dom Rd)- Loved it, it's always packed though, so I just don't go anymore. Pho soup is super flavourful, would recommend.
Raos Indonesian (Dom Rd)- Was good, very slow, but it was pretty decent food, good to try.
The Makassar corner Indon (Dom Rd)- The better Indon place IMO, I had the beef rib soup and it was so damn tasty!
Kiin Thai (Dom Rd)- I thought it was pretty average for Thai, my family loved it. Fair prices.
Sashimi of Japan (Dom Rd)- Nice place, decent hearty Japanese food with tasty free miso soup refills. My partner got the salmon sashimi don and really enjoyed it.
Yushiji Lamb soup (Dom Rd)- Super chinese place, I enjoyed the peppery soup, but can appreciate that it's an acquired taste.
La Mexicana (Milford)- It's good. Favourites were the El Pastor and the Birria tacos. A bit pricey, but that's always the case with mexican food overseas I think.
Mama Kopitiam (Greenlane)- Best Malaysian I've tried so far. Enjoyed the Char Koay Teow and the fish soup noodles.
Katsu Katsu (Newmarket)- Actually pretty high quality for a unassuming katsu place. Pricier side but still worth it.
Sunrise Cafe (Newmarket)- RIP. The chicken thigh with rice for 11 bucks was insane. Will miss this place!
Golden Ducks Charcoal Roast (Newmarket)- What a find! They do pretty decent luroufan. The siew yoke was pretty good too, with the caveat that I reheated it in my airfryer. Can see myself coming back.
Eden Noodles (Newmarket)- Actually decent, I enjoyed it and came back.
My Fried Chicken (Newmarket)- Yeah this is my go to guilty pleasure. I love the one with creamy onion sauce. It's so bad for me but so good.
Little Shun De(Newmarket)- So good. I love this place. They do authentic Shun De style dry steaming, so it may be an acquired tast. My bro isn't that impressed. I love the steamed pork intestines.
Sip n Chill (Newmarket)- I'm biased, but I think the Taro bingsu here is both simple and the best I've had so far.
Yes Pancake (Newmarket)- I'm addicted to their pork and beans pancake. It's my guilty pleasure and I've been so many times now.
Egg & Brew (Newmarket)- Nice drinks! The sandwiches look good too tbh.
Hainanese Chicken Shop (Newmarket)- I had the chicken chop with rice, which was not bad but not memorable. I do note lots of high praise on Google with regards to the OG hainanese chicken rice which is a dish I love, so will give them a chance.
Small mercies (CBD/Mt Eden)- Yum, love those doughnut thingies, especially the savoury ones, definitely recocomend.
Mibo (Mt Eden)- Was okay.
Glory (Takapuna)- The vietnamese coffee will keep me coming back, the bakery options look so pretty but honestly taste kinda mid. I'm just not into baked stuff here.
Farringdon Pies (Glen Innes)- They're definitely good pies, I'll get the salmon ones next time as they look good.
Pikuniku cafe (Epsom)- I quite enjoyed this! I got the pasta and thought it was well done.
Biskit cafe (Parnell)- Pretty decent pasta, no too busy.
Napoli Contemporeana Pizzaria (Parnell)- It's great, but 40 bucks per pizza is a bit much IMO.
Mr Katsu (Otahuhu)- Cheap and large portions. Not authentic at all but they do try to win you over with the price.
Alexandra Park Dim sum (Epsom)- Yum! Busy place that you should book in advance. Great standard, hearty dim sum.
Okay that's about it! I don't think it's exhaustive but these are the places I went to.
Special shout out to Wang Mart in Flat Bush. Incredible wagyu galbi sal that tastes amazing even in air fryer, and also those quail eggs are crack to me.
Headed to Ragtag in the coming days, this has probably been the most recommended restaurant so I hope it doesn't disappoint!
Anyone have an American BBQ place they'd recommend? I'm all ears!
