Auckland Restaurants

Princes Wharf and adjoining Viaduct Quay, an easy stroll from the city's major thoroughfare, Queen Street, offer dozens of eateries in every style from cheap-and-cheerful to superposh. High Street, running parallel to Queen Street on the Albert Park side of town, has developed into a busy café and restaurant strip over the last few years. You can get between Queen and High streets via Vulcan Lane, which has some attractive bars itself. Asian immigrants have created a market for a slew of cheap noodle and sushi bars throughout the inner city and the rule of thumb is the more crowded, the better.

Away from the city center, the top restaurant areas are on Ponsonby and Parnell roads, a 10-minute bus or cab ride from the city center. Dominion and Mt. Eden roads in the city, as well as Hurstmere Road in the seaside suburb of Takapuna, just over the Harbour Bridge, are also worth exploring. The mix is eclectic—Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Italian, and Thai eateries sit alongside casual taverns, pizzerias, and high-end restaurants. At hole-in-the-wall spots in and around the city center a few dollars will buy you anything from fish-and-chips to nachos, noodles, or naan bread.

To the west, out toward the Waitakere Ranges, the suburb of Titirangi has earned a reputation as a dining village, with everything from low-key pizza, Middle Eastern, and Southeast Asian places to wine bars and upscale restaurants with harbor views.

Traveling east there are many ethnic restaurants that are inexpensive—in particular the Panmure shopping center, about 20 minutes from central Auckland, has outstanding Malaysian and Indian restaurants. What look like very down-at-heel premises often have kitchens staffed by cooks who turn out super food for mostly ethnic and very knowing customers. Driving a little farther east will bring you into the Botany Downs area, which also, despite the bleak look of the new houses, has some good restaurants that escape the mainstream food critics.

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