Staff at the Auckland City Mission have been rushed off their feet and will be cooking Christmas dinner for more than 2000 people tomorrow.

Police have now lifted a cordon blocking off part of Remuera Rd, two hours after someone telephoned a bomb and giving a time.

The person who called in a bomb threat in Auckland today gave a specific time when it would explode, police say.

It's slick, it's popular and it serves up delicious food with flair.

Inspired by fairytales and fables with a twist, Tiffany Jeans' curios are wonderfully unique. The artist shares her aesthetic with Viva.

This time last year, Auckland City mayor John Banks was rubbishing a poll showing Manukau mayor Len Brown 11 points ahead in the race for the Super City mayoralty as "shonky".

Balmoral residents have suffered a further blow in their 3 1/2-year battle to stop a McDonald's restaurant being built on the western edge of the shopping centre, fronting Balmoral Rd and Wiremu St.

A girls' night out to a Newmarket noodle restaurant turned into a "revolting" nightmare before Christmas after a creepy-crawly was found in their soybean dish.

Auckland Airport handled 3.8 per cent more passengers in November than a year ago, and airports it has invested in experienced even stronger growth.

A selection of Christmas church services in the main centres.

Booga Beazley and band have been saving their pennies for a new album, but next on the agenda is New Years Eve, he tells Hugh Sundae

Santa Claus is coming to town - and the weather is looking fantastic for his long ride down from the North Pole.

The virtual band are beamed on to the giant screen and act out Hewlett's intriguing and twisted stories.

Eden Park Trust is hoping the first large crowd at the stadium since the Four Nations rugby league debacle last month will be well-behaved.

A developer is asking the courts to call off the Tree Council's crusade against him felling an 80-year-old Avondale pohutukawa.

Auckland Transport is being asked to consider running bus lanes down the middle of Dominion Rd while reviewing an $84 million upgrade project.

Transport Minister says many questions remain over $2 billion-plus project.

A couple of years ago, Euro's executive chef Simon Gault took out a full-page advertisement in the Herald on Sunday, offering a recipe for "Metro Food Critic Testicles" as a protest.

A Vietnamese eatery combines traditional and modern styles.