The service is sharp, the food flavoursome but this oldie has something missing.

The hippest place to be this summer lives up to its well-earned reputation.

If anyone other than Pic suggested sailing around the world, I'd dismiss it as an idle fancy. But Pic's fancies are never idle.

A menu with coquettish names provides an entertaining meal otherwise lacking in service.

Just opened. Fine food in casual space. Royal Oak. Chefs from the esteemed Meredith's kitchen. Asian-European fusion. Eek, that last bit worried me.

Ela Restaurant serves the food of southwestern India.

A new eatery on the Shore surprises with its sense of adventure.

They take bookings at the Mexican Cafe only for groups of eight or more - except on Valentine's Day. Isn't that soooo romantic?

Southeast Asian flavours delivered with grace and delicacy.

We came here because we’d driven past a few times and were intrigued by the name — and the tower-like corner of the building.

Sparks fly at this Argentinian barbecue house, where the atmosphere is warm and the meat is smokin' hot.

In the 1980s a visit to the Birdcage meant a fun night out. Now it promises an evening of delight.

We came here because it was handy to my friend’s workplace and a good excuse to have a mid-week catch-up.

The food is so good it diverts attention from the live coverage of the kitchen.

If you've ever lamented the closing of the Open Late Cafe in Ponsonby (oh those giant vessels of hot chocolate!)...

It has always puzzled me that Devonport is so short of decent places to eat.

We came here because we wanted to see what all the fuss was about at Ponsonby Central, the new artisan market housing several good eateries.

Change is afoot at this adventurous institution specialising in wild game.

The Stamford Plaza was the last word in sophistication when it opened, as the Regent, in the 1980s. Smug yuppies and teenage sharebrokers flocked to parties laden with wannabe celebrities.

There I was, minding my own business at a rather lovely wine tasting at Vivace on High St, when my wandering eye roved out the window and caught sight of a tiny bar in a little lane opposite.

A trip to South America fails to live up to expectations.

We came here because we were intrigued to visit the cafe housed in a historic Ponsonby building, the old Fire Station.

Investing in a new, fashionable brand pays dividends for an established Remuera eatery

Immigrants from African countries, in particular from the Horn of Africa, have proliferated in Auckland's inner southwest in recent years.

Revelry, the brain-child of restaurant designer Jason Rosen and bar manager Benjamin Taylor, rests somewhat uneasily beneath the International Food Hall on the corner of Ponsonby Rd and Pollen St.

We came here because this venerable old Ponsonby institution bagged a thumbs-up from global hipsterdom's fountainhead Tyler Brule, who, in an open love letter to Auckland published on the Financial Times' website

Kingsland's latest eatery aims to offer something for everyone

It was Andrew who ordered the crisps. He remembered having tried some nice Irish ones at this Irish pub and he asked the waitress for some brand names.