Auckland Food Guide

Q: What food is Auckland known for?

Auckland's signature dishes include Pavlova, Hangi, Whitebait Fritter, Hokey Pokey Ice Cream, Anzac Biscuit. See our signature dishes chapter for where to eat each.

Q: What are the best food neighborhoods in Auckland?

TableJourney editors map Auckland by district. Britomart, Auckland CBD, Ponsonby, Karangahape Road are among the strongest for food, each with its own guide.

Q: Where should I eat fine dining in Auckland?

Editor picks in Auckland include Ahi, Metita, Forest, plus the full fine dining chapter on TableJourney.

Q: Are there food tours in Auckland?

TableJourney covers 4 editor-picked food tours in Auckland, with what each shows you and how much to budget.

Q: Does Auckland have good vegetarian or vegan food?

TableJourney's Auckland dietary chapter covers vegan, vegetarian, gluten_free, halal venues, each editor-picked with what to order and how to ask.

Abstract

Auckland eats off two oceans, two harbours and the Pacific Islander migration that built its food culture. The high end runs on modern New Zealand cooking with native ingredients on the plate: Ahi at Commercial Bay for fire-cooked Modern NZ, Metita's Pasifika room at The Grand by SkyCity, Forest's vegetarian tasting menus on Dominion Road and Masu's robata Japanese on Federal Street. Britomart anchors the precinct dining, with Amano running Italian out of an old brick warehouse on Tyler Street, Ortolana doing seasonal Italian on the corner and Ebisu pouring sake under the heritage facade. The neighbourhood layer is where the city actually eats. Karangahape Road and Ponsonby run through Apero on K Road, Bar Magda's basement Filipino room on Cross Street, Pici pasta in St Kevins Arcade and Gemmayze Street Lebanese under the same arcade. Dominion Road in Mount Eden is where Cantonese and Vietnamese have anchored since the 1990s, with Eden Noodles drawing queues for hand-pulled dumplings, and Cazador running game-led cooking from the same strip. Coffee is the city's morning religion: Allpress in Freemans Bay, Atomic across Kingsland and Ponsonby, Coffee Supreme through the central suburbs. Pacific Island, Maori, British, Chinese, Korean and Indian threads weave the everyday menu; Waiheke Island sits 35 minutes by ferry for the wine.