Auckland

So I went to school in New Zealand. It’s beautiful. I’ve been all over the country and yes, it’s exactly like the Lord of the Rings.

Exhibit A, B and C.

My favourite places in NZ are Queenstown, Kaikoura, Wellington, Whangamata and all the tiny towns where tea shops sell whitebait fritter sandwiches, and smoked hapuka pies. (Wow, I’m 24 years old and I’ve been obsessed with weird, delicious food for a long time.) But I digress. I however lived in Auckland. I didn’t like it but it had its merits. Mostly my friends, my boyfriend, baking, West coast beaches, Kingsland, my football teams, the Comedy Festival, Kohu Road icecream, feijoa wine and vodka and Monteiths beer. This post is going to be gargantuan and largely food centric (It’s me?). Brace yourself.

Auckland does burgers well. Murderburger – love their blog and sense of humour, Burgerfuel – the doofer!, Handmade Burger and Burger Wisconsin. There may be more now but these were the places I liked. And you have to get kumara chips and aioli. Good pizza lives at Al Volo in Mt Eden and Il Buco on Ponsonby Rd.

Margarita slushies and nachos and boats every week with Farnaz. I once saw the QE 2 and drank chilli infused Mexican beer. The Viaduct and the other piers are awesome before 7pm. Never after. El Camino in Kingsland and Ahsi Itzcalli have delish Mexican (and the latter Yucatan too, I think)

I’ve been to every cute bakery in Auckland. Twice at least. Hayley and I used to call it research. Our favourite bakeries/cakeries are Queenies (my review!), Agnes Curran, La Tropezziene, Philippes Chocolat, Bakeshop (formerly Brown Sugar Kitchen), Le Petit Village, Little Cake Kitchen.

Okay areawise.

CBD
The heart of the city is home to Sheinkin for breakfast (Lorne St), the charming and cosy Elliot Stables for French food, Kapiti icecream, bratwurst and fromage. It’s a little sophiscated and a lot lovely.

The downtown Britomart complex houses Smith, the fanciest-little-bar-darling; Urban Loft and Made, Auckland’s prettiest shop. The Northern Steamship Co. Brewbar is ideal for lunch and beers. Britomart also hosts the Saturday City’s Farmers Market.

Istanbul Kebab on Queen St is the best place to go when you’re drunk for their flatbread pizzas and kebabs. Vulcan Lane has lovely pubs. High St some groovy stores including Toykong, an awesome collectors haven, all the token New Zealand designer shops like Workshop and Kate Sylvester. Other favourites are the kitschy Smoove and the very street Harlem 23. Crane Brothers is swoony. In the same area is the World Beauty store, up the road is Jason Books.

For intoxication, Rakinos will make you happy day or night. Suite is sweet. Sale St is super. The Cassette Number Nine is apparently cool but I ain’t been.

There’s the big Auckand City Library to kill time in, Academy cinema under it for the best art house films, Classic Comedy Bar fifty metres away for stand up and Tanuki’s Cave next door for the after show meal, delicious Japanese. The Civic Theatre hosts all the big shows.

The Skytower is Auckland’s mandatory tall structure. I worked right up the top as a dinosaur mascot. :\

Kingsland
The suburb I last lived in was Kingsland, bite sized and charming me to death with its array of excellent offerings. Coffee at Atomic Roasters and Roasted Addiqtion, galettes at Bouchon, the good stuff in a bun and everything else at the Shaky Isles, pinot noir at Ivy, the granddaddy of all pies are the Fridge (yes!), and the rice noodles at Canton Cafe. I can’t think of any duds on the New North Rd stretch.

You can see the entire stretch in the teapot reflection.

K’Rd
Karangahape Rd is my favourite street in Auckland, it’s vintage/indie store paradise, the gay and lesbian hub and also Auckland’s red light district. A angry drag queen beating up a junkie is hardly out of place. I know all the queens that aren’t crackheads. There are a bunch of sweet vintage, anime and young designer shops at St Kevins Arcade. Fast and Loose is a treasure trove for vintage. My ugly 80s Argentine ball dress was from Vixen No 8 next door. All my chainmaille bags and lace turbans and coloured leather pumps were from there. Drink apple tea, eat falafels and smoke shishas on the pavement and watch hipsters. This is Not a Love Shop, Fuzzy Vibes Junction and Kiwi Disposals are costume heaven. Buana Satu is the loveliest shop for Kiwiana presents to take home. One of my favourite memories of K’Rd is having tea each week with this beautiful boy at Tea Culture (which also houses a radio station and gallery) with smuggled in caramel slices from across the street at Verona. Around the corner Cross St is nice too.

Parnell
Parnell is but for the older moneyed and it has art, delis, rose gardens, cafes and the La Cigale French market on Saturdays. Strawberry Alarmclock is a fun little cafe, Chocolate Boutique is to die for and the newest incarnation of watering hole Shanghai Lils lives here. In the summer, the Parnell Baths are way cool too.

Ponsonby
Ponsonby has Conch, the most beautiful record store in the world which has a ‘boteco’ (small cafe) and Wunderkammer, so pretty. It also has second hand bookstores and a lot of places to brunch. Grab a bite at Ponsonby Village International Food Court or the hundreds of lovely restaurants and bakeries – Boy do I miss 5 Loaves & 2 Fish, Fatimas, Lulu’s Cafe (all day pancakes!), Dizengoff, Prego, Rocket Kitchen, Fatimas. Ponsonby also has Superette, the gorgeous boutique that stocks the best pieces from local and Australian designers. Five glasses of wine at Ponsonby Social Club are recommended.

Live music.
There are some awesome festivals like Rhythm and Vines, Raggamuffin (Lauryn Hill!), Big Day Out and Camp A Low Hum. And as a frequent music writer and photographer, and a slave to the free champagne, I’ve seen hundreds of live shows. I’ve been to an intimate Pete Murray showcase, a free Katchafire gig at Mission Bay, Peaches at the Transmission Room, Axwell at Summadayze and Muse in a big stadium. Hayley once saw Jose Gonzalez for NZ $10. Summer sees concerts in the parks, opera in the Domain, carols by candlelight. Also Kiwi musicians are awesome. Ladyhawke, Kora, Shapeshifter, Fat Freddy’s Drop, The Checks, Crowded House (!) Hollie Smith, Brooke Fraser, Scribe, P-Money, Cut Off Your Hands, Ladi 6. The weekend papers have comprehensive gig guides. There are also lots of cool indie ones but I was never cool. Check out the listings at the Kings Arms or the Wine Cellar. Someone at D.O.C will point you in the right direction. Alternatively ask Amber and Anthea. They have really good taste.

The best party hands down is The Turnaround on the last Friday of each month. For a rollicking good time and world music with dirty, frenetic, melodious, sexy, wonderful, never-heard-of-before beats. Like many other cities the best private parties and launches are sponsored by Asahi, Redbull and here also, 42 Below Vodka. Graffiti, live bands, silent discos, vodka luges?

Other shit
If you’re into fixies and bicycles, the boys do all sorts of fun things in the summer. There are hip and subversive craft fairs like Kraftbomb and Crafternoon Tea, zinefests and a book club for drunks. Grey Lynn and Newton are home to many creatives, independent theatre and by-invitation-only shops and galleries. The Mt Eden strip has decent cafes and shops like Cook the Books. The farther suburbs of Devonport and Titirangi are famous for their bohemian residents, artist galleries and cafes. Piha, Muriwai, Bethells and Karekare are beautiful black sand beaches and Lake Wainamu is the area’s best secret picnic spot and a sand surfing dream. Barbecues at One Tree Hill and sunny lunches at the Mission Bay promenade are fun too, and if you can see the ocean, there’s a good chance the end of your street has a tiny beach. Mine did.

Well that’s about all I know really. There are probably some awesome new places to check out, and I’d google before I went in case these things are obsolete. I tried my best to check though.