The $5 Deli at Ponsonby Central is genius! Firstly, who doesn't love a shop where everything is the…read moresame price?! Choose 4 items, hand over a twenty and you're outta there. Perhaps more importantly though, everything I have ever tried from the $5 deli has been absolutely delicious. The pate is light and silky smooth, the chunky beetroot relish is packed full of flavour and is the perfect addition addition to any sandwich, the tahini paste is great as a dip or generously smeared on grilled flatbread (which they also sell FYI). Seriously, whether you're hosting a dinner party or going to a friends for drinks, it's the perfect pitstop for pre-dinner snacks so do yourself a favour and check it out next time your in the area.

Right next to the amazing Diehl's bakery is a specialty store that imports European food and sells…read moreit to Auckland's community of Europeans who are looking for the taste of home. When I went there with my partner (who lived in Austria for a number of years growing up), he went straight for the Milka chocolate and grabbed bar after bar like it was going out of fashion. I played around in the candy section too and came away with some weird and wonderful treats... like salted liquorice! What the hell is this stuff?! At Edelweiss there's also a cabinet of fresh and refrigerated food - my partner bought a liver and cheese roll, which is apparently a delicacy in Germany. They make these rolls in Austria too, except they are cheese, liver and more cheese!

Someone just asked me about my experience with their holiday hampers, so here it is. At the time…read morethere was nowhere to leave a review (still not, on their website). This time last year I ordered their hamper for a couple in Palmerston, they both had Covid. After a week of no delivery, I tried to email Farro, no response. Managed to find their ph no, no answer, left multiple messages, no response. After another week I emailed saying I was going to reverse the visa transaction, got a call back within hours. They said they had lost it, they would give me a partial credit for the trouble, and deliver. I didnt like the tone of the grumpy caller! Neither hamper or credit arrived. Dont give them your money, untrustworthy

Really poor service every time over the last year. Had the checkout person several times scan and…read morecharge items wrong. Grumpy lady in the deli who ignores customers, & serves customers randomly, not in order of waiting time. Staff seem miserable and I would be too if I had to serve rich white boomers and soccer moms whose weekly shop bill equates to my whole weeks wages. I don't know who is in charge of staff but they really need to improve all aspects of their customer service. Maybe they need a pay rise or something. Extremely high prices but you do usually get high quality.

Busy during the week and packed to the hilt at the weekend, it can be difficult to get a table at…read moretimes. It is a very pleasant environment in which to relax, Dida's is a light and airy cafe and deli. The food selection on the blackboard is concise with the Breakfast Stack (hash brown, bacon, egg, mushroom, spinach) being a hit and one my my favourite breakfasts within walking distance of my home. The menu is perhaps a little more expensive when compared across the city but Dida's offers competitive pricing with the direct competition on Jervois.

I love Didas - I discovered it on a soup hunt last winter and love their combinations. The best…read moreI've tried has to be the cauliflower with burnt butter and sage - it's delectable, think and tasty and all soups come with delicious chunky sourdough bread slices and butter. I have to say I initially wrote this place off as being like a "Ripe" - overpriced and it has a lot of the same style food but its actually considerably cheaper than Ripe. The salads are not as heavy and are not laden with dressing too.

I kind of stumbled up Mud Pie when I was on my way through Point Chev and needed something to eat,…read morefast. I pulled up outside and went in. first impressions were good. They have a huge cabinet packed with all sorts of food and an even bigger menu. I settled on the gluten free chocolate slice which was so scrummy. The place does look a little messy though. There are shelves behind the counter that are packed with old recipe books and all sorts of stuff that just looked a little cluttered. And also, the staff weren't that friendly. The girl on the till was quite flat, not really how I like to have a good café visit but that's ok. They do sell lots of other gourmetish produce which looked good.

This is a frequent destination for our office for morning tea and lunch runs. The selection of…read morefood is always great and often you miss out on the amazing scones (must buy if you're in the cheesy goodness mood). The staff are usually really friendly however like anyone have good and bad days. If you're a regular they'll remember your coffee orders and have a wee yarn to you. Like most cafés in Auckland they can be a bit abrupt if you're a newbie. Only downside is I never remember my coffee card! Everyone loves a free coffee :)

When you drive by JUK early in the morning the popularity of this wee corner cafe can be seen by…read morethe number of customers enjoying its coffee and food. Today we had time to stop and enjoy the atomic coffee ourselves. What to eat ?? Such a beautiful range of healthy and treat style food. Parking was a challenge however this was overcome by driving around the block. Staff were so helpful and next time we are tempted to buy some of the pre - cooked meals as they look excellent.

Finally after all the beneficent skulduggery, Jess has whipped off her mask and emerged from her…read morelife of secret goodness underground. Located at the quieter end of the Herne Bay shops, her new deli is a welcoming affair. The counter cabinet burts full of meats, sandwiches, French toast and salads. The fridges entice hungry eyes with Lewis Road milk, Kapiti cheeses and French pate. The freezer holds the vestiges of Jess's previous venture - it's so good to see she has not given up on her takeaway dinners. A notice board in the corner announces daily specials (regular and paleo - it is Herne Bay, after all!) and smoothies. My croque monsiuer with its perfect cape of bechamel and drawer of grainy mustard could easily have been sourced from the backstreets of Paris. The toasted banana bread was a gooey, chewy, fluffy mouthful of childhood goodness. My only suggestion for improving this comfort zone is to invest in some proper cutlery and crockery. Cutting into toasted fare with picnic wear and drinking coffee out of paper cups does detract a tad from the romance of what it otherwise a very sweet new affair.

I'm a card-holding New World-aholic. Stepping inside other supermarkets makes me shudder. Kumeu New…read moreWorld has only made my addiction worse. This place is beautifully set out, with aisles comfortably big enough to accommodate 2 trolleys, and plenty of checkouts always open ready to help you. The butcher stocks the biggest scotch fillet steaks I've ever seen, along with rib roasts & T-bone steaks. They also make their own sausages. With a kick-ass deli, fresh fish counter & a great range of locally grown produce, you almost feel like you're shopping at a gourmet supermarket.

I went shopping here in the weekend for my Sunday roast beef was pricy but it was exceptional for…read morethe nice beefy flavour(even though I'm vegan my kids liked it) cheep potatoes and good selection.

I pop in here for a shopping top up because I cannot tear myself away from my usual supermarket…read more Here are a couple of great points about Fresh Choice Glen Eden. 1. Their bakery section is awesome, they have delicious artisan bread like Sourdough, whole grains, flat breads and a very tasty kumera bread. More often than not there is a trolly with yesterday's bread on sale. 2. They have a nice deli range of meats like pursuit and gourmet salami and while it is pricey you cannot beat the quality and taste. 3. Fresh fruit and vegetables are fantastic here. 4. They have a comprehensive aisle of gluten free and organics. Actually that is more than a couple of great points, this is a great supermarket with really friendly staff.

Ultimate in fresh and delicious food - excellent vege/protein combinations with oomphy flavour…read more Sweets choice superb. Enthusiastic service, with a smile.

Ripe is all about wraps and salads and all that malarky. People seems to love the place but I…read morereckon it's only a three star establishment. Something about Ripe does not 'ring true' for me. Not even sure why. I just get a kind of bad vibe out of the place. Maybe I should go their with an open mind and try a bunch more of their foods, like all the salads and stuff. I dunno, I'm just not into beetroot. This place seems like a serious beetroot place to me. I do like their brioche though. Three stars.

This Pak N Save is nice and new and modern, well on the outside its modern, but in the inside its…read morejust this big massive warehouse, with big wide aisles. Its stuffed from floor to ceiling mainly full of packaged stuff, every time I come here it just reminds me of how much packaged food we eat these days, from cereal to snacks to noodles to canned food - a whole big aisle full of canned food, chips, biscuits, bread. I wonder what our Great Grandparents would think about all the packaged food we eat these days, I'm sure they would think we were crazy, just look at your trolley next time you go to the supermarket at your trolley full of packaged food. Anyway the location of this supermarket is pretty convenient as its accessible to a number of suburbs and has easy motorway access, I mainly come during the week when its nice and quiet thank god, as I'm sure in the weekend it gets pretty busy. I also often grab a coffee from the expresso coffee stand, I do wish that they had coffee cup holders in the trolleys. I do think also from shopping at New World and Countdown that Pak n Save is the cheapest and its good if you don't mind the packing at the end. They also have a convenient fuel station next to the supermarket and you can use the discount voucher provided on your receipt. I still think the petrol should be cheaper though considering its self service.

Nice big store, good layout and easy to find what you need, loads of parking, easy to get in and…read moreout off car park,