This is a conveniently placed bakery to run and get the $4.20 2L Dairy Dale milk for work, however…read moreit is not a place I would like to buy my bread. If you like the standard white and white only type of bread then it may be just up your alley, Totara Avenue Alley that is. I have been in a few times and they are quite content with sticking to their white and white only standard bread, I personally think it is discrimination, bring on the wholemeal! give the mutli-grain a go! It doesn't need to be anything fancy, no spelt or other ancient grain requested, just a bit of variety? Occasionally? Please?... They have a tasty selection of sugary sweet baked treats too, white flour only of course.

This is one of those bakeries that you only stop into if you are super hungry, or passing by and…read morehaving a sweet tooth moment. The items there are not exactly good for you, sugary and starchy, but they fill you up quick. They offer up the usual bakery items like pies, pastries and baked breads, but all the items are white flour and sugar combinations. No wonder this place is popular with the young ones. I personally don't like going here because it has given me a tummy ache before and I have not returned since then.

What makes this bakery so special for me is not just that they give a free muffin or other bakery…read moredelight away with your morning coffee ..but above all the service. Quick and done with a smile on their face. Plus the cappuccino I have is very good , the sausage rolls are tasty and as are some of the other sweet baked delights on offer. The place is clean, has a good selection, price is not bad and I saw they have a very near perfect A grade from the powers that be. Highly recommend for your morning coffee, pie, sweet indulgence and with very good service.

I had heard good things about the Little Sister Café so we decided to check out the place. I got…read moreexcited seeing the menu because of the Asian influence in their offering. The sound of steaming hot Vietnamese or Balinese cuisine literally launched me in to the driver's seat. I had Hanoi Rocks & the Venetian Dark Chocolate Tartlet. Hanoi Rocks was a rice flour crepe/pancake that was served with cooked greens in a steaming broth. It was comfort food but is it a breakfast dish l, I'm not sure about that. It was a fairly big portion, sumptuous; hearty and delicious. The Venetian Dark Chocolate Tartlet - now that was visually appealing. Small tart sizes with a gooey dark chocolate ganache with pistachio praline crumbled over it. My hubby had the Agria hash, Eggs Benedict with Lemon Hollandaise sauce and Greens. It was a carbfest and yummy. The pesto oil garnish did nothing to lift the flavour but definitely added a visual treat to the eyes. And he ordered a blueberry and sour cream cake/muffin. It tasted good but there was no wow to it. And I couldn't get a picture of it coz hubby dearest was already half way into it. Now for the flat whites. I personally thought it was not in the league of the best but still a pretty decent cup of Joe, but my hubby said he thought it was as bad as the coffee we had at Sierra café. I love cafés that offer Wifi keeping with the latest trends. So a big tick from me for that. Pleasant service overall but they lose it if it's the rush hour. I get that it can be overwhelming but it irks me when orders are mixed up. I don't mind the wait so long as you get it right. They got our sweet orders mixed up. And clearing tables after a customer vacates is a bit slack. But the service proved more effective once the crowd started weaning off. My Hanoi Rocks took time to come to my table. However this really nice Asian waitstaff was epic with his service, checking on my order and giving me a status update. I guess they have the makings of a good café to give them due credit but a fair bit to improve on. Suggestion to hand out menu cards for customers. Big queues with the menu not accessible with nothing else to view but the Black board on the wall and the display. People want to ponder over what they want to eat at a cafe with so much variety. We had to wait until we got to the counter to view the cooked menu but had they had menu cards or a designated space for viewing menu it reduces the pile up especially during the rush hour. On the whole an exciting menu with a superb variety. They are a mixed bag with some wows and some not so much. Will I be back! Yes, to try out the other interesting dishes on the menu. Until then I reserve my judgment.

Little Sister is a fairly new addition to Henderson. With ex-Sweetie and Salvation Kitchen owners…read moreat the helm, it's got to be good. To be honest, I'm relying on a Viva article for the second part of that statement, because I only went to Salvation Kitchen post-sale and the coffee was bloody awful. Don't go. Sweetie, on the other hand, was lovely and just like Little Sister, its counter-top teaming with sugary treats - like a goddamn Willy Wonka scene. Impossible to resist. My husband had arrived on the hideously early flight from San Francisco last week (yes, he came bearing gifts, and the gifts he did not manage to secure I promptly ordered online), where he was hungry and in desperate need of New Zealand milk, coffee and more importantly, eggs! Given that Little Sister is only open weekdays, this was the perfect chance to #supportlocal and head somewhere I had been dying to try out. First problem: check the bloody details, Vanessa. Little Sister does not open till 7.30am. I had assumed 7am, so we hung out in the car park for 15 minutes like losers. There's lots of parking, with very definite 'Little Sister' named spots, so unless you're absolutely blind, it's quite clear where to park up. The morning menu was quite brief, and I wasn't offered another one to check out what they offer for lunch. That's not to say I'm offended by brevity, quite the opposite. As you may have noticed, I get terrible FOMO so I appreciate obvious choices. My morning meal was therefore a hearty one - pork and fennel sausage, perfectly crisp bacon, slow cooked tomatoes with just the right amount of sweet and tart, a wonderfully spiced (yes, spiced!) potato and carrot rosti, a very large mushroom that had been bathed (and appropriately drained, leaving the sticky and tangy remnants) in balsamic vinegar, and two glorious eggs with the most vibrant orange yolk. And, of course, a knock-out latte to wash it all down.

This bakery is the goods. I religously order a mince n cheese here every Sunday morning. Best pie…read morein town at a reasonable price point

Eves pantry began as a little corner Kiwi bakery named after the wife of an Auckland tramcar driver…read morein the 1940's. A decade or so later; it was snapped up by a Norwegian pastry chef and so began the fusion of traditional European baking that continues to be a hallmark of the cakes and pastries that are served at Eve's pantry to this day. I love a good custard (vanilla) slice and Eve's pantry never fails to deliver. The pastry is always perfectly crisp and the rich, creamy custard in the center is simply decadent! Dare I say; heaven in a mouthful! They serve a decent coffee too. Eve's pantry offers a range of delicious pastries, gateaux and specialty cakes that some might consider a tad pricey until they have a slice - they really are worth every penny! The Henderson location offers plenty of variety and seating for lunch but the little Eve's Pantry in Takapuna is my favourite. Love sipping my coffee and tucking into my custard slice a midst the pretty mock cake structures and little racks of fancy ribbons! The comfy black armchairs and cozy seating arrangements make it a nice spot for a quick catch-up over coffee with a friend in a not-so-noisy cafe!

This bakery cafe is known to be busy as this is where some of the best breads, pastries and baked…read moregoods in Auckland were found but now there is a lot of competition with other French bakeries. My friend and I went here for a coffee / relax after we shifted house. There was so much sweet buttery goodness to choose from, I got the Savoury scone which was good, I still like my homemade ones - they have more bacon. I had the lemon tart and it was light, tart and wonderful. The coffee is also good and the service cheerful. It's the place to go to get your weekend lunch and grab fresh bread that's not right in the city.

I've been contemplating giving it a 5 star review. You see, when I love the particular food I had…read morethat day I seem to ignore everything else, then a few more visits later my enthusiasm subsides and I found myself often disappointed. So for some of my past reviews I've even considered to deduct stars off. Now that is not to say I didn't enjoy my meal here, I've loved the food every single time, it's just that there are a few bits and pieces that made me reluctant to give a full 5 stars. I've always enjoyed their sandwiches. While they come in quite on the expensive side, I find them worth the price. My French toast this morning was $19.50 (or $19), probably not for the faint of heart. The raspberry/custard was gorgeous, which to me more than justifies the price, it is winter after all. Here's why there's no five stars. First off, please please please get your cutleries sorted!!! I think I can cut my French toast better if I used the handle of the knife. The first knife I got was super obviously bent at the tip, about 45 degrees bent! Service, just as others pointed out, needs some quality control. I can try to justify your price as much as I can but dining in just isn't that great, and while your food is great, everything else is, well, meh. So on the basis of "I value good food more than anything", it's a 4 stars UPDATE: Service has improved since my last visit. It was a busy lunch but we still got taken care of :)

Ros Bake is a delightful bakery tucked up on Remuera Road close to the Newmarket end. I only…read morerecently discovered it, and will be sure to keep it in mind when next in the area. There was such a great variety of food; pies, hotdogs, scones, tarts, wraps and baps to name a few. I chose the chicken and cranberry bap and was not disappointed. The chicken was moist, the cranberry sweet and the lettuce fresh, and it only cost me $4.90 - something almost unheard of in Newmarket. I also tried their coffee, and though it wasn't the best it was okay for the amount it cost - only $2.80. Would definitely eat there again, though maybe it's worth grabbing a better quality coffee elsewhere!

Good old-fashioned bakery with pies, sandwiches, savouries, sally lunns(!) etc. The tradies and…read moreschool kids who pack the place out in the morning to buy their lunches are not wrong. It's good food, and a lot of it for the price. I particularly recommend the sausage rolls, which have onion in them, and the real-cream filled donuts (not the round sort). Also worth buying a concertina loaf to take away, but their bread and butter (sorry about the pun) is the pies, sausage rolls, sandwiches etc. Buy your coffee at Ripe next door, but your hearty lunch or morning tea here.

I find it quite funny that this time warp bakery is situated right next to Ripe, one of the most…read moreexpensive deli's in Auckland. But what better contrast, eh? If a $10 wrap isn''t your ticket for lunch, head into Busy Oven and grab yourself a good ol' potato top pie, or lasagne topper. Or supplement your Ripe bap with a cheap drink or sweet treat for after. We won't judge. In a suburb swollen with cafes and delis, it's refreshing to see that the simple, humble bakery can still hold its own.