Kokako Lodge is a really fantastic facility. Tidy bunk-style cabins, a large dining hall, spacious…read moreablutions and all in a serene forest setting just by Hunua Falls. It is often booked by organisations running camps which utilise their ropes course and real-rock abseil wall (to be run by trained staff only). There is also an amazing glow worm walk. Really really cool. As a venue they offer plenty of options including catering, cleaning services (because who wants to clean up afterwards, anyway?) and assistance designing your programme or event. Cool! Nothing like making your job easier, right? Would be awesome for a wedding. The staff I have dealt with are friendly and approachable, and happy to answer any questions you have about the place or the surrounding area. If you're here and have the opportunity, Hunua is one of the few places left in New Zealand with a kokako population so you should try and head up into the bush to see if you can hear their dawn call. Words cannot describe this amazingly beautiful sound.

This is a neat place to go to for an after-work drink…read more The Oakroom has recently had a facelift and has a cosy feel. Rohini and Corey are great hosts and the small team of staff are always friendly, chatty and sincere. There's a gastropub style menu; food and drinks are good value. It's also a good spot for a private function with good catering options.

My friend held her 21st party here last night and when I arrived I instantly wanted to have mine…read morehere. It's a lovely looking bar I think it must be quite new because all the furniture looked that way. Not the place itself though, it was really classy but rustic with mood lighting and lots of seats which I love, too many places don't offer enough seating and everyone just has to stand around. Their outside deck area was where we spent most of our night, they had outdoor tables and stools as well as a more comfy option...the outdoor sofa. They had two tv screens which she used to display pictures all evening. The bartender was pleasant and friendly and everyone looked like they had the best night.

"Ivy Cottage and the Enchanted Garden" is exactly that!…read more This is certainly a remote, isolated location for townies, however local for Northshore folk. Never spent anytime in Greenhithe, it's a 30 min drive from Central city, traffic dependant. On arrival, you need to park on the road outside, past the venue due to yellow lines. When entering, you are lead down a fairy path to a small cottage to meet and greet everyone (including the fairies), before the festivities begin. The children have the option of changing into a fairy costume or pirates outfit, if desired. The fairies then take the children around the enchanted forest, looking at all the magical places. The birthday celebrations take place inside the cottage, that is heavily themed as a grotto or fairies den: beautifully captivating. The storytelling continues with biscuit decorating session in the fairy craft room and the children are given a small drawstring bag of fairy dust to take home. This is the only fairy garden in Auckland, definitely a special place to celebrate birthdays and other noteworthy events! Cute!!

The Floating Pavillion is an event space which literally floats just off the Hobson West Marina in…read morethe Viaduct - you walk along the waterfront towards Te Wero Island/the Wynyard Crossing and the pavillion is the floating grey building on the left. It's aimed at the business launch/wedding/ball crowd, so it's well kitted out to deal with a crowd of around 300. There's two levels so space for sit down dinners on the ground floor, as well as a large dance floor up top. For our inaugural UoA Architecture/Planning ball we hired out the Floating Pavillion, and can report the night went off without a hitch - food wasn't amazing, but the space was perfectly sized and well kitted out for the occasion.

This place right here it the place to have all your events, from your wedding to your engagement…read moreparty, a meeting or even a birthday party. Everything you need is there, all you have to do is call the business, arrange a tour then let them know exactly what you want. After that you can either send them pictures of your ideas or just leave it to them and their creativity. It is a great place for any events as it is located on the waterfront, guaranteeing great views and amazing pictures to upload on to instagram hash tagging aboutthatlife!

If you're after a restaurant rather than a takeaway from up the road, Long Bay Regional Park has…read morejust the one choice - Long Bay Restaurant. The restaurant is down the southern end of the park, and location-wise you won't find many better - it's right on the beach front with a view over the North Shore's longest golden beach. On a sunny day it's absolutely divine. The layout of the restaurant makes the most of the view with extensive decking and umbrellas - perfect for al fresco dining. I've enjoyed some terrific mochas here as well as particularly good big breakfast. The waitresses were also particularly lovely - service with a smile! In all very good, but don't always expect a table - it's a popular wedding reception venue.

Long Bay is an incredibly popular beach - don't even try and go here over the Christmas/New Year's…read moretime on a hot day, as you're likely to spend an unpleasant amount of time getting into the park. That's why it's a bit surprising this place is the only place to get food at the beach, and it's definitely more of a restaurant than a takeaway/cafe - although they do have an icecream outlet which does a roaring trade. I came here for a work lunch, and it was a great place for that - the dining room isn't huge, but big enough to accommodate a couple of large groups without feeling like you're sitting on each other's laps. This is one of the best located restaurants in Auckland in terms of views, and unfortunately like many places that have spectacular views, the food struggles to match this. It could have been because we were having a set menu, but the food was just fine rather than being outstanding. Nevertheless, I'd definitely give it another go - it would be a magic place for a romantic dinner.

One of the best creative spaces in town with over 20 different business working out of one floor in…read morethe heart of the CBD. Matt Knight to helps run the loft is the man to contact if you are looking at getting into a shared office.

If you are a small business, or a team of one and you're looking for somewhere to work, even for a…read moreshort time, check out Loft503. Had a meeting there the other day and it's a cool place! This is a great shared work space in the restored Archilles House, next to Sals Pizza - so you get an awesome work space plus great lunch options! The deal is that you can rent a desk for a set length of time, giving you and your startup business the opportunity to have office space without the risk and outlay of renting your own whole office. Includes handy and flash facilities like kitchen and meeting rooms. Plus you get to work in an environment with other like minded people!

Went here over a holiday weekend for a nice lunch with a view out towards the water. Ambiance was…read morereally lovely with both indoor seating with lots of natural light as well as outdoor seating with picnic tables and umbrellas. Menu was good, covering most food allergens. However, it took forever to get food. We arrived with kids already hungry, and we definitely reached hangery - from when we placed our order until when we got our food was over an hour and 15 minutes!

Been here a few times very sporadically…read more Awesome place. Live music and fairly decent price alcohol, and good food. Really relaxed vibe, and New Years the place goes off. Definitely recommend!!! And Devilskin here on the 21st of January... Yayahhh!!

Delicious lunch! Took my father here for his 91st birthday; an easy 30 minute drive north was…read morebetter than fighting Auckland traffic and parking. Wonderful menu, tons of selections, perfectly cooked and artistically prepared and presented.