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.

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!

Lovely gardens and a oasis of calm and serenity in Auckland. We had gone in October and managed to…read moresee some cherry blossoms as well

Great botanical garden with so many things to see as well as a few other parks joined together. So…read moremany different sections. We couldn't believe this was free and you could easily spend a few hours here. There is also a cafe and art gallery near the entrance. Our favorite section was the rock garden

This Community House a white washed building close to Dennys and the Highland Park Shopping Centre…read more Nothing special, but a comfortable place to have meetings or special events, such as an engagement party or 21st birthday. It's easy to find with a few on-site parking spaces, as well as street parking. The seating can be manipulated how you like, and the walls are pretty blank if you wanted to decorate it with a special theme. At just $20 per hour, it's worth having a look into. I didn't have any problems when attending my Defensive Driving course here, so nothing bad to say about this place.

From the owner: Highland Park Community House provides venues and services to assist in the facilitation of…read morecommunity activities that contribute to a holistic sense of wellbeing. We do this by renting our rooms and funding a number of community classes.

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!

Alberton was definitely in the running when I was choosing a wedding venue as it is just so…read morebeautiful. It's one of those places that is constantly used for fashion, film and even music video shoots because its historic character is so well preserved. It is grand, old and beautiful but there are some rules and regulations that apply to keeping it that way so keep that in mind if you are thinking of using it for an event. The great thing is that it's open to the public so all you have to do is wander on in and explore all its nooks and crannies at your leisure. You will have to pay for the pleasure but that's as it should be in order to keep preserve places like this for future generations. The grounds are stunning as well and a visit here can take you back in time for some romantic day-dreaming. Great for kids too - history is so much more interesting when it's tangible.

Auckland's got a bad track record of hanging on to our historic buildings. Noteworthy architecture?…read moreImportant cultural heritage? Nah, let's tear it down and put up a featureless grey box full of leaky apartments. Sigh. At least we've got it right here though. Alberton House is from the mid 1800s, and it's a pretty neat place. It's a good venue for events (I was here for a wedding), but even without that it's cool just to have a wander around looking at the building itself, with its rabbit-warren servants' quarters and wooden everything. Also if you go upstairs (I say stairs, it's more like a ladder built for elves), they've got a few rooms set up with period furniture, and some of the creepiest dolls I've seen in a long time. This place is worth a visit, especially if the weather is good.

Had our Christmas party here - very unorganised which is probably why they said our event organiser…read morewas super efficient and organised, i guess they arnt used to it. One of their own staff broke their projector screen and charged us $500 as apparantly we were seen being 'rough' with the screen and broke it which is a complete and utter fabrication as we didnt touch the screen and if we were seen to be doing this their 'employee' who actually did break the screen should have intervened. Also had to keep extra staff on for our 'rowdy' party which is a load of rubbish. I thought it was a pretty tame christmas party and left sober. Go elsewhere!

This place is very appealing visually. I did the reserve wine tasting, which should have been the…read morebest of the best, but they were merely okay, unfortunately. Their reserve syrah had a VERY off-flavor to it. We brought this up to the server, and he quickly ran off to check with someone. When he returned, he said something like "oh, that's the typical floral something or other". We've experienced this before, and it turned out then that the cork was bad. This was likely the same situation. At the very least, I would have expected Tantalus to pour another taster for us to make sure there was nothing wrong with the first pour. That didn't happen though. The reserve chardonnay was good.

Tantalus Estate - Waiheke Island…read more Tantalus Winery is located on beautiful Waiheke Island, an easy and very pleasant 40-minute ferry ride from Auckland. Once on the island, you can hop on a hop-on/hop-off bus or take a local bus--both make getting around simple and stress-free. The estate itself is stunning. There's a winery, a restaurant, and a brewery, and we chose to sit outside to fully enjoy the vineyard views. The setting is peaceful, lush, and absolutely gorgeous--one of those places where you instantly want to slow down and take it all in. The food was excellent. I tried green-lipped mussels for the first time--smoked and marinated--and they were delicious. Even better, they were served without shells, which made them incredibly easy to eat. The kingfish appetizer was a standout: fresh, beautifully prepared, with a dollop of avocado and a coconut-style aioli that was truly special. A real "wow" dish. We also did a wine flight, which made the experience fun especially given the range of wines available. The only downside was the music--it was blaring a bit too loud. In such a serene, Zen-like environment, it competed with the natural beauty rather than enhancing it. This is a place where you just want to sit, sip, and absorb the surroundings. That said, Tantalus is absolutely worth the trip. Incredible setting, memorable food, and a wonderful way to experience Waiheke Island.

An outstanding function spot, this beautiful establishment, sits at the end of Queen Street in…read moreNorthcote point. The views are so stunning and as the sun sets it becomes a dream come true. The huge chandelier lights up the room, and as the floor is built in tiers, you look out on our beautiful city, and your heart beats away to a happy tune. I was excited to attend a recent charity event called TASTE that had Peter Gordon as a guest speaker. The guest list was down at around two hundred plus guests, and the staff and surroundings catered for us all to perfection. The main bar situated at the entrance was large enough to hold the guests happily, along with a few extra bars dotted around the different floors. The food served for this event was simply buffet champagne ham, and some artisan breads, which I thought was very tasty. The lavish decor, makes The Wharf a fabulous location for weddings, birthdays and big corporate events. The bathrooms located down the spiral stairs under the main area, are gorgeous. I was very pleased with the staff working at the Wharf, very warm and bubbly. I hope to be back for another event soon, as my night was really enjoyable.