Shannon's Best of Wellington

As our time in Wellington draws to a close, we find ourselves saying over and over, "oh... we never made it there...," and "ahhh, I always wanted to try out that place..." (followed by a sad face). Seems like whenever it's time to relocate, suddenly so many amazing, not-to-be-missed places jump out of the woodwork, taunting you. Well, there's just not enough time (or money in our tight budgets) to do it all, so I have to bid Wellington adieu without visiting every single bar, restaurant and coffee shop (sad face).

But! I am in love with sooooo many places we've been... and as I try to fall asleep on my last night here, my brain is going a mile a minute making lists and trying to hold tight to my time here. So, I thought maybe I'd make a little list of what I love, just in case any of my readers ever make it to Welly. So, without further ado, in no particular order- my favorite places to eat/drink/dance:

1. Maranui Cafe (Lyall Pd, Lyall Bay): had to put this as #1 (even tho these are in no particular order...) because I am OBSESSED. I was introduced to this place by Caitlin and Sean, who live nearly an hour bus ride away, but make the trek there for brunch, milkshakes, and walks on the beach. I must admit, I was hesitant to join them at first; going out for a (often hungover) brunch at home was something I did on a regular basis, but only because I knew where all the vegan treats were hiding and I could enjoy a mimosa or 3 to cure what ailed me. Since being in NZ, the ever elusive vegan brunch has not been part of my weekly or even monthly eating schedule, because I'd rather spend my money on a yummy Asian or Indian takeaway meal than toast with avocado (one of the few choices I get here and something I'm quite capable of preparing myself, thankyouverymuch). Imagine my surprise when I walked into a brightly-lit, kitschy cafe with not only AMAZING waterside views but multiple vegan menu options and at least 5 vegan salads/pastries in the case? I'm crying thinking about not getting to eat there again... the only flaw was that they only sell champagne by the bottle, so self-assembled mimosas are really only affordable when there's a large group at brunch (and mimosas aren't as good when you can't have more than one, right?). I love you, Maranui!

2. Midnight Espresso (Cuba St, Te Aro): snobby bratty hipsters behind the coffee machine/till, but I'll take it for your many, many delectable vegan cakes, pilafs, sandwiches, and even nachos. Nice on the pocketbook too (not always so easy to find). Yummmmm, such a good place to grab a snack (and I hear the snobby hipsters in Wellington REALLY know their coffee).

3. KK Malaysia (corner Guznee St & Cuba St, Te Aro): this place was recommended to us by our friends and very trusted food-sources, Mel and Dan. With so many Malaysian restaurants in town, which one to choose? Look no further. This small place is packed to the gills the moment they open and is well worth the wait. For 10 bucks you can't beat these meals.

4. Deluxe Cafe (Kent Terrace & Courtenay Pl, Te Aro): a smaller, less snobby, and more "intellectual artist-hangout" version of Midnight Espresso. Same variety of vegan options with even more delicious cakes. Located right next to the Embassy Theatre, this place is the best for a pre-movie treat.

5. Hop Garden (Victoria St & Kent Tce, Mt. Vic): our "local" microbrew heaven. It has an outdoor/greenhouse-y beer garden and suuuuuuchhhh delish beers on tap. The crowd is pretty chill and the bartenders are always nice and knowledgable. Like any and all good beers in NZ, you'll pay a pretty penny to get a buzz. We're usually too broke to go for more than 1 or 2, but it's a great atmosphere and nice to get away from the cheap shit every now and again. :)

6. Cafe Baba (Courtenay Pl, Te Aro): ok, so this is one of many kebab places in Welly, and is by no means amazing. The only reason I list it is because it's my go-to kebab place, because it's one of the only ones in NZ that offers tahini as one of the sauces. And let's face it, for a felafel kebab when you can't have yogurt sauce, tahini is the only thing that brings it home (besides extra hummus, of course). Many of my drunk nights end up here.

7. Hashigo Zake (Taranaki St, Te Aro): here's a little underground hidden gem, a beer bar with tons and tons and tons of international treats. I myself have only been here once, because it's too expensive for me, but such an amazing place to go for a pricy treat. If you're craving a special brew from back home, there's a fair chance they'll have it here. The bartenders were amazing and really love what they do.

8. Aunty Mena's (Cuba St, Te Aro): vegan Asian fusion... need I say more? They have 3 pages of menu options, ALL of which I can eat, and all for less than $14. Vegs, look no further. YUM.

9. Havana (Tory St Alley, Te Aro): BEST BAR in Welly! I'm dying that I didn't find out about this place until about a month ago. Jemma took us there one night and since it hides in a secret alley (one of the many; a few of those secret alleys had Brian and I going, "awww..... no! Why haven't we known about this?!" today as we walked around), it's like a hidden treasure. I splurged on a cocktail (methinks it was the only cocktail I've had in a year?) last weekend and damn was it good. Well-worth the $16- artfully crafted using fresh fruits and top shelf liquor. Nothin but the best. This is where all the good-looking and swanky hipsters go for drinks and small local music acts crammed onto a minuscule dance floor. It reminds of any and all good aspects of Capitol Hill and when I'm there it makes me wish I was rich and had an outfit that was carefully assembled from vintage designer labels and American Apparel pieces. Sigh.

10. JJ Murphys (Cuba St, Te Aro): This is just your average, run-of-the-mill Irish pub, but we have had many, many a good dance party there, so feel compelled to include it. Plus points for our favorite band, whose name we don't know, and will probably never be able to figure out, and the wonderful night we had dancing to their performance (pre-missing our roomies, sniff sniff).

11. San Francisco Bathhouse (Cuba St, Te Aro): Atomic (80's night), 24 Hour Party People (Indie night), and round the clock cheap drinks... always a good time. Cheers to trying to recreate a beloved past-time from at home (Tues nights at the Noc Noc)! No bike short-sightings yet, but there are plenty of fancy dancers around.

12. Monterey (Rintoul St & Riddiford, Newtown): ok... Mixed feelings here. I'm putting this down because theoretically it's my favorite bar in Wellington. Plus it's in Newtown, which is our next-door-neighborhood full of grit and dodgy-ness, home to both the Recovery Room and Medi Foods, so it's very dear to both Brian and my hearts. The bar is tiny, amazingly/quirkily decorated, houses my favorite cider in NZ, and has tables covered in paper you can draw on. Also very, very hipster (Brian would argue that's why I like it, but that's up for debate). However, the bartenders are such assholes that I've vetoed this place forever. It's not really an interesting story so I won't go into it, I'll just say, if you go to Monterey, go during a very slow time of day, and get someone else in your party to order the drinks so you can remain out of contact with the bartender, and I guarantee you'll have a good time. Such a sad ending to what felt like a promising relationship between me and a charming little neighborhood spot.

13. Mighty Mighty (Cuba St, Te Aro): So, I've only been here once, but it was amazing. Also, I was several glasses of wine in... but the decor and whole vibe of this bar/club is awesome. Too many hipsters for Brian, but yeah. There are comfy couches around for those feeling antisocial, while the rest of us can dance. I wish I would have been able to come here more, but let's face it, my friends and I aren't big on cover charges (even tho it's only $10) and I was usually too lazy to figure out what bands were coming on/organize a night out there so there you have it.

14. Southern Cross (Abel Smith St, Te Aro): Brian took me here for my surprise birthday lunch date, and it was so dreamy. It was a gorgeous, warm (even though it was winter!) day, and we sat on the huge back patio in the sun and I ate a mushroom-lentil burger that was so delish. The patio on a nice day just can't be beat; I wish we could have spent more time there as the weather turned nicer!

15. Pranah (Riddiford St, Newtown): another gem discovered way too late in the game, although that's probably for the best, considering how many consecutive days I went there once I discovered it... Just a little neighborhood cafe with lots and lots of vegan desserts, salads, pakoras, samosas, burritos, yum. I never had time to sit down for a meal there but I did buy cookies pretty regularly there for a few days, heh.

16. La Boca Loca (Park Rd, Miramar): We stumbled upon this place while looking for shelter from a crazy rainstorm following my craft fair in Miramar one Saturday afternoon. To be honest, we just had a drink while we were waiting for the bus and trying to dry out from the rain, but the menu looked so good and I would imagine they'd have some really nicely crafted cocktails and margaritas as well, if that's your thing. The chef and owner are Mexican and Californian-missing-Mexican-food (respectively) so I might imagine this place would be spot on for the elusive traditional Mexican cuisine in NZ.

17. Siem Reap (Dixon St, Te Aro): This is a last-minute addition, but an important one. We went here for dinner on our last night in town and discovered it made one of the best meals we'd had yet! Not to be missed. Delicious Cambodian food right on the fringes of the CBD! BYO on Mon/Tues nights made for a really nice send-off dinner.

18. Fidel's (Cuba St, Te Aro): Wellington meets Portland. The set-up of the place reminds me so much of Porque No! Fidel's is a coffee shop (boasting the perfect cup every time, which I would bet is pretty accurate) with a back patio/open-air picnic bench area. Fresh juices, Havana coffee, delicious pastries... perfect for playing cards and sipping a tea in the sunshine. And So Portland. :)

If only we had endless amounts of money I know this list would be 5x as long. There are amazing, quirky, cute cafes/bars around every corner, and you could easily go out for every meal for a month without exhausting the city. I wish I had lovely food photos to decorate this blog post I was probably too busy eating and drinking to bring out my camera, so you'll just have to use your imagination. Should you ever find yourself in Wellington, please contact me so I can give you even more ideas of winning ideas for what to do in my home-away-from-home.

LOVE YOU, WELLINGTON!! xoxoxoxo