Best Cheap Eats 2016: Somerville/Mission Bay/Waiheke
Photo by Ken Downie.
CHONGQUING CUISINE
Shop 7, Unit 6, 119 Meadowlands Drive, Somerville
Hotter than Sichuan cuisine, Chongquing is known for its serious spice. And we mean it; don’t be brave here. The cold, Sichuan peppercorn-heavy pigs’ ears are the go-to side – they’re cooked to perfect crunch with lip-smacking chilli heat. Try the classic dan dan mian noodles, too (rich in preserved mustard leaf), and the glorious, slow-cooked pork belly and shiitake mushroom noodle soup. Best of all, a bowl of noodles and a cold side easily come under $20.
Chongquing, new listing
DRAGONFIRED PIZZA
Little Oneroa, Waiheke
Summer is when this beachside beauty comes into its own (winter hours are weather-dependent). The short menu of made-to-order woodfired pizzas, calzone and pocketbreads punches above it’s weight for simple, healthy, tasty food (the pizza bases are guilt-free organic wholemeal). To sit on the sand and scarf down their Greek lamb pocketbread (stuffed with braised organic lamb, tzatziki, tomato and seasonal greens) is to know a particular kind of summery bliss.
Pizza, vegetarian friendly
THE FISH POT CAFE
99 Tamaki Drive, Mission Bay
The queue for takeaways – even mid-afternoon on a rainy Sunday –points to the reason generations of Aucklanders keep coming back to the Pot: It’s reliably good. Nothing too fancy, no surprises, just consistently fresh fish, calamari, mussels and the like, served with decent chips and the choice of eating in the old school dining room (more choice, more expensive), or joining the queue and having a feed on the sand.
Fish and Chips, licensed, new listing
Eden Terrace/Mt Eden/Dominion Rd
Epsom/Greenlane/Newmarket/Remuera/Royal Oak
Grey Lynn/Herne Bay/K’Rd precinct/Ponsonby
Henderson/Mt Albert/Sandringham
