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The 100 Best Cheap Eats in Auckland 2013 – “V” to "Z"

Oct 22, 2013 Cheap Eats

The White Lady food truck, Auckland

 The White Lady (photo: Ken Downie / Metro)

Velvet Burger

18 Fort St, CBD
Almost all the burger bars have faded off our list, as the standards and variety and sheer quantity of other kinds of food keep rising. But Velvet is keeping pace: super-tasty food, smart décor, quick and attentive service. The best classically gourmet-style burgers in town.
Burgers

Wagamama

29 Nuffield St, Newmarket
Closed in High St now but still the best place to eat on the Nuffield St strip, Wagamama offers bowls of tasty, good-looking goodness in a room oozing with sleekly modernist/Japanese panache.
Pan-Asian

Wang Wang Spring Pancake

704 Dominion Rd, Balmoral
Pancakes are traditionally eaten in northern China to celebrate the start of spring. Perfect right now, and Wang Wang does them really well. Order a pile and a couple of dishes — perhaps pork or thin potato strips with spring onion and bean sprouts — and dig in.
Northern Chinese

White Lady

18 Commerce St, CBD
When they get older, losing their hair… If we stay out till quarter to three, will they lock the door? Will we still need them, will they still feed us, when they’re 64? Sorry, we couldn’t resist. The White Lady really is 64 this year. And yes, at quarter to three, in the morning, they are definitely still feeding us. Never been? Two words… Steak. Burger.
Burgers & Takeaways

Xi’an Food Bar New Listing

11 Anzac Ave, CBD (& elsewhere)
You don’t go here for the vibe — there isn’t one. You go to eat comfort food at its best: hand-pulled noodles in soup, or dry with beautiful slow-cooked toppings; cumin-spiced lamb in Xi’an pita bread; tasty soups. Ridiculously cheap and enormous portions.
Northern Chinese

Xi’an Noodle Bar New Listing

242a Dominion Rd, Mt Eden
It feels a bit like you’re in someone’s lounge and if you don’t have any Mandarin, communication can be a bit tricky, but the food is really good. Like its unrelated namesake above, the owners here hail from Xi’an, the ancient Chinese city at the Silk Route’s eastern terminus.
Northern Chinese

Xiang Cai House New Listing

1091 New North Rd, Mt Albert
If you enjoy spicy Sichuan food, this should be on your list. Xiang Cai House (the name isn’t shown outside — look for “1091 New North Road”) features dishes from Hunan province, close to Sichuan, and nearly everything comes with a dash of heat. Steamed smoked pork is a signature dish.
Hunan Chinese

Wok’n Noodle Bar New Listing

61 Normanby Rd, Mt Eden; also 53 Shortland St, CBD
The first place (we think) in town to introduce American-style takeout boxes, Wok’n Noodle Bar is a reliable, no-fuss, mixed Asian dishes joint, keeping up with trends with, yes, a Paleo diet menu on the side.
Pan-Asian

Yuzu

145 Ponsonby Rd, Ponsonby
Brown rice! If that means something to you, you’ll love it here. If it doesn’t, you’ll probably still love it, because everything we’ve eaten at Yuzu has been delightfully full of flavour. Cheap and cheerful, and comfortable and elegant.
Japanese

Zap

639 Dominion Rd, Balmoral (also Commerce St, CBD & Pt Chevalier)
When you want your takeout (or dine in) zippily fresh and tasty, the Essan Thai cuisine of Zap exactly hits the spot.
Thai

 

See also

The 100 Best Cheap Eats in Auckland 2013 – “A” to “C”

The 100 Best Cheap Eats in Auckland 2013 – “D” to “J”

The 100 Best Cheap Eats in Auckland 2013 – “K” to “M”

The 100 Best Cheap Eats in Auckland 2013 – “N” to “R”

The 100 Best Cheap Eats in Auckland 2013 – “S”

The 100 Best Cheap Eats in Auckland 2013 – “T”

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