Vivace coffee

Where can you go in the central suburbs if you’re craving a hearty island plate, loaded up with pork belly, coconut-laden ika mata, lu‘au and minus? Well, there’s always Blue Rose, a cafe just around the corner from St Lukes mall. It’s a sweet little spot, dressed on the outside in a deep blue, that serves delicious Pacific and Māori kai. The island plate and the mussel fritters are favourites, but Blue Rose is best known for the pies, big as your head and filled with familiar flavours such as palusami, boil-up (with bacon bones and watercress), hāngī (smoky pork and kūmara) and smoked fish. Make sure to take away a koko Samoa cupcake, too.