I enjoyed my experience at Belly Worship. Service was friendly and helpful. The food was not too…read morespicy. I also tried a drink which was great.

Neon lights? Check. Cheap and delicious Asian-fusion food?…read moreCheck. Friendly service? Check. Unlimited corn chips and fizzy and closing time of 2am? Bonus. You will find all this and more at the newly opened Belly Worship, a Chinese-fusion style restaurant located on Dominion Road. On the menu, there are a range of dishes available - steamed and fried dumplings, taco buns, spicy pancakes, stir-fried noodles, chicken, pork, beef and tofu dishes. The restaurant is not licensed, but they do offer a self-service bar where you pay just $3 for unlimited soft drink, alongside popcorn, corn chips and pretzels. This is a great idea - something to snack on while you wait for the rest of your party. It is also self-service for plates, bowls, cutlery and added sauces. Between three of us, we ordered quite a feast: - Spinach Taco Bun with Pork Belly ($7) - Shrimp, Pork and Chive Dumplings ($12) - Litchi Pork ($9.90) - Spicy Pancake ($5), with Duck (+$8) - Bamboo Chicken Wings ($14) - KungFu Kebabs with Fish Tofu and Beef ($16) - Scallion Fried Broccoli ($14) - Coconut Rice ($3) We enjoyed every dish (except one, see below), with our favourites being their signature Litchi Pork - similar to sweet and sour pork, but a little less rich and accompanied by potatoes and whole litchi (lychees). Priced at $9.90, it is a steal! The Spicy Pancake was also a highlight - crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. You can choose to have one of six fillings if you like (at an additional price) - we chose Duck. The pancake was huge, and with the extra duck and bean sprouts/slaw, this could be a meal in itself! It was also spicy, flavourful and the duck was cooked perfectly. We also liked the deliciously spiced and crispy Bamboo Chicken Wings, the arrival of the Shrimp, Pork and Chive Dumplings sizzling in the pan, the KungFu Kebabs with tender beef (not sure about the fish tofu), and our two side dishes, Scallion Fried Broccoli (YUM!) and Coconut Rice. The only dish we did not enjoy was the Spinach Taco Bun. Having read many great reviews, I had high hopes. Plus, the bun is green! (Thanks to the fresh spinach infused into the soft taco bun). However, we were super disappointed and left half of it. The bun was dry, the pork belly was dry and there was no flavourful sauce to tie all the ingredients together. Serving sizes for all dishes were plentiful and everything is reasonably priced. We also had more than enough to eat (for three) for lunch the following day. So, what did I think overall? Belly Worship is definitely worth checking out, for its cheap and cheerful menu, Instagram-worthy decor, and quirky self-service bar offering unlimited snacks and soft drink.. bring on the Fanta!!! [P.S. If you are Googling 'Belly Worship', make sure you put Dominion Road or Auckland too... otherwise you will be in for a surprise!]

One of the best burgers I've had. Period. Why?…read more Al Burger flavor was succulent with lots of flavor on every bite. The meat was cooked perfectly. The bun was had the right amount of crisp. Al's sauce was the bonus that took it all over the top. I added the combo for a complete meal. The coleslaw had enough a unique tangy taste. The pickle and fries were ok. I will try the poutine fries next. Service was solid. I didn't know you pay at the register, but I was really satisfied with my meal that the extra time waiting to find out didn't matter. Al's Deli is a solid spot for a 5-Star burger.

New owners now, sadly it is not the original owner, Al from Montreal…read more Unfortunately the food and customer service has gone downhill and they no longer offer a genuine Canadian experience when it comes to their food.

My daughter wanted some more "Americanized" food while we were visiting. Vons is in the Elliott…read moreStables food court. Food came out quickly and piping hot! The chicken is white meat and well seasoned served with fries "chips" and a nice small salad. Very tasty!

While I did not try anything from this restaurant, my friend who took me to the upscale food court…read morethis restaurant is located in kept telling me that out of all the offerings, she ALWAYS hits up Bonz because their Cajun fried chicken is what dreams are made of. If you say so! The chicken did look friend to perfection and if you have ever been curious as to what heaven smells like, then you must take a whiff of this chicken, that includes you too VEGANS!

I am not proud of my addiction to fried chicken, but it does make me a better judge of quality than…read moremany amateur fried-chicken eaters. I try to eat mostly Japanese fried chicken, as everyone knows Japanese is healthy for you. I'm not sure this extends to fried chicken however it rationalises it in my mind. Sometimes, however, a true fried chicken addict just needs a bit of KFC. I have tried the KFC in Takapuna and Birkenhead and it was sickening, greasy, not crispy skin, the chicken itself tasting very industrial and the service poor as well. The Ponsonby KFC, the few times I have ventured in, bucks the trend and is crispy and delicious with a nice place to sit and helpful service. I don't like to admit it but I probably will be back.

For my friends that know me well, they'll know that as well as being a big foodie I'm also a fried…read morechicken connoisseur. And it's for this very reason that the Ponsonby Road KFC deserves a special mention. This is not just KFC, it's the epitome of Colonel Sanders himself, and this comes from experience as well as taste-testing KFC in over 10 different countries around the world. Why Ponsonby Road? For starters, it was one of the first stores in NZ to get a 'makeover' with a flash new fitout, plasma screens in the restaurant etc. Food wise the chicken is always hot, when you ask for extra seasoning on your chips you get it and everything just seems fresher and less greasy than some other stores. And thirdly, the service is friendly and engaging. No bored, pimply teenager on the other end of the drive-through microphone. They are happy to accommodate swap-outs in orders and multiple payments. And people who can't decide what they want... All in all, a very pleasing fast food experience. Fill your next chicken craving at KFC Ponsonby Road.

The service is awesome! The soju is ICE cold which is how it should be. The seafood pancake is very…read moretasty. Kimchi tofu has been good, which I can say since we've been here twice in three days. The time before we had Bossam which was very good, along with kimchi jigae. The kimchi jigae was a little thicker since it had vermicelli noodle which soaked up the soup too fast. So if you get it, eat the noodle first or take it out. Music and cool air made the restaurant very welcoming. Servers were very friendly, so we felt like home.

High street is fabulous during the day, and at night this is one of the few places you can often…read moreeat after 9:30 PM. The bulgogi was delicious, but a little light on the amount of meat. The calamari were the biggest I've ever seen and a little overdone. Maybe the size is a sign of health, but with only chopsticks to work with, very hard to eat. Service was fast, but lacking on 'side-work' (cleaning dirty tables after people leave, etc). Ambiance is a miss too bc of the huge curtains they have in place blocking the street view. There are better options nearby I'm sure.

I've had lots of quality variations here over the years but last night was failure:…read more Asked for my drink when the food came, got it right away. Waited 20 minutes for my 10 minute order and had to get out of my car to collect it (they'd asked me to park while I waited, which is fine, but how did they not think to check each car?) Chips weren't fresh, no extra seasoning like I asked, skin on the chicken was thin and moist rather than warm and crispy. This was easily some of thier worst service but I'll give them another chance in maybe a few months.

Quick back story and fun fact: In 1911 there was a Zoo in Royal Oak! Of course, everyone complained…read moreabout the smell and the sound and never really embraced the beauty of the whole operation until the animals escaped and everything was eventually shut up and sold off. So now we have this voluminous pub with a fun, purple branding that doubles as a throw back to Auckland's past. There is plenty of seating (including the small cluster of outdoor couches everyone is vying for) and plenty of beers on tap. Inexplicably you are only allowed to smoke on one half of the outdoor seats. Staff seem to stay behind the bar unless they are trying to top up your barely finished drinks, which they do with hunter-like efficiency and a portable EFTPOS unit. Slightly too overpriced to be your local-after-work.

We kind of happened upon The Zookeeper's Son. We needed a place to take a bunch of out-of-towners…read moreafter a sports event in Onehunga, and Onehunga had nothing in the way of relaxed beer garden bars to chill at. A quick google search came back with The Zookeeper's Son, and off we went. The beer was cold, the sides were quickly served and the mid-afternoon sun was sitting just right for us to have a bit of a winter sunbathe. My next trip to The Zookeeper's Son was with a couple of Americans who had been foolishly trying to figure out the best New Zealand beers on their own. They bought Tui because it said it was an IPA. Woof. The Zookeeper bartender was extremely helpful with the yanks - told them what he liked, ascertained what they liked, and then came up with a beer they would enjoy drinking. It was a hit! As for the decor, this place is a bit like all of the other bars owned by The New Zealand Pub Company (like the Elephant Wrestler on the Shore, which is decked out similarly to this place). The cheesiness of a themed bar often elicits a groan out of me, but the New Zealand Pub Company does it with enough camp that I'll let them get away with it.

50c to buy dipping sauce for the crispy strips... Fail!!!…read more They've ran out of bean salad... Quay St KFC has ran out... Fail!!! Yelled at "next please" and replied "I'm deciding" and yelled at louder "next please!" Open your ears champ!!! This place is deteriorating badly. Give it a miss.

Delicious food from a top-chef in an exciting restaurant in Auckland. Beautiful murals on the…read morewall, gender neutral bathroom, and excellent food, this restaurant has plenty of seating both inside and out. I ordered coconut water as my refresher, beloved ordered an iced latte, huge fresh salads, real food with natural ingredients. Well worth stopping in!

Found this lovely spot while I was looking for a place to eat for lunch. I got spicy chicken…read moreclassic burger and man it was so good! the spices did come through and I think it was the yogurt sauce in the burger that made me love this so much. The place is really cute I think it would be really nice to sit outdoor during summer and great service! I think I'm gonna go back and try something else on the menu.

Now renamed "Nora Thai Street Food". The owner was very warm and welcoming as soon as I walked in…read more I was craving pad kra pow and asked if they could make the authentic Thai style for me. They did and did not disappoint. Every bite was a blast of Thai spiciness, sweetness, and savoriness. The Nam Tok salad was a nice tangy contrast in flavor to the kra pow. The seating is spacious and cozy. The decor is colorful and resembles the Thai spirit. I enjoyed my dinner here and would come back anytime!

This place is a gem! We ordered the chicken satay and basil chicken stir fry for dinner. Both were…read moredelicious! Food came out quickly. Free water is available, self-serve. Definitely worth checking out.