A butcher is a staple in any small community. Greenwood's Butchery is a striped apron classic and…read morecan have you waltzing home feeling like Jamie Oliver. I love cooking and having a freshly cut slice of meat wrapped in brown paper can make all the difference. Not only do they stock the free mEAT magazine for the culinary impaired but the staff happily volunteer information on cuts and cooking techniques. In fact staff here some how manage to make you feel special and memorable every time. The meat is organic, hand-made sausages delicious and they are always willing to go the extra mile by nipping out the back and carving something up for you or ordering something especial. Just great.

Greenwoods has a real community buzz. It seems like everyone knows everyone. The people are super…read morefriendly, keen for a yarn, and the butchery is no exception. It's been around for over 80 + YEARS, which totally blows my mind. As for the meat, they've got a great range and quite a number of less common meats (duck, quail etc). Also free range and organic - big TICK!

This butchery has been around for decades. As an independent family owned business, Better Butchers…read moreof Mt Eden gives off a friendly, trustworthy, reliable vibe and is a proud part of the Mt Eden community. All their meat is locally grown and the animals receive the best care during this time - you don't have to worry about pigs in cages, and battery chickens here. Quality is what this butchery prides itself on, as evidenced by their good cuts of meat, fresh boned chicken and REAL MEAT SAUSAGES. The Better Butchers of Mt Eden are also well known for their amazing Christmas hams. We get our ham from them every year and are always really impressed with the flavour and quality of the meat, as well as the price! Unlike other butcheries and supermarkets, you actually get what you pay for with Better Butchers. No one I know has ever been let down by these guys, and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them to anyone after some decent meat - and some friendly banter! Bonus: Not only is this a great butchery but the staff are really welcoming and have a great sense of humour. Every visit is a delight!

So if you've read a few of my other reviews you'll know that I'm a bit fussy about eating meat. I…read moream however also a mother of three and am not ready to discount whole food groups on behalf of everyone else. Known to locals as the Wairiki Butchery (it's on the corner of Mt Eden and Wairiki Roads), I feel lucky to have this place close by. While whole carcasses really do freak me out, I'm a typical hypocritical consumer and meat in its prepared and packaged form does excite the cook in me. I go here often for the Chicken Nibbles, Lean Beef Mince, a log of Eye Fillet for a special occasion and also some really interesting sausages - the Wild Thar are always a hit at my BBQs. There is something about shopping at your local butchery that makes me feel like a small girl with my nana and I think it's so important to support specialty businesses like this. The guys are always so lovely; really helpful and I don't feel stupid asking them for advice on temperatures and timing. A lot of the basics I buy are priced comparatively to supermarkets so if you have the time, it's well worth dropping in here to get your meat. They also have some flash stuff in the fridge (marinades and the like) so it's one stop shopping if you have a dinner panic.

If you're in the Manukau area and in need of good quality, cheap meat, I would recommend coming to…read morethe Mad Butcher at South Point Countdown building. Not only is this a good place to come and get your meat, but there is also a Countdown supermarket and a pharmacy. South Point is your one stop shop for all necessities. The Mad Butcher here is massive! They have so much variety and some fantastic deals. I find it's always good to look on their website to see their weekly specials, then you can compare them to the cuts and prices found at Countdown and choose the better of the two. This can be done all under one roof, making the entire shopping experience extremely efficient. As this Mad Butcher is located in a mini shopping mall there is plenty of onsite parking available. As the Mad Butcher is located store front of this building you can also find parking spaces directly in front of the store. Perfect if you have young children and don't want to walk very far.

A hidden treasure for budget minded foodies or those simply looking for great and unusual cuts of…read moremeat. The Pork Mart is nestled away behind the Car-fe at the Greenlane roundabout - the easiest way in is by driving through the Countdown carpark, There's head to toe quality meats on offer. I get my beef cheeks there, pork ribs cut several sizes, meaty bones for stocks, massive pork hocks as well as your standard cuts of beef, lamb, pork and poultry. I go there once a month and stock the freezer. They also have an array of Asian dried, frozen and canned goods.

If you prefer buying fresh meat from a butcher instead of a supermarket, then this is a pretty good…read moreone in the Saint Johns/Glen Innes area. It has a nice selection of good quality and fresh meat, while still remaining quite competitive pricewise with the larger supermarket chains. You can also find rarer meats that you wouldn't normally find in a supermarket, like duck, venison, rabbit, pheasant etc. Not to mention free-range goodness. There is a fruit and vegetable store next door too, so when you're done with the selection of meat, just cruise in there and Boom! Roast pork and veges for dinner.

Every suburb seems to have one. The recently opened Greenlane Market Place is the latest Asian…read moresupermarket. These are superb places to pick up some cheap vegetables or frozen dumplings to supplement your general groceries shopping. Or a kick-ass curry paste you can't read the title of. Well placed between New Market and Royal Oak, hopefully the small shopping area it sits in starts to grow again. The staff are timid but smiley. The big negative of this store is the meat section. Its malodor keeps you away from half the store. If fish smells like fish, it's not fresh. If the fish isn't fresh, then what about the hanging duck or pork chops? There are plenty of Asian treats here (and bad English translations). If you ever need mass amounts of soy sauce and rice you know you can always come to a place like Greenlane Market Place.

This place used to be the Huckleberry Farm's health food store. When it closed down, I was really…read morecurious to see what would take it's place and monitored it's construction for a few months. Shortly after it's opening I went in, it was a supermarket of sorts, mostly Asian orientated but still had lots of fresh fruit and veggies. I decided I would do a shop here as their prices seemed very cheap so I was curious to compare. I bought a whole heap of fruit and vegetables as well as some dumplings and pastes and noodles etc. At the checkout everything came to around $30!? It was so cheap! Their produce was lovely, the only irk I have is that it isn't stored correctly, for example fruits and veggies that are best refrigerated weren't and I feel they could have been even better if they were stored properly. Other than that this place is great and I can see it become a regular of mine if I ever need to pop in somewhere quickly for a few things. The people in there were really helpful, some don't speak English but there seemed to be a few around that could help.

Traditionally, I've been a bit worried if someone is serving up some "Humble Pie." Isn't it like…read moreeating crow? But NOT this place! This place makes me want to eat humble pie every day! This little butcher shop is an authentic New Zealand butcher shop, with meat pies and sausage rolls. I got one of each- the pastry was doughy and flaky, and the succulent meats inside were a definite treat for just a few NZ Dollars. It was some of the cheapest eats on the island of Waiheke. The butcher also sells cuts of meat, of course, but I only tried their takeaway. The meat pie was so delicious- fresh meat carved up in a fresh flaky pastry. There's a nice bench out front where you can take in the scenery and the meat. I asked them if I could try a possum, but they didn't have any. The butcher was quite friendly, and was disappointed to not be able to showcase the country's dish in a meat pie. The place is completely safe, it's right next to the police station on the main road of the island. Parking can be found along the roadside.

I popped in for a looksie while up in Waiheke. Nice butchery. I didn't notice any butchery smell…read more Being a fan of the good old English pork pie, I decided to try the Steak and Mushroom pie. This was a proper pie. Full of meat. It didn't have as strong a mushroom taste as the Big Ben steak and mushroom. Could have done with a bit more seasoning. I liked it though. This was a big pie suited to a big hunger. Constructed in the same fashion as the pork pie this one is eaten piping hot. Looking to try another pie next time I'm on Waiheke Island. Will also try their game meat. Yum yum.

Best meat I've ever had in my life, shop is always clean, and they are always so friendly I 100%…read morerecommend them

It's weird to think that about ten years ago, Halal meat was hard to get in Auckland. Nowadays,…read moremost restaurants offer it as a matter of course, and there are butchers like Younus dotted all around the city. Younus Halal is my local butcher , so I'd go here even if it wasn't Halal, but the fact it is makes it a lot easier when I have muslim friends around for dinner. They sell cheap cuts of meat - you can pick up a kg of goat for less then ten dollars, or they do a great scotch fillet at a competitive price. The service isn't the most friendly - but they do spend all day cutting meat, so you can't really blame them for not being the most conversant . A good local butcher, but not worth driving across town for.