The Velvet Gypsy is an amazing place!!! Amazing specials every night of the week and great food…read more There are two sides of the restaurant (one quieter and sleeker, the other lively and facing the beach). The decor is awesome and keeps in line with the name of the place. Everyone looks like they are having an amazing time. I saw a huge age range - groups of 20 and 30 something as well as families and older folk. They also have a great range of food and beverages. We got the 2/$20 gourmet pizza special and both were delicious!!! We will be going back for steak night and the summer platter. Love this place!

This is a cool place to go in Browns Bay, its got 2 faces, one that faces the beach and one that…read morefaces the road. On the Beach face it has some comfortable lounge chairs and bar tables to admire the beauty of Browns Bay Beach and its more for eating. The street face is more of the bar side and yes the drinking side. We came here this week and had Pizza and some drinks, we received really good service and the pizza was pretty good too. They have a pretty good menu with a variety of tasty sounding dishes. During the day you can come and have lunch, and later in the evening dinner, then they come alive after dark for drinks and dancing. I will be back soon.

Was asked to add ten dollars to the bill if I wanted to share a meal with my kids from the kids…read moremenu. Not impressed.

Good Allpress coffee and a great atmosphere, nice find while we were out for a drive…read more Only criticism is that the coffee was made a bit too hot, killing some of the flavours. Otherwise well recommended, the menu looks good.

We don't normally give 5 stars for cafe food these days, but we have no hesitation in doing that…read moreafter calling in to DD's Country Cafe in Waitoki today. It was Sunday and raining and because of the slips in the Dome Valley we were diverted on to SH16, heading back home to the Bay of Islands. There was a huge selection of freshly made and delicious food. The sandwiches were so good and the light and tasty scone was nothing like the overheated lump of lard that we seem to have served up in cafes now. The coffee was hot and of a good strength and the young staff was very efficient. What an unexpected find. These people deserve to do well.

great place to go for a morning tea or lunch closes 3:30 great staff totally recommended! place…read morehas a real charm to it!

Absolutely great place to have breakfast. We hat the Omelette and the Plume Big breakfast, both was…read moregreat and tasted well with the Chai Latte and the Flat White. The staff is really helpful and attentively. They also bake themselves bread which is absolutely delicious. I would bet it is the best bread in New Zealand. This place is a must for everyone that drives by closely.

Can not rave about the cafe enough, spacious decor, comfortable inside and garden seating…read more take a trip to the Matakana markets, stock up on treats but brunch at this little gem

I came here with my family when we actually were meant to go to a café but instead walked past this…read moreplace and had a huge craving for yum cha. So we uplifted our plans for lunch and went there instead. It was nice and quiet compared to most Yum Chas, which was nice to begin with but we soon found out why there wasn't that many people there. I can't say that the food was bad, but I also can't say it was good either. It was just a little too strange for my liking. I think it's definitely down to the time of day we went there. It was quite late in the afternoon so they had probably had their lunch run and were just giving us what was left over. Never the less, it's good having a yum cha over on the shore to be there to instantly satisfy your yum cha cravings.

By far the best prawns around and the best chicken sweetcorn soup…read more This is a true authentic Asian restaurant situated in Browns Bay.

Good and friendly service, nice indoor/outdoor setting. Great coffee and good food.read more

This cafe is a bit of drive out of Auckland, but is a good place to meet up with friends. It's…read moreright by the dairy and close to where they hold the monthly Coatesville Markets (first Sunday of the month). Black Cottage (the new kid in the country) is on the other side of the dairy, brand new and always busy. This cafe is the original and a bit more laid back. Playground outside for kids and seating inside, on the verandah or outside under the trees. I can't rave about the food to be honest, except for their homemade pies which they sell at the market. I ordered the BLT, but it was made with bread so lightly toasted it was unappealing - wouldn't order that again. The mince with poached eggs and the mushrooms on potato rosti looked good. A little surprise was the coffee art, didn't expect that!

I had my first experience at Paper Moon just before Easter weekend and I loved it. We were a little…read moreearly for our reservation so my partner and I made the most of Mairangi Bay Beach being a stone's throw away. We had actually made the reservation while we were on the way there, and luckily we were able to secure a table. The person on the phone did ask if we were okay with being seated at the back of the restaurant, which was fine with us. As it turns out, the back of the restaurant was completely separate from the loud groups drinking at the front of the restaurant- added bonus! It wasn't particularly rowdy but it was nice to have dinner and be able to talk at a conversational volume. Our waitress was so lovely, she took great care of us and is the best waitress we've been served by in a long time (we left a tip, of course!). We were really impressed by her service, and my partner loved that she asked if we wanted a break between out entree and main (we definitely did, and had never been asked that before, at any restaurant). For our entree, we shared the tapas platter. This is seriously ideal if you're wanting to try a few things at a good price. We were treated with risotto balls (the best i've had!), deep fried camembert and other great treats- it was the perfect way to start a meal! The tapas combination changes everyday, which means you can try something a little different each time you visit. Our mains were excellent- the fish of the moment and the chicken burger. Both were excellent and perfectly cooked. Paper Moon provided one of the best meals I've had in a long time, and while it's a bit of a drive for me (living on the other side of Auckland), it's a great spot that's definitely worth the drive.

Went for breakfast and was persuaded to have the special - smashed avocado, which came accompanied…read morewith bacon, poached eggs and hollandaise sauce. I requested crispy bacon and the hollandaise on the side. When the meal came out it was clear that the smashed avocado was not he star of the meal. Two slices of toast were the central focus with eggs and bacon slapped on the plate. The avocado was more of a blended purée in a small pile to the side of the plate. The bacon was undercooked (relative to my request). When asked how I found my meal I responded "pretty average". The waitress responded with "oh well everyone is different" and walked off. When I went to pay the bill I had the same waitress so said "the thing I didn't like was that the avocado was far from the being the star of the show and was purée baby food, the eggs were barely warm and the bacon wasn't crispy". She stopped me at that point to tell me the bill was $25.90. I paid, walked out and will not go back as they clearly don't care.

Good food with good ambience. Nice size portions and good selection of beers. Outdoor or indoor…read moredining.

Only game in town on New Year's Day. 15% holiday surcharge. Jam packed for lunch. No wait…read morethough. Lots of seating inside and outdoors. Nice courtyard in back. Kids area next to courtyard -- swings and small boat that kids can climb on. Recommend keeping close eye on younger kids and toddlers due to driveway and random broken glass on ground. SERVICE: friendly, attentive FOOD: 3.5/5 French toast - generous portion. light, thick. good. Fried fish with salad - $30. generous portion. fresh. very good. Corn fritters - only disappointment. way too greasy. salad underneath fritters soggy from oil, making it unappetizing. Fluffy - not fluffy enough, so toddler ended up with warm milk down front of shirt.