KP Eating Face

We eat at places and tell you if it's good.

[efuniverse]

Popa's Pretzels

G32/368 Queen St

For a while now, the two of us here at EF along with a few other friends have been big fans of a little shop on Queen Street.

Popa’s Pretzels may be a small location, but the place is big on flavours and personalities. Serving freshly baked sweet or savoury pretzels with a big smile on his face, the man behind the counter (whom we can only assume to be “Popa”) had us sold from the first, warm, chocolate-filled bite.

The “pretzel-ery” has a vast range of baked goods – savoury pretzels, sweet pretzels, empanadas, “pretzillas” and more Romanian-style food. While it is a set menu, “Popa” is a happily accommodating man who takes in your suggestions and makes it the way you want.

Our personal favourites were the Pretzel dog and the walnut and chocolate filled pretzel. Dasarsh’s favourite, The Pretzel Dog was a cabanossi sausage-filled pretzel dough with a topping of your choice. The walnut and chocolate filled pretzel is an indulgent treat for that sweet craving of yours.

Everyone at EF believes in sharing good food, so we couldn’t help but coax our friend Tarannum to become a fan. But we decided to try something different to convert her.

On a Monday morning, Shreya decided to give Popa’s a visit and have a chat to the owner to make a special treat for Tarannum, to celebrate her upcoming graduation.

The result? Quite possibly one of the biggest pretzels you can find in Auckland! Made in a small shop, full of heart, the walnut and chocolate filled pretzel had Tarannum sold!

Soft, yet slightly crisp pastry filled with oozing chocolate and little walnut surprises, a delightful treat on a cold and windy winter’s night.

Great food coupled with a warm, jolly personality is always a winner amongst food-lovers. Popa’s Pretzels is a stop you should definitely make while on Queen Street.

We at Eating Face give Popa's Pretzels:

5 / 5 KPs

[efuniverse]

Top Cafe

7/30 Upper Queen St, Newton

Top Cafe is our go-to place for soul food. We frequent it at least once a week so it's about time we did it some justice and bragged on its behalf. The very essence of Top Cafe is its head-on simplicity and you'll notice this from the get-go. Inside are the absolute bare essentials for dining; tables, seats and cutlery. A TV adorning one corner of the room contributes to the few scenes and sounds your eyes and ears will pick up. One of the best visual aspects about Top Cafe is the light from the setting afternoon sun which floods in - bathing diners in warmth.

If you aren't skilled with a pair of chopsticks, you may want to practice a bit before you go in as the snappy owner is less than obliging to requests. Shreya can remember a time when we tried to get a soup bowl to share some noodles between two of us, the owner said no and indicated the tiny saucer plate as a substitute!

But service isn't what we are after here, and certainly not what the regulars seem to be coming in for either. Top Cafe has seen its customer base grow and diversify since being named one of the Top 50 'Cheap Eats' by Metro Magazine - a leading cosmopolitan publication in Auckland.

We have both noticed a steady increase in the number of non-Asian faces frequenting this place and can certainly see why this place is drawing a new kind of clientele in.

Your mouth will water once your food is made and brought to your table. From the taste, you'll be able to tell how much experience the cook possesses. Orders are made on the spot, one by one as requested by customers. It takes around 15 minutes to get your meal but you are kept happy with some complimentary jasmine tea in the meantime.

It's all handmade from scratch and it all feels very homely and comforting. The shrimp, egg and chives dumplings have become a staple in our diets; it's good for our tummies and our wallets.

We totally recommending just digging into the large plates of dumplings instead of being brave and trying something else on the menu. One plate can feed two relatively hungry people comfortably and the rest of the menu doesn't draw as much interest.

We at Eating Face give Top Cafe:

4 / 5 KPs

[efuniverse]

Best Ugly Bagels

90 Wellesley St W

“Chick-a-boom!”. The first words you hear booming from the front of the house as we enter the warehouse-like eatery on the corner of Wellesley St and Nelson St. The setting gives the opportunity for customers to see literally every process in the bagels they make: the rolling of dough, the (rather fascinating) emergence of the bagels from the oven, the topping – all of it.

But whilst this factory-like process goes on there is still a homely touch to the place. Whether it’s the constant communication between the kitchen staff or the personal, typically Kiwi attitude of the employee handling the counter, you can feel comfortable picking up your morning or afternoon bagel.

The menu is unsurprisingly focussed on selling different kinds of bagels – plain, flavoured, with spreads, filled and so on. The Montreal-based bagelry interestingly focuses on using local ingredients and offer them on sale separately also. Such as Te Horo jam, their own home made “Koko” (hazelnut spread) and a range of deli items.

Shreya and our new recruit, Tarannum, decided to opt for the sweet spreads and got the Koko spread, and the traditional Peanut Butter and Jam. The Koko spread was indeed very fulfilling for Shreya and she found her sweet tooth satisfied. An ideal combination of cocoa and chopped hazelnuts was achieved, and the warm sesame bun just made the experience better. She describes the spread as eating a “melted Ferroro Rocher”. So chocolate-lovers, this one’s for you.

The PB&J also proved to be a good choice. We found the strawberry jam a little extra sweet, serving more as a preserve than jam. But with the peanut butter, featuring chopped peanuts, it balanced and went down well with the strawberry jam, leaving a want to lick your fingers.

Finally Dasarsh had the special for that day, Chick-a-Boom. On top of a signature Best Ugly Bagel was free range chicken with curry yoghurt and mayo with spring onions and toasted almonds. Again, a tasty bagel with the yoghurt blending well with the chicken. The accompaniment of the crunchy spring onions gave a good variance in texture. One improvement that could be made though, is perhaps serving the chicken mixture warm so it goes well with the warm bun.

With the great service and satisfying experience, we at Eating Face give Best Ugly Bagels:

4 / 5 KPs

[efuniverse]

The Dairy

7 Richmond Road, Ponsonby

The Dairy is another small, but comfortable place. Situated in The Lane at Ponsonby Central, it shares its space with many other eateries. This foodcourt-esque mixture of seating, sights and smells can be either confusing or enticing to the individual. One definite downside to the location, however, is its susceptibility to wind. We definitely couldn't keep track of our serviettes.

The menu contains a multitude of comfort foods, from poutine to milkshakes and cotton candy topped ice cream sandwiches. The theme of dairy products is evident in the menu and is also made very obvious with the large selection of cheeses in the back.

The ice cream sandwiches found a place to stay in both Shreya's and Reshmi's hearts. I made room in mine for a peanut butter milkshake. The Fries with Aioli went down well, but that's the end of the compliments for the food. The Balls of Fire and Deep Fried Curds were way too heavy and overly cheesy. We found ourselves not being able to finish it all and also with a cheese-overloaded unpleasant taste in our mouths.

We at Eating Face give The Dairy:

2 / 5 KPs

[efuniverse]

Little Bird Unbakery

1A Summer Street, Ponsonby

Little Bird Unbakery is a tiny place, but it's cosy. The space is warm, and I mean that in terms of both temperature and colours. Bricks and wood are a recurring theme for small to medium sized eateries these days and we see Little Bird following this trend. This conforms to Little Bird's nature-centric ambience, with the rich earthy colours from the brick and wood, and scattered green from their plants.

The lines and waiting list are indicative of the quality of the food and atmosphere which we found to be great. New menus released every so often reflect the seasonal changes that accompany an all natural, all organic selection.

Nothing here is cooked, but that didn't stop us. We had a special first time guest appearance from Reshmi, who ordered and loved the Mexican Plate. I had the Portobello Benedict, maybe just for the hollandaise sauce, but it didn't disappoint. Shreya's Bibimbap, though spicy, pleased her to no extent (even though Reshmi and I had to help finish it).

We at Eating Face give Little Bird Unbakery:

3.5 / 5 KPs