12 minute read
Taste of Takapuna
Taste of Takapuna 2021 Peoples' Choice Awards
Support local and vote for your favourite local bars and eateries by November 14th
The good folks of the Takapuna Beach Business Association do a great job assisting businesses in the precinct. It is no secret that hospitality and retail businesses will be doing it tough at this time so more than ever they need us to ‘do it local’. It is timely therefore, as we come out of lockdown, that the TBBA is launching their annual Taste of Takapuna ‘Peoples' Choice Awards’ – encouraging locals to support and recognise their favourite places in Takapuna to eat, drink and indulge.
Through until Sunday November 14th you can vote for your favourite hospitality business, in the Taste of Takapuna 2021 Peoples' Choice Awards. “We want you to Sakebar Nippon. show our support for all the amazing hospitality businesses in Takapuna,” says TBBA CEO Terence Harpur. “This is your opportunity to share the love, by indulging in their delicious offerings and nominating your favourite eateries in Takapuna. After Taylors of Hurstmere. Smokepit & Buoy. lockdown they definitely need our support for both their take-out and eat-in options.”
There are six categories in the Taste of Takapuna 2021 Peoples' Choice Awards. These are for the Best Café, Best Restaurant, Best Takeaway, Best Drinks, Best Coffee and Best Sweet Treat. You can nominate any business in Takapuna that you think should win each category.
Once voting closes, the votes will be tallied and the winning businesses will be announced and recognised via the TBBA website and Channel Magazine.
“We are also giving away prizes to some lucky voters as a thank you for showing your support,” adds Terence Harpur. “We will be giving away $500, $250 and $100 Takapuna dining vouchers to three lucky voters as part of the promotion.”
Another great reason from the Takapuna Beach Business Association to support local!
For more information on how to vote and enter visit: www.ilovetakapuna.co.nz (also, see our list of Takapuna Beach bars and eateries included with this feature – there are apparently well over 100 in total).
Takapuna Beach Cafes, Bars & Eateries… 8848 Restaurant & Bar (Huron Street), www.8848indiancuisine.co.nz or Phone 09 489 9911 • Alforno Italian Restaurant (Anzac Street), www.alforno.co.nz or 09-488-0179 • Aubergine Restaurant (Hurstmere Road), www.aubergine.co.nz or Phone 09 489 3104 • Basu Lounge Dumpling & Noodle House (Lake Road) • Bian Sushi & Donburi (Hurstmere Green), www.biansushi.co.nz or Phone 09 489 5711 • Big Tikka (Lake Road), www.bigtikka.co.nz or Phone 09 974 2241 • Bird on a Wire (Eat Street, Hurstmere Road) www.birdonawire.co.nz • Botticelli Restaurant(Anzac Street) www.botticelli.co.nz or Phone 021 910 999 • Buns and Rolls Asian Street Eatery (Shore City), www.shore-city.co.nz • Burger Burger (Eat Street, Hurstmere Road), www.burgerburger.co.nz or Phone 09 390 5348 • Cafe Botannix Takapuna (Hurstmere Road, Phone 09 218 5757 • Cafe Etage (Shore City), www.shore-city.co.nz • Catnapper Arms (Hurstmere Road), www.catnapperarms.co.nz or Phone 09 486 6330 • Centro Cafe(Lake Road), Phone 09 200 2277 • Daikoku (Bruce Mason Centre Building), www.daikoku.co.nz or Phone 09-488-0678 • Dak Hanmari Korean BBQ (Auburn Street), Phone 09-488 0012 • Dantes Pizza & Casa Pasta (Eat Street, Hurstmere Road), www.dantes.co.nz or Phone 09 486 3668 • DoDo Sushi & Donburi (Lake Road), Phone 09 488 7527 • El Humero (Eat Street, Hurstmere Road), www.elhumero.co.nz or Phone 09 489 9973 • Fatimas (Anzac Street), www.fatimas.co.nz or Phone 09 489 6552 • Florrie McGreals Irish Pub (Hurstmere Road), www.florriemcgreals.co.nz or Phone 09 486 6330 •Francs Bar & Diner (Main Beach, The Strand), www.joylab.co.nz or Phone 09 488 0016 • Hell Pizza Takapuna (Byron Avenue), www.hellpizza.com or Phone 09 445 6660 • Honey Cafe (Huron Street), www.honeycafe.co.nz or Phone 09 489 4000 • House of Chocolate Dessert Cafe & Cakery (Hurstmere Road), www.houseofchocolate.co.nz or Phone 09 975 0632 • Jam Organic Cafe (Hurstmere Green), Phone 09-486 1600 • Joe’s Eatery (Hurstmere Road), www.joeseatery.co.nz or Phone 09 486 1989 • Katsubi Donburi Takapuna (Lake Road) • Korean Myeong Dong (Lake Road), Phone 09 488 0600 • Kyoto Japanese (Shore City) • Kyo-Ya Japanese Restaurant (Lake Road), www.kyoya.co.nz or Phone 09 489 2312 • Leaf & Loaf Cafe & Salad Bar (Hurstmere Road), Phone 09-489 7866 • Little Lamb Hotpot (Hurstmere Road) Phone 09 222 2737 • Madam Woo (Lake Road), www.madamwoo.co.nz or Phone 09 489 4601 • Majestic Tea Bar (Shore City), www.shore-city.co.nz or Phone 09 486 0642 • Mamak Malaysian Street Food(Huron/Northcroft Streets), www.mamaktakapuna.co.nz or Phone 09 486 0122 • Manna Sushi & Don (Lake Road), Phone 09 489 7775 • Mexico (McKenzies Precinct, The Strand), www.mexico.net.nz or Phone 09 489 6781 • Mimosa Coffee & Eatery, Phone 09 486 2020 • Nam Nam Vietnamese
4. 1. 2. 3.
The best of takeaways in Takapuna
As we were preparing this issue Auckland was dropping down from Covid-19 Level 4 to Level 3 – with the hope that Level 2 and 1 were also not too far away. So hopefully, as you read this, we are all now able to dine-in at our favourite Takapuna Beach eateries. Best Takeaway is a category to vote for in the Taste of Takapuna 2021 Peoples' Choice Awards. We have taken this opportunity to highlight some of our favourite takeaway food deliciousness in Takapuna…
1. CRISPY FU – from TUCKS AND BAO – This crunchy and juicy plant-based delight comes in Tucks and Bao’s signature soft and tasty bao. Featuring crispy tofu, slaw, peanuts, and dairy-free sriracha mayo, it’s a flavour slam. About half of Tucks and Bao’s menu is vegan, and there’s meaty options for those of you hankering for pork, chicken and beef. Pickup and delivery. 2. CRISPY PORK HOCK “PATA” – from NANAM - Pata is a popular Filipino pork dish that’s crispy, crunchy goodness. It’s got that perfect pork skin you’ve been trying to master at home, and it comes with chorizo and basil sauce and a spicy soy dip that just set it off like magic. Pickup and delivery. 3. DIM SUM – from FLYING HORSE TAKAPUNA - We’d love to be more specific, but there’s so much to choose from on the Flying Horse dim sum menu, and it’s all good stuff. All kinds of dumplings, BBQ Pork Buns, and Custard Buns or Crispy Milk Buns with Condensed Milk to finish off. Flying Horse does a mean trade in fried noodles, soups and rice dishes, too. Pickup and delivery. 4. BUFALINA – from DANTE’S - Purists will tell you the only true pizza is margherita, and the only true margherita is made with buffalo mozzarella. You’d struggle to find a Kiwi pizza that’s more authentic than this certified Napoletana-style pizza at Dante’s. Pickup. 5. THE BACH DADDY – from THE BURGER BACH - This is The Burger Bach’s signature speciality. Pure untamed greatness packed in a bun: two beef patties, hash brown, bacon, cheese, salad and special sauce. Bonus points for visiting The Burger Bach Facebook page for a lockdown meme giggle-fest. Pickup and delivery. 6. FAMILY FEED – from BIRD ON A WIRE - Whether you’ve got a hungry pack to feed, or you’re a bubble of one, this is an epic feast that can’t be missed. Bird on a Wire’s speciality is chicken, and they do it veeeery well. Smash it all in one excellent family dinner, or spread it out over a couple of days of bingeing Netflix and the Bloomfield Show. We don’t judge. Pickup and delivery.
7. INSALATA CAPRESE – from BOTICELLI RESTAURANT
AND WINE BAR - Sadly live music is still off the menu for now, but you can still have Botticelli’s bellissimo Italian food live in your living room! Insalata Caprese is a classic triumvirate of fresh Italian flavours: mozzarella, tomato and basil. Pickup and delivery.
8. DOLMA – from SAM’S MEDITERRANEAN EATERY &
FOOD STORE - If you haven’t tried Sam’s Stuffed Capsicum (Dolma), there’s no better time than now. These colourful baked parcels are a bit of an art form, stuffed with rice, pine nuts, currants and aromatic herbs. Pickup and delivery. 9. COFFEE AND A CAKE – from ZOMER CAFÉ – Zomer does so many things right. They’ve got full, beautiful meals on offer but sometimes it’s just about the simple things done right: real, quality barista coffee and a really yummy treat to take with you. Pickup.
8. 6. 7.
Street Food (Huron Street) www.namnam.nz or Phone 09 488 0055 • Nanam (Hurstmere Road), nanam.co.nz or Phone 09 488 9976 •Nikko’s Pizza (Anzac Street), www.nikospizza.co.nz or Phone 09 486 0600 • Noodle Canteen Takapuna (Lake Road), www.noodlecanteen.co.nz or Phone 09 489 1680 • Oporto (Lake Road) Phone 09 218 8734 • Otto Woo (Lake Road), www.ottowootakapuna.co.nz or Phone 09 488 0388 • Otto’s Mediterranian Kitchen (Eat Street, Hurstmere Road), www.ottoskitchen.co.nz or Phone 09 486 0705 • Poke Poke Takapuna(Eat Street, Hurstmere Road), Phone 486-5399 • QMT Dumplings (Lake Road), www.qmtdumplings.co.nz •Ragazzi Cafe & Wine Bar (Hurstmere Road) Phone 09 486 5033 • Ramen Lab Takapuna (Huron Street), www.ramenlab.co.nz or Phone 09 489 9902 • Regatta Bar & Eatery (Main Beach, The Strand), www.joylab.co.nz, or Phone 09 488 0040 • Renkon Takapuna (Anzac Street), www.renkon.nz or Phone 09 488 7737 • Richoux Patisserie Takapuna (Lake Road), Phone 09-489 9903 • Sake Bar Nippon (Anzac Street), www.sakebar.co.nz or Phone 09 486 2249 • Sals Pizza (The Strand), www.sals.co.nz or Phone 09 487 4257 • Sam’s Mediterranean Eatery & Food Store (Hurstmere Road), www.sams86.co.nz or Phone 09 486 3586 •Seven Hills Turkish Eatery (The Strand), www.sevenhills.co.nz or Phone 09 486 5550 • Delight Sushi Takapuna (Parkway Arcade, Hurstmere Road) Phone 021 448 953 • Sushi Ya (Hurstmere Road) Phone 09 488 0566 • SmokePit & Buoy Restaurant (Spencer on Byron Hotel) www.smokepit.co.nz or Phone 09 916 4982 • Street Organics (Byron Ave), www.streetorganics.co.nz or Phone 09 216 5991 • Takapuna Bar (Hurstmere Roundabout), www.takapuna-bar.co.nz or Phone 09 486 2666 •Takapuna Beach Cafe (The Promenade), www.takapunabeachcafe.co.nz or Phone 09 484 0002 • Tank Juice (Shore City & Hurstmere Road), www.tankjuice.co.nz • Taylors on Hurstmere (Hurstmere Road), www.taylorsonhurstmere.co.nz or Phone 09 489 9510 • Thai Takapuna (Hurstmere Road), www.thaitakapuna.co.nz or Phone 09 973 4259 • That Cafe (Byron Ave), Phone 09-930 0598 • The Burger Bach (The Strand), www.theburgerbach.co.nz or Phone 09 963 6446 • The Coop (Hurstmere Road), www.the-coop.co.nz or Phone 09 218 9354 • The Elephant Wrestler (Hurstmere Road), www.joylab.co.nz or Phone 09 489 8030 • The Lantern Chinese (Shore City), www.shore-city.co.nz • The Plumm Cafe (Hurstmere Road), Phone 09489 5563 • Tok Tok Kitchen (Hurstmere Road Roundabout), www.toktok.co.nz or Phone 09 489 3988 • Tokyo Bay (Main Beach, The Strand), www.tokyobay.co.nz or Phone 09 390 7188 • Tucks & Bao (Hurstmere Road), www.tucksandbao.co.nz or Phone 09 486 1615 • Winner Winner Takapuna (Anzac Street), www.winnerwinner.co.nz or Phone 09 486 0755 • Zomer Cafe (The Strand), www.zomer.co.nz or Phone 09 488 7594.
By Sonia Thursby, CEO, Shore Junction
Pivoting during Covid
Sonia Thursby.
The arrival of the Delta variant into Tāmaki Mākaurau brought with it both Level 4 and a range of challenging feelings for the young people of our city.
This includes the fear of catching the virus, stress around schooling in a home with no dedicated study space and in a house filled with family members, depression due to the inability to socialise and connect with their friends outside of classroom zoom calls, and anxiety due to the uncertainty of when the lockdown would end. These overwhelming feelings affected our young people greatly and due to lockdown it also affected Shore Junction’s ability to connect with them in meaningful and authentic ways. Or so we thought…
Thanks to modern technology and a website called Discord, we were able to pivot to create an interactive version of Shore Junction online. This means we are to connect with our young people in a fun, safe and virtual way with ‘rooms’ dedicated to enjoyable and serious play.
These include the music room where our youth workers teach students how to write songs, create beats, and enjoy music-specific quizzes. There’s a space for our young people to post their creative art pieces they’ve made at home and then go in the draw to win prizes. We have the gaming section where our members play head to head against staff in laugh out loud competitions. We also have a section where our young people can do at-home workouts for free with our professional personal trainer who teaches safe exercise programmes.
We are also aware that our young people have had challenges around mental health and studying at home. Therefore, we have allocated funds to create an online safe space for conversations with youth workers and professional counsellors where our young people can get support and help for any anxiety they’re facing. We also have the ability to bring in specialist tutors to help with NCEA physics, mathematics, dance and many other subjects when requested.
We truly value and care about our young people at Shore Junction, and we have learned that due to Covid-19, we live in a challenging and fluid world where we must move online if we’re going to support our young people in the way that resonates with them during these stressful times.
If you know any young people between the ages of 13-24 years old (whether they live on the Shore, or not) please go to the Shore Junction Instagram or Facebook page to gain access to our fun, engaging and free virtual youth centre on Discord. Being there for young people is a responsibility and a joy we take very seriously at Shore Junction. See you on Discord!
Sending Something Overseas?
Jane and Jeremy Bain.
PACK & SEND Takapuna is your "one stop shop" for all your international packaging and freight needs. When you need to send overseas to any country you can rely on Pack & Send's experience to package it and get it delivered, safely.
Jane and Jeremy Bain, the franchisees at PACK & SEND Takapuna have a "No Limits" approach when helping customers solve packaging and freight problems from a sensitive document to difficult fragile and valuable items to send. "Many of the items we have dealt with are considered too difficult for general freight." says Jeremy.
Sending overseas is complex and PACK & SEND make it easy. “We prepare all the items for sending, make inventory lists and prepare customs documentation” says Jane.
Many of these items are valuable so PACK & SEND customers can use their Freight Plus Warranty to cover against loss or damage to secure that extra peace of mind - something not generally available when freighting goods of high value.
For those really delicate items like fine antiques or ceramics, PACK & SEND can use its state of the art "Foam in Place" packaging system, which forms a protective mould around the item, for safe transport. "We also produce custom made boxes to any size or shape" adds Jeremy. "Because we treat each consignment as unique, designing packaging and the freight solutions to suit, we're finding that more and more people benefit from our services”
If you are planning your Australian winter vacation but want to travel unencumbered, let PACK & SEND forward your bulky baggage there in time for your arrival.
Not only does PACK & SEND export items they arrange for the importation of goods and sensitive documents too. They have outlets in Australia and UK that can even assist with packing.
PACK & SEND provides service, systems and packaging to make your freight experience as simple and smooth as possible. You don't need to open an account; they send anything, anywhere and take care of the hassles.
PACK & SEND Takapuna open Mon – Sat, located at 77 Barrys Point Rd, Takapuna with exclusive and convenient parking outside. Ph 486-3355 or email takapuna@packsend.co.nz and let them make sending easy.
Pack & Send Takapuna
77 Barry’s Point Rd, Takapuna Phone: 09 486 3355 Email: takapuna@packsend.co.nz
