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Eat Drink Love Ponsonby Is Back For 2023 | Here Are The Best Deals You Need To Devour

By Ava Wardecki
4th May 2023

People enjoy Bali NIghts.

We love wining and dining in Ponsonby at the best of times. Throw in some one-off creations, tasting menus, and special prices including a menu with pocket-friendly price tags for these trying times, and we really don’t need our arm further twisted. 

Enter Eat Drink Love Ponsonby: the month-long festival dedicated to tempting you with exciting limited edition eats, special set menus, and penny-saving deals. Basically, your best excuse to revisit a favourite spot or finally head to that new place on your hitlist. 

Grab your planner, round up your foodie friends and tuck into our handpicked offers at each price point for you this Eat Drink Love Ponsonby, like this steal of a deal from The Hidden Village and Revelry. Feasting awaits!

$30 & Under

Mouthwatering Deals For Mere Pocket Change

Revelry 

The best kind of lazy Sunday feed is one where the only effort involved is lifting the nosh to your mouth. Chicken wings — brought straight to you, round after bottomless round to be precise — if we’re talking about Revelry's Eat Drink Love Ponsonby offering this year. They’re coated in a sweet and sticky sauce, served alongside their very own BBQ Chipotle sauce with cheesy garlic bread and golden fries, and yours to tuck into in unlimited proportions for a crisp $25. They’re available Sundays, so make sure you make those four days across May count. Ya hear us?

MaMa Do

There’s a new gal on the block, and her presence—and Eat Drink Love Ponsonby offering—is one to note. Introduce yourself to MaMa Do Thai Street Corner by ripping into their MaMa Wrap: a gloriously saucy portion of pork belly and fresh salad, complete with a secret peanut sauce, cuddled in a soft roti wrap. While it’s a staple on their menu, this May the team are pairing it with a fresh lemon and ginger soda for $25 a pop. That’s balance, baby. 

Bird On A Wire

Roti is always a welcome side. As a main attraction, loaded up with chicken? Now that’s where it shines. Not just any chook, Bird on a Wire’s Two Bird Roti Rolls are marinated to perfection in their iconic mixes, complete with coriander, chilli and a splash of slaw. Swap a crisp $20 and this deal is all yours to sink your teeth into for the month of May.

The Hidden Village

Taste of Asia tasting platter at The Hidden Village, one of the best Eat, Drink Love Ponsonby deals.If there’s one dish that’s becoming an Eat Drink Love Ponsonby special staple, it’s the Taste of Asia Tasting Platter by The Hidden Village. Head into Ponsonby Central, and follow the neon lights to the nestled oasis that is The Hidden Village. Trust us when we say here, you’ll get some bang for your buck: satay skewers, the most succulent pork BBQ, crispy wontons, popcorn cauliflower, edamame, your choice of a baby bao is your intro to the vibrant world of Filipino cuisine—and more—for just $25 a plate. Fall in love with any of the goodies? Lucky you, each of these bites are firm finds on their year-round menu, you can revisit your favourites way beyond May.

$30-$50

Somewhere Between Cheap And Cheerful And Posh Nosh

Ponsonby Crêpes

It’s safe to say that the French are known for their perfect pairings. This month’s French Delights: A Perfectly Paired Menu by Ponsonby Crêpes goes beyond the old cheese and wine, baguettes and butter duos: we’re talking about the holy grail of sweet and savoury crêpe. Start with a hearty galette (a buckwheat, savoury crêpe) topped with cheddar, local champagne ham and tomatoes before tickling your sweet tooth with a chocolate and whipped cream sweet crepe. In true French fashion, you won’t be going dry: there’s a beautiful handpicking of red, white, or the traditional crêpe companion, cider, to choose from. All this for $44 makes for a seriously delicieux lunch or dinner. 

Mumbaiwala

It’s not every day you get three full-on courses for under $50, so we’re mighty glad that May is a 31-day-strong month. Case in point, Mumbaiwala’s set menu, which spoils vegans, vegetarians and meat-eaters alike with three waves of fragrant and flavorful Mumbai-style feasting. There are curries and rotis/naans to suit either camp, cauliflower Manchurian or Mumbai Chicken to start off the savoury. As for the sugar hit? Veggie-based pals can tuck into a coconut kulfi while the Chocolate Naan—yes it’s a thing, and a glorious thing at that—rounds off the meat eater’s menu. 

The Broken Lantern

Big dish, small dish, bevvy and action. The Broken Lantern is catering to vegetarians and meat-eaters alike with their pocket-friendly two-dish and cocktail $30-$50 combo this May. Meaties, you’ll be set with a succulent steak dish as your main while vegetarians get a plant-powered take on an elevated, creative comfort dish. Choose your small bite to pair, your bespoke cocktail (of which there are plenty and all expertly crafted) and you’ll be away laughing—or rather, lifting fork to face.

$50 and over

Nifty Deals For Those In The Mood To Splash A Li'l Cash

Okumnandi

Ever indulged in a milk tart? Now’s your chance to get a slice of the sweetheart of the South African dessert scene. Lucky for you, Ponsonby plays host to Auckland’s first South African-fusion restaurant, Okumnandi, who are dishing up this—plus some—in their ‘It Comes Delicious’ $50 three courser. And delicious it is indeed: with garlic chicken liver sauteed in their iconic peri-peri, sherry, mixed herb and onion sauce followed by a hearty set of barbeque lamb ribs in the savoury department. Lip smacking and lekker. 

INCA

Fancy a feast that’s as fast as it is flavourful, bright and beautiful? It’s time you slotted out an early dinner any day of the week, or a lunch window from Wednesday to Friday to settle in with Inca’s Rapido $55 set menu. True to its name, they’ll fire out dish after dish of South American and East Asian fusion. Spicy tuna tostadas, INCA-style guac’, baby gem and green papaya salads along with your choice of impossibly fresh fish, chicken or veggie-centric starters and mains— you know, the works.

Bali Nights

Get the biggest, baddest taste of Balinese cuisine with Bali Nights' Nusantara $50 Set Menu—officially back and better than ever for this year's Eat Drink Love Ponsonby. Simply put, it reads like a guest list of the who’s-who of Indonesian street food: Sate grilled skewers with a moreish peanut sauce, mie goreng, rendang (which can be made vegan), a Gorengan Platter of tempe, fried tofu and veggie fritters. And if your stomach can really swing it, they’ll match you with unlimited Jasmine rice. Considering this is just *some* of the goodies that await and it’s priced at $50 a person, we think you know exactly what to do.

Azabu

Consider May your ticket to sample the most stand-out dishes from one of Auckland’s most sleek sushi destinations, for a slither of the price. We’re talking about none other than the Taste of Azabu menu, which sets you back $55 a person and lands you in the lap of seared truffle beef tostadas, grilled octopus with Amarillo mash, volcano sushi rolls, salmon ceviche and quite possibly the world’s most chic karaage chicken. Hop to it, foodies, it’s only around from 4-6.30pm daily. 

Blue Breeze Inn

Did someone say birthday? Ponsonby icon Blue Breeze Inn is blowing out ten candles and treating us lucky little things for the occasion. Their 10-Year Extravaganza Platter is an explosion of everything we know and love from the Pacific-Chinese hotspot: duck and chive spring rolls, smoked snapper pâté, spicy coriander salads, crispy sweet chilli squid and perhaps the best take on surf and turf: tiger prawn stuffed chicken wings complete with crème fraiche. There are options for two or four people ($70 or $130 respectively) but we’re confident that we could polish off a serving alone, considering the special occasion. 

Please note that these deals are literally just the tip of the EDLP iceberg, there are so many other great offers and events to be had and you can find them all here.

Image credit: Bali Nights.

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