Wellington

Gifts

The Best Christmas Gift Ideas Under $50

To help you tick off your Christmas shopping list and leave you with money in the bank, we’ve put together a Christmas gift guide with a bunch of options for a fiddy dollar note, or less. 

Food & Drink

Wellington Restaurants Open On Christmas Day 2024 So You Don’t Have To Cook

We've found the best restaurants open on Christmas Day in Wellington for 2024, so you can sit back, relax, and scrap the tradition of stressful cooking.

Things To Do

The Best Markets In Wellington For 2024

Whether you’re out for a veggie deal, are craving some homemade treats, or just want to support local grassroots creatives, Wellington’s market scene has got you.

Restaurants

Noble Rot

Noble Rot ain't your average wine bar (though you probably surmised that from the name). Evidenced in the countless accolades it has received since opening, which include Cuisine Magazine's 'Best Wine Experience in NZ' for three years running, there really is no better spot to enjoy a glass in Welly.

Restaurants

Fratelli

Italian food always makes our blood run hot, especially the kind coming out of the kitchen at beloved Wellington eatery, Fratelli.

Restaurants

Koji

Any restaurant that sees fit to serve doughnuts for dinner is our kind of spot (savoury doughnuts no less, pumped full of yellow curry beef and 'glazed' with kewpie mayo—see the mouthwatering evidence, above).

Food & Drink

29 Of The Best Cafes In Wellington For Coffee That Slaps

Wellington prides itself on its cafe culture and we’ll be the first to say it’s justified.

Best Of

Where To Find The Best Breakfasts In Wellington

Wellington’s breakfast game is strong, just like their coffee.

Wellington

30 Of The Best Cheap Eats In Wellington

We love satisfying our food cravings and nabbing a bangin’ food deal at the same time—and what better way than getting a chicken wing fix while also getting more bang for your buck (yes to making savings for the next meal).

Restaurants

Lulu Bar

With "Oceanic eats. Drink. Party." as its slogan, you can bet that Lulu Bar is the place to go in Te Aro for a fun time. With nods to the flavours and traditional techniques from Hawaii to Aotearoa, your tastebuds will be swept across the pacific with a menu that draws inspiration from the islands.

Food & Drink

Wellington’s Best New Restaurant Openings To Add to Your Eat List In 2024

It's no secret we love a new opening and if you're reading this, chances are you do, too. As luck would have it, Wellington is packed with tantalizing eats with new eateries. 

Cafes

This Local Brekkie Spot Has A New Menu—Featuring A Hearty Meatball Sammie

You’ve inevitably stumbled into this friendly neighbourhood cafe at some stage of your life, where the aroma of freshly brewed coffee greets you like an old friend, and each bite of the pastries feels like grandma baked it.

Food & Drink

Get Out Of Auckland, 8 Restaurants Across Aotearoa Worth Travelling For In 2024

There’s certainly no shortage of mouth-watering restaurants outside of Auckland, and this poses a delicious problem: where do you eat when you’re surrounded by choices?

Food & Drink

Score Free No-Alc Drinks At These Venues Across NZ This July

It’s that time of year again when every man and his dog take the solemn oath to give their bodies and brains a break.

Food & Drink

The Great New Zealand Toastie Takeover’s Supreme Winner Has Just Been Announced

The hot competition where chefs up and down the country cook up their tastiest take on the classic toastie, The Great New Zealand Toastie Takeover, has crowned this year's winner.

Things To Do

Archie Brothers Cirque Electriq And Holey Moley Is Opening In Wellington Next Month

After taking Auckland and then Christchurch by storm, entertainment masters Funlab has announced that its biggest (and best) Archie Brothers Cirque Electriq AND Holey Moley will be opening right in the heart of Wellington.

Restaurants

The 15 Best Restaurants In Wellington

New Zealand's cool capital is known for it’s huge food scene. We may be a teeeeny bit biased, but we reckon it's got some of the best spots in the country.  

Restaurants

10 Of Our Favourite New Zealand Restaurants To Book A Table At ASAP

With more eateries than you can shake a stick at, we've rounded up some of the best eateries in New Zealand for you to book a table at, pronto. 

What's On

Pickle Week Is Back For 2022 And This Year There’s Even A Pickle Festival

Whether you’re a die-hard pickle fan, on the fence or just pickle-curious this week will hit in all the right places.

Food & Drink

Meet Liberty, Wellington’s Stylish New Eatery From The Team Behind Logan Brown

If you consider yourself a foodie, chances are you’ve heard of Logan Brown. The Cuba Street institution is one of Wellington’s OG fine dining spots and has been impressing diners for the last couple of decades.

Food & Drink

9 Epic NZ Cheese Delivery Services That Will Make Your Dairy Dreams Come True

Get dreaming up those cheese boards and melty, cheese-laiden winter dishes—here are the best cheese delivery services in New Zealand. 

Food & Drink

The Best Alcohol Delivery Services In New Zealand So You Can Have Happy Hour At Home

Drinks delivered to your doorstep. What a wonderful concept. Unfortunately (or fortunately) it's become a bit of a necessity in recent times, but we're here to tell you if your bar cart is running dry New Zealand has plenty of options to top you up. 

Food & Drink

Kisa | The Outstanding New Wellington Opening You Need To Know About

Take your tastebuds on tour, Wellington’s got a new restaurant serving epic Turkish and Middle-Eastern-inspired eats.

Food & Drink

Visa Wellington On A Plate | 6 Spectacular WOAP Events You Just Can’t Miss In 2022

In the time of Visa Wellington On a Plate, nothing is too outlandish. From immersive themed dinners to sensory experiments to adults-only menus, there are heaps of options out there that'll have your mind blown and your tastebuds cheering. We've got the scoop on the hottest events coming up this year and if our intel is anything to go by, you'll want to get in quick.

Food & Drink

Make The Most Of Harvest Season This Autumn With These 9 Foodie Experiences

Hot tip, autumn is the best time to eat your way around New Zealand. 

Food & Drink

Wellington’s 7 Best Ice Cream And Gelato Stores You Need To Treat Yourself To

Summer is here which means one thing…ice cream, and lots of it. While plenty of the sweet stuff can be found in the Capital’s concrete jungle—we’ve done the hard yards and nailed down a list of the very best. And we take our job very seriously indeed. Here are the best ice cream stores to be found in the windy city.

Bakeries & Delis

9 Of The Best Bakeries In Wellington That Will Deliver Baked Goods To Your Door

With the city’s most beloved bakers now offering contactless delivery, you can keep supporting local from the comfort of your own home and stock your kitchen with boxes of doughnuts. Here’s the list of those making level 3 a little sweeter.

Features

Our Beloved Hospo Industry Is Struggling, Here’s How You Can Help

The hospitality industry is struggling, but not because of the reasons you probably think. While many venues are enjoying an unprecedented boom in popularity (and rightly so), these same places are struggling to find staff to meet the demand. 

Everybody Eats Founder Nick Loosley On His Mission To End Food Poverty In NZ

Realising this gap between food waste and food insecurity, Nick Loosley founded Everybody Eats - a locally-based, not-for-profit with a mission to reduce food waste, food poverty and social isolation in New Zealand. With Everybody Eats scaling across NZ, we caught up with Nick to find out more about their origins, their mission, and hear about their new Goodie Box initiative. 

What's On

Dine Under The Stars In These Epic Igloos That Have Just Popped Up In Central Wellington

Ah, winter. That delightful season when jammies and slippers become a fashion statement, social outings become rarer than a blood supermoon, and Netflix and chill takes on a whole new meaning. To help combat the winter blues and lure you out of hibernation, St John’s Bar and Restaurant are bringing back their ultra 'Gram-worthy pop-up igloos for a limited time.

Local Escapes

9 Of The Best Hotels In Wellington

Whether it’s the location, the ambience, the comfort of the bed, the 5-star rating or the cleanliness that attracts you to a hotel, we’re here to spoil you for choice and highlight some of Wellington’s top hotels. 

What's On

Eat, Drink, Play Is The Brand New Festival Coming To Wellington This May

Eat, Drink, Play will be dishing up more than 100 delectable events and there’s something for everyone on the menu. Solve a murder mystery during dinner, play bingo with a drag queen, fire up your tastebuds with a hot wings challenge, or learn to mix cocktails like a pro. Special hotel packages are also up for grabs, so you can stay right amongst the action. 

What's On

This Boujee Wellington Restaurant Has Just Reopened With An Epic Line Up Of High Teas

After taking some time out in 2020, the luxurious, two-hatted Hippopotamus Restaurant and Cocktail Bar is back in full swing and ready to treat you to a fabulously chic culinary experience.

Features

Scoop Up Large On Ben And Jerry’s Pokemon Go-Like Virtual Easter Egg Hunt

Ben & Jerry's have launched what's potentially the world's largest-ever Easter egg hunt—with 10,000 scoops of free ice cream thrown into the mix, no less—and you're invited. Now if you're wondering what the heck a virtual Easter egg hunt is or more importantly, how you can get involved—here's the scoop.

Things To Do

Get Nostalgic, An Adults-Only Ice Cream Truck Is Making The Rounds After Dark

Ready your spoons and don your stretchy pants because an adults-only ice cream truck is going on tour—and it could be stopping at your doorstep. 

What's On

Sip Your Way Around Wellington, An Epic Wine Crawl Is Hitting The Capital Next Weekend

The Urban Wine Walk is going down in Wellington on Saturday 28 November and will see the capital's best bars and restaurants turn into urban cellar doors for your self-guided walking tour.

Wellington

Snap Up Super Limited Tickets For This Epic Food And Wine Weekend In Wellington

Our windy capital makes for the perfect weekend getaway. Wellington is rich with interesting sights, delicious food and coffee strong enough to make any caffeine junky weep. So, why not get blown away this weekend with what our capital has to offer. 

Food & Drink

NZ’s Best Alcohol Delivery Services So You Can Mix Up Your Happy Hour At Home!

Drinks delivered to your doorstep. What a wonderful concept. Unfortunately (or fortunately) it's become a bit of a necessity in recent times, but we're here to tell you if your bar cart is running dry New Zealand has plenty of options to top you up. 

Features

Prepare To Have Your Mind Blown, Whittaker’s And Garage Project Have Just Dropped A Chocolate Beer

Something delicious has been brewing between Whittaker's and Garage Project and yip, you guessed it—it's choccy-flavoured beer.

Wellington

Calling All Ice Cream Fans, Here’s The Scoop On Wellington’s Brand New Duck Island Store

It’s not often that Wellingtonians go crazy over something out of Hamilton, but when it comes to Duck Island, locals are screaming for it. 

Wellington

Get Ready Welly, Your Days Of Burger Binging Are About To Begin

While the first two weeks have been all about incredible culinary experiences, what we’re really here for are the final two weeks.

Wellington

Hit The Road With These 5 Experiences For A Truly Sustainable Day Out In Wellington

We’ve put together a great tour of the best sustainable spots Welly has to offer and even better, we’ve got the perfect mode of transport to do so. Mevo is a Wellington-based car-share company that lets you rent luxurious Audi A-3s and Volkswagen Polos (#cargoals) for as long as you may need them through their app, similar to Lime.

Wellington

Ben & Jerry’s Have Just Opened In The Heart Of Wellington

As Wellington enjoys its first day back at Alert Level 1 we’ve stumbled across some news that will really put the cherry on top of the good vibes. The OG purveyors of damn good ice cream—Ben & Jerry’s—are setting up a permanent home in the windy city. 

Wellington

Praise the Ice Cream Gods, Cult Fave Duck Island Is Opening A Store In Wellington

While Duck Island has been available at various supermarkets and Moore Wilson’s in Wellington, we’re beyond excited to announce that they’re opening one of their fabled ice cream stores in the heart of the Windy City.

Wellington

Order Up An Epic Feed From These Wellington Eateries Offering Delivery And Take Away

Although times are tough right now, our local cafes and restaurants are working hard to make sure we can get our fill of their goods, making our lives easy by offering new delivery and takeaway services.

Features

Start Drooling, BurgerFuel Is Dropping Pick-Up And Delivery From Next Week

We’re salivating at the thought of having BurgerFuel's drool-worthy food delivered right to our doorstep within 30 minutes, doofer and all. 

Food & Drink

Forget The Queues, These Wellington Businesses Will Deliver Fresh Groceries To Your Door

We are currently in Level 4 lockdown in New Zealand and that means, no restaurants, no going out for coffee and no takeaways. But this doesn't mean an end to healthy hearty food and now is the perfect time to learn to cook great food with local ingredients. 

Food & Drink

Amp Up Your Top Shelf with Wellington’s 7 Best Alcohol Delivery Companies

It’s thirsty work this lockdown business, isn’t it? Fortunately for Wellingtonians, there’s a fabulous handful of local boozy businesses delivering their goods to your door during level-4 lockdown. 

Features

Prepare To Stockpile, Lewis Road Creamery Have Just Dropped A Chocolate Milk Valentine’s Edition

There are very few iconic New Zealand products that we rave about that truly live up to the hype. But it’s been over five years since ‘Choco-Gate’ aka ‘AARGH’ (After Auckland's Rioting Choco-Gate Hell), arrived on our shores and the Lewis Road Creamery still reigns supreme. And this Valentine's Day they've just come up with a new flavour to obsess over.

Wellington

The 8 Best Eateries In Press Hall Wellington That You’ll Need To Loosen Your Belt For

Gone are the days of shopping mall food courts that have the acoustics of an indoor swimming pool. We’re into the era of stylish eating and Wellington is home to one of the nicest food halls around. Press Hall on Willis Street is a food court setting you’ll actually want to spend your lunch break in.

Features

Get Excited Wellington, GoodFor Is Finally Coming To The Capital

GoodFor has finally opened a store in the capital and we couldn’t be more excited.

Wellington

8 Epic Things To Do In Wellington This Christmastime

It's all getting very festive in Wellington. There are so many wonderfully celebratory events happening in the run up to Christmas, you won’t want to miss out. Eat your weight in festive treats, have a laugh at a panto or maybe treat yourself to a festive Christmas Drag show! It won’t be hard to have a very merry Christmas in the capital so here are our top picks for Christmassy things to see and do in Wellington this December.

Features

Get Sipping, Edible Coffee Cups Are Set To Become Your New Obsession

Forget your keep cup (yes, trust us), cause there’s a new sustainable cup in town, and it’s ridiculously delicious.  

Wellington

Prepare To Drool, The Juiciest Ribs And Crispiest Onion Rings Have Just Landed In Wellington

After becoming local celebrities and winning the latest season of The Block NZ, what else is left for Lisa Ridout-Gordon and Chris Gordon? Fulfilling a long term dream and opening up The Ribz Shak, of course. 

Wellington

Wholy Mac, NZ’s First Dedicated Mac ‘N’ Cheese Joint Has Landed In Wellington

Folk are flocking to New Zealand’s first dedicated mac (of mac 'n' cheese fame) eatery in Petone, and for good reason.

Wellington

Sip On A Banging Sangria At This New Plant-Based Eatery And Bar In The Heart Of Wellington

When we heard Basque was closing, tears were shed. It was a staple in the rooftop bar scene and home to some of the best sangria in Wellington. It may be the end of an era, but luckily for us, they’ve renovated and reopened as Mockingbird; a vegetarian and vegan plant-based food eatery and bar that still serves up banging sangria, has an impressive craft beer and cider range, and will make your vegan heart (and stomach) very, very full. 

Features

Get Ready To Stuff Yourself Silly, A Deliciously Festive High Tea Is Coming To Wellington

Get those sleighbells ringing, a festive high tea is coming to Wellington.

Wellington

Bottoms Up, A New Hidden “Wine Pub” Has Opened In Wellington

We are stoked that snazzy new wine-bar Puffin has opened in Wellington’s Cuba Precinct.

Wellington

Start Drooling, A New Hole In The Wall Waffle Spot La Belle Waffle Has Just Opened In Wellington

La Belle Waffle is the new kid on the block, a bright yellow hole in the wall and a little ray of sunshine in the middle of the city. You’ll find the Belgian style waffles being served up in Dukes Arcade by owner Nicholas, who is Belgian himself so he knows the real deal. Take the fact that they have sold out several times since opening as positive proof of his waff skills.

Wellington

Get Excited, Atlas Has Brought Upscale Dining To North Wellington

Those of you who have been waiting for somewhere to drink really great wine on the north side of Wellington will be thrilled about the opening of Atlas.

Things To Do

A High Cheese Tea Is Coming To Wellington And This Is Where You Can Smash It

Cheese High Tea. High Cheeses. Whatever you want to call them—dedicated cheese-themed afternoon teas are a thing, and they’re swapping out the traditional scones, jam and cream for, well, all things cheese. And we’re digging them!

Features

Freak Out, A Massive Day Of The Dead Street Party Is Hitting Wellington

Round up the crew to celebrate life and loved ones at this year’s annual Day of the Dead Street Fiesta.

Food & Drink

Bite Club | Foodie News You Need To Know

Alright food lovers, it is that time of the week again where we bring you everything you need to know about the latest foodie products, openings and menus hitting the Kiwi scene.

What's On

Here’s Where To Find The Best Markets In Wellington

We love a market, and lucky for us, Wellington is pretty damn good at them. From street food, to produce, to handmade goods, we’re spoilt for choice.

Restaurants

New Zealand’s Newest Restaurant Will Blow Your Mind

Caffeine overloading, rooftop drinking and market feasting… New Zealand’s capital city is a total foodie’s paradise. And, if you needed another reason to visit Wellington, Jardin Grill is that exact reason.