Saturday 12 November 2011

Pakuranga night market

Not a great photo but you get an idea of the crowd
I was pretty excited when I first heard about the Auckland Night Market, given the lack of good late-night food options here in Auckland. But my enthusiasm cooled significantly when I found out its location - Pakuranga. Nearly 20km away from Mt Albert! Why bother? Tonight I finally found out why.

We found the entrance easily enough, and the sea of vehicles in the carpark of the otherwise closed shopping mall was the first sign of its popularity. Inside, it was another sea - of people. And a real mix too - Kiwis, Pacific Islanders, and every kind of Asian, it's almost as if someone directed the crowd to embody the quintessential multicultural Auckland.

There were plenty of toys, clothing, jewellery and other wares for sale, but I was only really interested in the food - and I wasn't disappointed. Stall upon stall of Hong Kong, Taiwanese, Sichuan, Xian, Beijing, Japanese, Korean, Malaysian, Indian, Thai, Mexican, Filipino, Italian, Belgian, American food, it was all there. I'd never seen so many delicious-looking and affordable food stalls at any other market or event - not even the Lantern Festival. And this happens every week?

Best of all was the atmosphere - stall owners loudly hawking their wares, visitors mulling over food choices then waiting patiently for their skewer of squid to finish grilling or their takoyaki (octopus ball) to be formed, great clouds of chili smoke permeating the air, making everyone cough, wok fire licking the metal frame of the easy-up shelters, making you nervously wonder if there are any fire extinguishers nearby. All this is a world away from the well-heeled, genteel folk nibbling on croissants and sipping on lattes at the French Market - which is still nice but in a different way.

I've always been annoyed by the fact that it always seemed like the only late night entertainment on offer for Aucklanders is the bars in the Viaduct, and all its associated bawdiness. But the large (family) crowd at the night market showed that there is clearly a demand for this sort of stuff, if only it existed.

It seems the Pakuranga night market has been so successful they've expanded to the Shore on Sunday nights. But where is the one for the CBD? Or even Mt Albert, which has one of the highest ratios of Asian residents in the city? A 20 minute drive on the motorway (in no traffic) is fine I suppose, but wouldn't this sort of thing be exactly what would liven up the central city? Wouldn't the Wynyard Quarter carpark be perfect for this?

Either way, I will definitely be back, while dragging along whoever will come with me, and I hope they continue to replicate the concept. Auckland will be a much better city for it!

Tuesday 8 November 2011

Best of Auckland

Fish taco from Mexican Specialities
I tend to have a pretty strong opinion on where's the best place to go for a certain type of food in Auckland, and often disagree with what's published in the media, or wish there were a wider range of categories. So I thought I might as well put them all down in one post, for easy reference. They're also mostly on my food map.


Of course, this is all highly subjective, and it's certainly possible there are places I haven't even heard of which may be even better than those listed below. But I can only write from experience, after all. If you disagree or have an even better suggestion for any of the categories, I welcome your comments!

Best Yum Cha - Sun World
Best Taiwanese - My Kitchen
Best Indian - Little India
Best Indian Vegetarian - Ras Vatika
Best Ramen - Ramen Do
Best Sushi - Auckland Fish Market
Best Cheap Japanese - Renkon
Best Korean - Yummy Korean
Best Vietnamese - Try It Out
Best HK style cafe - Dragon's Gourmet
Best Chinese noodles - Xian Food Bar
Best Asian foodcourt - Food Alley
Best Mexican - Mexican Specialities
Best Tapas - Serafin
Best Pasta - Delicious
Best Pub Fare - Clare Inn
Best Cafe - Teed St Larder
Best Seafood - Auckland Fish Market Brasserie

I was going to write a short blurb about each one, but when I finished the list realised that would probably take the better part of a day, so will separate out any reviews into separate posts. In the meantime, please do go and try these places out, hopefully you'll enjoy them as much as I have!