Wellington restaurants have it all. Our favourites are comfortable, somewhat casual, and always serving great food. The city offers traditional, international, and eclectic options.
Wellington may be a city known for its coffee but take a look at some of the food we tried at several Wellington restaurants and see if you agree it is also a city for eating.
Our recent road trip to New Zealand’s capital city allowed us enough time to visit a few old favourites and discover a few new Wellington restaurants too.
Be inspired . . .
Our Favourites – the best Wellington Restaurants
The best restaurants in Wellington NZ is a bold and subjective statement. These are our personal favourites, the Wellington restaurants we go to again and again every time we visit the capital city.
Karaka Cafe
2 Taranaki Street Odlins Square Taranaki Wharf
04 916 8369
An iconic waterfront location, huge bean bags, and table seating both indoors and out make Karaka Cafe a great place to relax. If that’s not enough, one bite of your food and you will know how this cafe made our list of the best Wellington restaurants.
It features New Zealand flavours surrounded by traditional Maori decor.
Egmont Street Eatery
11 Egmont Street, Te Aro
04 801 6891
Egmont Street Eatery is another alleyway eatery. This Wellington restaurant is located in a former car park – although you would never know it when you were there.
Modern and delicious, the portions are made for sharing, and we just kept on ordering. It wasn’t all salads; we had a bit of everything, but this salad made the best photo.
Viva Mexico
161 Riddiford Street, Newtown
04 389 0975
I have been talking about this Mexican taco shop since we discovered it over a year ago. I had eaten here on a mummy/daughter trip with each of my girls. Finally, hubby got to discover what we have been raving about all this time.
Authentic flavours, plates full of food, and a friendly atmosphere, it is no wonder Viva Mexico is my favourite of the Wellington restaurants. It’s located down an alley off Cuba Street (and now there is a second location in Petone).
I apologise to the people of Wellington if I am sharing a local’s secret with the world.
*Note that we have not been to their new location. We lasted visited while they were on Left Bank.
Picnic Cafe in the Botanic Gardens
Begonia House, Rose Garden 101 Glenmore Street, Thorndon
04 472 6002
We were not planning on eating here, but rather just enjoying the colourful Wellington Botanic Gardens. Then I saw this salmon salad served to someone else. I was hooked.
Kaffee Eis
29 Courtenay Place, Te Aro
04 384 8040
146 Cuba St, Te Aro
04 803 3620
The Kiosk at TSB Bank Arena
04 499 7004
You know a dessert spot had to make my list of the best restaurants in Wellington! What could be better than a place specialising in boutique coffee and gourmet gelato?
We believe Kaffee Eis serves the best ice cream in Wellington – and they make a great cup of coffee.
The last time we remembered to take a photo was years ago. We sat at the counter on that day. Hubby had the best of all worlds – an affogato (coffee and gelato in one cup).
Our former favourite dessert place that has since closed was Strawberry Fare.
Thistle Inn
3 Mulgrave Street, Thorndon
04 499 5980
The Thistle Inn is New Zealand’s oldest surviving tavern and restaurant operating from its original site. And it holds the country’s second-oldest liquor license.
It’s not only a great place to eat, but it’s also quite popular as an after-work gathering place for friends.
Be sure to look through the area of the glass floor to view the original 1840 cellar.
Unwind with a wine or craft beer at one of the Wellington restaurants
Locals know there are plenty of options for unwinding after a long day. Here are a few unique options, in addition to the Thistle Inn just above:
- Hashigo Zake: They call themselves a cult beer bar. Where else can you drink in a former police station’s cells?
- The Backbencher Gastropub: This is where you might spot Members of Parliament, either eating or their likeness as large puppets hanging from the walls. It’s a great place for a glass of wine, craft beer, or a meal.
- The Garage Project: a popular Wellington microbrewery.
Relax at a Wellington Coffee House
Wellington is a city known for coffee, and to date, we have not had a bad cup anywhere. Our favourite coffee spots are:
- Mojo – while the coolest Mojo is probably the one located in the old St. James Theatre, we also enjoy sitting outside at the one across from Shed 13 on Customhouse Quay. We even enjoyed a self-guided tour and watched Mojo roasting coffee.
- Photo Espresso – delicious coffee and an enclosed counter filled with old cameras. Although, we were a bit surprised to see the camera model I recently passed down to Sarah in the case.
- Arabica Cafe – friendly staff and a great cup of coffee. Popular with locals, so you know it’s great.
Are you wondering what else to do in Wellington?
⇓⇓ Check out these ⇓⇓
37 Things to do in Wellington
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We usually start with aggregator companies as they do the work for us by providing a list of options, prices, and reviews. However, we also added a few personal NZ favourites:
- Flights: we use Expedia for the best and cheapest flight options.
- Hotels: we use Booking.com as they consistently return the best rates and their reviews are from actual guests. However, for self-contained lodging in New Zealand, we use Bookabach.
- Cars and Campervans: we use RentalCars to find the best deals and dealer ratings. Use Jucy for small campervans.
- Activity discounts: we always check Bookme.com for discounts of up to 70% on selected tours, activities, restaurants and more.
- Travel Insurance: we start at InsureMyTrip as they are the best option to compare plans and find the right coverage for you.
Before you book the rest of your trip: Check out our travel resources page for more companies that we use when you travel.
We believe this list to be the best in each category. You can’t go wrong using them on your trip too.
Corinne
Rhonda, These all look superb! I’ll hopefully get to try them out sometime.
Travelera
Yummy, all this food look so delicious!
I hope you are well Rhonda
xxx
Claudya Martinez
Yum, I want all of it.
Ruth
Ohh, looks like another great food city to add to my list. That salmon salad looks (I love salmon). I would like to see how the Mexican food tastes there.
Rhonda Albom
This is the best Mexican food we have found in New Zealand – so far. We frequently choose Mexican if it is available.
Vidya Sury
Perhaps I should have come by after breakfast tomorrow morning, Rhonda. It is half past midnight and your post made me hungry 🙁 Just coming over from Sarah’s post and between the two of you….my heart is full. (my tummy isn’t!)
Hugs! Love the photos. First thing I’d do in Wellington is visit those coffee places! ♥
Anda
These dishes certainly look so delicious that they make your mouth water. No wander it’s your favorite restaurant. You take so great food picture that the restaurant should definitely hire you for advertising.
Amila @ Leisure and Me
Seems like great places to have some food.Viva Mexico has some unique interior…
Rhonda Albom
I think it feels a bit like a back road place in Mexico.
Lexa Cain
Your food pics are wonderful! I love Mexican food, but every plate your photographed looks fabulous! And I love the Thistle Inn, too. Those old-fashioned wood interiors always make me feel I’m dining in a comfortable and homey place. 🙂
Rhonda Albom
I love that place too. I didn’t show it, but it has the original cellar. There is a glass section of floor so you can see into it. Really cool.
Hilary
Hi Rhonda – gosh they all look delicious and I’d love to try them all … wonderful photos too … the Mexican, the Botanical Garden and the Karaka Bar .. all especially good … cheers Hilary
Eli
OMG that food looks amazing – piece of arts…. Salmon is my favorite, and yes please – love how they made it there… And with that dessert….. Hold a chair for me please- on my way:-) 🙂
World Photo Walk - Amy
All the food look amazing!They are beautifully presented…
Lyndall
Oh Rhonda, I LOVE your food photos. Every meal looks so delicious. If I ever get to Wellington, I now have a list of great restaurants to visit 🙂
Joyce
Looks good. Save me a seat.
Amy
oh those look soooo good! glad it’s not just me that takes photos when we go out to dinner, trip adviser is very handy too 🙂
Rhonda Albom
LOL – I didn’t used to, it’s a new thing for me to photo my food. But I am doing it so much now that my family doesn’t eat until I have taken the shot.
Kathy Marris
Yum Yum Yum!! I hope I get to Wellington to try some of this delicious food soon! I am coming to Queenstown in May but I don’t think time will allow a trip to Wellington. 🙂
Brooke
Not only does the food look delicious, but each dish has great and vibrant colors! Karaka Cafe sounds amazing!
Lydia C. Lee
oh man! How good do those salads look??
Rhonda Albom
I am amazed at how delicious healthy choices can be. I feel better when I travel now that I eat like this.
Lyn (aka) The Travelling Lindfields
You definitely got my attention with this post. Sometimes a decent restaurant is the hardest thing to find when you travel.
Rhonda Albom
True. We have been really lucky in Wellington. About half the places we ate at didn’t make this list. And our list was pre-loaded with favourites from our last visit.
Lotte
Even though I just ate this post still makes me hungry! Bookmarked for our next trip to New Zealand:-)
beatravelling
You should have written this before I left for Wellington two years ago 😀
Comedy Plus
Oh the food all looks so good. I want to try all of them. Great shots too. Makes my mouth water.
Have a fabulous day. 🙂
eileen g
Pineapple on a hamburger? Americans would call it heresy but I can kind of see it. Should I find myself in your part of the world I would certainly seek these places out.
Rhonda Albom
Actually, that was cheese. I didn’t eat those, as I had my own meal. I just didn’t have room to put all the food photos here, so you get the highlights.
Alex J. Cavanaugh
You just made me very hungry.
The Mexican restaurant looks like a hole in the wall, and often those kinds of places serve the best food.
Rhonda Albom
New Zealand tends to use nicer expressions than hole in the wall, but yes it is. A perfect locals hangout, with superb flavours.
Alexandra // A Local Traveler
Oooo everything looks so yummy! Especially love the asian salad from Egmont Street Eatery. Looks delicious!!!
Rhonda Albom
That salad was so good, and so fresh. I was really glad we found that place, and ventured out to try somewhere new.
Shere
I wish i had known these places before going to wellington. Strawberry fare would be probably my favourite as i love dessert!
Paula McInerney
Well this food looks amazing, particularly the sale from Karaka Cafe. The salmon and the poached egg is interesting, in a very good way.