Cafe Zest

I really enjoyed the lunch at Cafe Zest. The cafe is deceptive. It looks really small, but they have a great private courtyard. So, on a fine day this is a good place to eat.

The food was nicely presented, easy to locate, with a reasonable range. When you enter, you get the impression of a clean, open, and inviting place to eat.

The food came out to us quickly, and well presented. The salad was fresh. The other food was hot and it was very nice.

Overall, I really enjoyed myself here. It is child friendly, and on a fine day, is hard to beat. I give it 8/10. Recommended.

Milk & Honey

My son recommended that we go to Milk and Honey in Ahuriri. Since he is a chef, it would be a good recommendation, so I was looking forward to going. 

This was the view from our table. The restaurant is  close to the beach, and you can see the sea from some of the tables. The day we went it was raining slightly. I can imagine in the summer, when they throw open the doors, that it is amazing under the shade cloth. 

There was seating for about 40-50 people at a range of tables. There is a mix of two and four person tables, and one tall table for eight. We were seated by the door, with a great view out to the sea. 

The menu is italian based, with a good range of hot and cold dishes. We were there for a quick lunch, so I opted for the eggs and bacon, while my wife had the soup with cheese on toast. 

I call it bacon and eggs, but really, it was much more than that. The eggs were not greasy or oily, and they had sun-dried tomatoes set into them. I think the eggs were panfried, but finished off in the oven, as the bottom was not hard. The sun-dried tomatoes were set into the eggs and cooked along with the eggs.  The bacon was local, and well smoked. The toast was ciabatta made in the restaurant, and very nice, with deep flavor. 

My wife ordered the soup, which was pumpkin, with cheesy bread, which she really liked. The soup had a great pumpkin flavour, but it was not heavily seasoned. 

I have heard that the chef tries to use no salt to season his food. This is a good thing if you are worried about your blood pressure. 

I really enjoyed Milk & Honey, and I give it 9/10. Highly recommended.