Thursday, June 30, 2016

Auckland - To Do 26June2016 AKL Holiday (Arataki Visitor Center, Lion's Rock Piha, Waitomo Glowworm Caves, Aranui Cave, Ruakuri Caves)

Auckland - To Stay
 Auckland - To Do
Auckland - To Eat
Auckland - To Do
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  Arataki Visitor Center 
 26June2016
A pretty nice scenic look out point whilst en-route to Lion's Rock. *The Arataki Visitor Centre is the gateway to the Waitakere Ranges Regional Park, with more than 16,000 hectares of native rain-forest and coastline.*NZ regional Parks*.

The visitor center does have a quaint retail shop selling some souvenirs and featuring some native wild life as well. Some as it like 4 displays at most. Don't be thinking of a zoo.
 
Lion's Rock (Piha)
Scenic Lookout Point 
 26June2016
*Piha is a coastal settlement on the western coast of the Auckland Region in New Zealand with ... Lion Rock has become iconic not only of Piha, but of Auckland's West Coast in general. It was featured on stamps as well as an Auckland phon* - Wikipedia
Click here for ABBA location of Lion's Rock, Piha
Waitomo Day Trip
 205km about 2.5hrs-3hrs averaged out on to and fro journey from the City

3 Cave combo at NZD95/pax
The Waitomo Glow worm caves session at 9.30am
 *Defiantly the star attraction, but unfortunately no pictures are allowed within the premises. You get a little bit of everything. A bit of the caves and even a boat ride to stare into the darkness, with the glow worms illuminating the cave walls. Its like staring into the stars. Absolutely beautiful.*
Aranui Cave 11am session 1hr tour
No transport provided. 5min drive from Waitomo Glowworm Caves.
 Click here for ABBA location of Aranui Caves 

*Each of the caves has its on flare and I personally liked some of the stories than ran with this one and particularly the pitch dark portion of the tour.*
 Lunch break at Huhu Cafe
*According to their culinary awards, they are best known for beef and lamb.*
 Soup of day - Seafood Chowder
*A curry-like kind of a soup base. Pretty good distribution of seafood but nothing to scream about. The infusion of Asian flavors just didn't work for us.*
 Chicken with cous cous
*Its a little strange. Chicken was nothing to shout about and the couscous was closer to a barley consistency. All right but not fantastic.*
 Lamb Sliders
*Lamb was a little on the dry side, but I felt together with the sweet beet root and basil mayo, the dish kinda worked. Enjoyable sliders to be had with the soup.*
*Pretty okay for a pit-stop. The only reason we had come here was because it was pretty highly rated on google. We felt they were trying too hard for the fusion flavors which may impress the locals, but for those familiar with Asiatic flavor profiles,
these may not be all that impressive.

This place does however offer a picturesque view of the country side and good lunch/break options. Total NZD53.50, fed 2.*
 Ruakuri Caves 13.30hrs 2hrs tour
inclusive of pickup and drop off to/from Glow Worm Caves
*This is probably the most value for money cave exploration. Its kind of a two in one, a little bit of glow worms and of course cave exploration. The places does however also offers a larger range of activities such as black water rafting (at a premium).*

For the three walking tour caves it costs a total of NZD95 each. The price may seem a bit steep up front, but given the very limited number of tour slots per day, this exclusive tour experience maybe worth the amount. As individual caves its not worth it, and its probably best to go with the popular combo of Waitomo Glowworm Caves & Ruakuri Caves if one is pressed for time. However for another NZD8 more, you get all three. Prices as indicated and the sign boards are quite helpful and accurate with the expected times to be spent at each of the attraction. Also ticketing staff will help slot you into timings for the tour which best meets your needs for the day.
ABBATip:
 Like much of New Zealand activities, it require great distances to drive and are weather dependent, its important to check if the tours are available especially after a spate of heavy rainfall. The water levels had risen quite a fair bit, that where the water boat ride for the Waitomo Gloworm Caves were supposed to end, required some route modification. So did the black water rafting for Ruakuri Caves. Certain passages had in fact gone under the waterline. 
Click here for ABBA location of the Waitomo Caves located 205km about 2.5hrs-3hrs averaged out on to and fro journey
Day2
Arataki Visitor Center, Lion's Rock
Day3
Waitomo Glowworm Caves, Aranui, Ruakuri Caves
Day4
Flight to Christ Church 
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Auckland - To Eat 25June2016 (North Sea Village, Crab Shack, Blankenberge, The Malt)


North Sea Village Restaurant

 Comes with complimentary serving of soup of the day and dessert!
 *Good soup stock and the carrots were really sweet*

*Their dessert was like a yam/sago sorta hot dish. A nice sweet note to the end of any meal*
The place to come where Peking Duck reigns supreme. North Sea Village.
Click here for ABBA location of North Sea Village 9/11 Corinthian Dr, Auckland 0632, New Zealand
Ordered On:
25June2016
Peiking Duck
*Very nicely done. Though it may not look that appetizing in the window, but after having served up, its not at all dry. Crispy thin skin and their skin wrap is done a little differently here. They seemed to be made to order and its very much different from the run of the mill duck wraps. It pairs very well with the duck and even beats out Beijing's Quan Qu De. Fantastic.*
Salted Egg Prawn
 *Perhaps salted egg prawns are done a little differently here. The salted eggs weren't really existent. It tasted more like simple salt and pepper prawns instead. It was nice to have prawns served over broccoli. Would probably to the same for future home dishes*
Fish with vegetables
*The Chinese spinach was really sweet and fresh. The fish mushroom combination over vegetables works out really nicely. I'll probably adopt these one dish wonders for myself in future.*
Szechuan Pepper Chicken
 *Nice peppery chicken. Though it looks intimidating because of all that spice, but its really not that hot. Good fry, fragrant and a very slight hint of mala. A decent dish.* 
Black Pepper Beef
*Black pepper beef may have been tenderized with baking power for too long, resulting in an uncharacteristically tender piece of meat. Either that or it has been tenderized really well. The sweetish sauce and onions were good to balance the saltiness of the overall dish. Goes pretty well with rice*
They were running a tight shift, hence service was tight. The complimentary soups and dessert were nice accent points, but the star here is definitely the duck which can be had in an additional 2 more ways. A good return for Duck.
Total Fed 7
Click here for ABBA location of North Sea Village 9/11 Corinthian Dr, Auckland 0632, New Zealand

The Crab Shack
The Crab Shack as by its name sake suggests, a place which is primarily known for their crabs. However, their other meat dishes are pretty good as well according to cousins who've tried their other dishes.
26June2016
Ordered On:
Spanner Crab NZD49
Indian spices, chilli, coriander and lemon
*They did mess up the order. We had called for a garlic and butter lemon mix but probably because of the large influx of customers on a Sunday night, they missed out on it. Despite that, the crab is relative fresh and its a pretty large serving with about 3 spanner crabs in total. Man its huge. The remaining broth/sauce they were cooked in was fantastic. An okay showing. Very Asianatic.* 
Fush N Chups NZD24 x2
beer battered market catch, Makikihi fries, tartare sauce and our shack slaw
*To be honest, pretty damn good. Serving size was good valued and the batter was fluffy, nice and flavorful. The tartar as well, was one of the best one's I've had, and the chips, probably double fried for that super crispy crunch. Perfectly seasoned. Really good fries and wiped the plate clean with them. The coleslaw, was done with very little mayo and served more as a plain salad than anything else. A very good serving of Fish and Chips and well worth the order if in the mood for one.* 
Half A Roast Chook NZD25
Maple Glaze, kurama hash, chorizo, jalapeno and yoghurt
*Simple, homely and delicious. The maple glaze was the bomb! Tender juicy chicken served atop sweet potatoes.
Iceberg Wedge NZD6.50
w/blue cheese dressing
 
*As advertised. So simple. Strong blue cheese sauce drizzled over cold ice burg lettuce. A simple reproduction for a side salad.* 
Little Creatures Pale Ale NZD10

Total NZD144.50 Fed 4 


Pictured above is what the Crab Shack was serving up in the windows. They all looked really appetizing. Their rump steaks especially good as well as their burgers. Look out for their weekday specials which are worth the visit and the savings. Worth the return for the rustic ambiance and pretty good eats!
Click here for ABBA location of The Crab Shack, 137 Quay Street, Auckland 1010, New Zealand

Blankenberge
 The Specials which we were there for.
 *Full range of muscles available but also at full price.*
We were there for their Monday Mussel Madness which of course they delivered. NZD15 for 1kg of fresh mussels.
Ordered On:
27June2016
 Mediterranean
Capers/Garlic/Fennel Seeds
 *Pretty okay. The gralic flavors and fennel seeds weren't that strong. Not very mediterranean to be honest. I thought a more tomato and olive base would have been much better.*
 Belgium
Hoegaarden/Orange/Corriander

 *The sweetest of the bunch. Pretty good sweet flavor. I think more citrus would have worked out better*
New Zealand
Cream/Sauvignon Blanc/Fresh Parsley
 *The best out of the bunch. The standard pairing and was the first bucket to be emptied out!*
 500g Rump Steak NZD34
*Though it was requested to be more on the rare side of medium rare, that didn't help out in the case of the tougher, rump cut. The mushrooms look good but the tart balsamic sauce it was with just didn't work. A little disappointing to be honest and over all a little on the salty side. It definitely needed heavy tenderizing. The only things going for it were the red wine reduction and the great char it had.*
 BBQ pork ribs
*The onion rings were underwhelming. Batter needed to be much crispier. As for the ribs, their bbq sauce is amaizing! Thick glaze, sweet and sour at the same time. The meat though was tender, but on the dry side.*  
Spicy BBQ Wings 6pieces for 10NZD
 *There were really good. A light spice from the nicely fried hot wings, and their blue cheese sauce was the clear winner here. A nice balance of heat, together with the tang from the very pungent blue cheese.*Sausage
*Pretty standard*
Fed 6 NZD164Total
Stick to their specials. The Green lip mussels are a hit. It was reported the french style ones are really good as well. The buffalo wings are the clear reorders and the aioli sauce served together with the fries, the best. A great water hole for mussel madness Mondays and for definitely their buffalo wings with amazing blue cheese dip.
Click here for ABBA location of Blankenberge, 136 Hurstmere Rd, Takapuna Beach 0622, New Zealand

The Malt
A joint popular with the locals, The Malt serves drinks of the taps with daily promotions and activities.
Ordered On
28June2016
Pork Belly Bites with apple sauce NZD15 x2
*This was epic. Its not a pork belly bite. More of a meal. Large cube sized pork belly, beautifully prepared with a sweet apple sauce on the side. The pairing is very similar to what they do in London's Borough's Market. Very nice. The skin however could be crispier and crunchier!*
Deep-fried Jalapenos with chipotle crema NZD15
*Nice warm heat and the cheese stuffing inside was a nice addition as well.*
Mushroom scotch Fillet 220g served with garlic mash and seasonal vegetables, topped with a creamy mushroom sauce NZD29

*The steak is a little on the salty side but to an okay standard. One can't really taste the garlic in the garlic mash.*
Tuesday Special 1Large comes with a free regular pizza. NZD29
Poseidon Prawn Pizza Special - with capsicum, scallops and prawns in a creamy neapolitan sauce.
Quarto - Salami, Ham, Prawns and Mushrooms. *Nothing to scream about. Basic ingredients on a nice wood oven pizza*
*The special was really good. Nice oven baked pizza and their prawns were a huge, succulent lot! The pizza could work with more filling, but a pseudo two for one special, what more could one ask for.*
Chicken Pasta Special
*The cheese sauce was way too heavy. A mistake order, even though it was a special. One bite and its too rich.*
Roast Chicken Special

*Nothing much to scream about the half roast chicken, other than its a good deal at NZD20.* 
Total Fed 6
The pizza deal was well worth it. The two for one sort of deal could have easily fed 3 people. The scotch fillet wasn't too bad as well but their signature starter here was definitely the pork belly. Worth a visit over a beer and their daily specials/activities and definitely their pork belly. The burgers looked really appetizing as well. For another visit.
Click here for ABBA Location of The Malt Greenhithe, 10 Greenhithe Road, Greenhithe, 0632, New Zealand
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