Cafe Adventures: Ceremony Cafe

If you have headed to Grafton to get your coffee fix this past week, its likely you will have had the luck of happening on brand-spanking new café “Ceremony”. Although chances are that when thinking of places to grab some food and caffeine, Grafton is the last place you would consider, exactly the reason behind its location. 

Dreaming of opening a hospitality business since high school, coffee specialist Charles Williams saw the worn and torn Grafton and knew that he wanted to restore it to its previous glory. So after calling on close friend Connor Nestor, the pair decided to make their mark on the area often overlooked by bringing back a little community, alongside some top notch coffee.   

The Space: Connor shared that “everything here, needs to be here. We like to keep things simple”. The café is masculine and industrial, which seems to be the trend among new cafes, however Ceremony avoids the often-monotonous interior tone with kooky illustrations by I Love Ugly’s Valentin Ozich and blown-glass spheres hung from the ceiling. When a minimalist creative and coffee connoisseur gets together, beautiful things happen people. 

The Food: With a gym session for me, and a University lecture for Craig, we missed out on trying our any of the food. But the ummers and ahhers can rejoice in the fact that Ceremony keeps in simple with only 7 different options, with their brioche egg sandwiches, already gaining a strong following from those who appreciate a good breakfast Sammie. 

The coffee: Serving up Wellingtons best, Flight Coffee didn’t disappoint and these kids certainly know how to serve up soy. Although I felt like a double shot would be in order for my next visit as it was a little on the weaker side. 

The people: Super Rad. Walking in we were greeted with a warm smile, handshake and introduction that had us feeling like old friends returning to our regular haunt. The kind of friendly that makes you momentarily concerned that you have already met and just don’t remember. With community being the center focus of the café, these boys certainly walk the talk, with Connor being more than happy to chat with us about how Ceremony came to existence. 

The vibe: With a modern record softly cracking out good tunes, design books stacked on a wall shelf, a roomy yet intimate space and pretty cool people, Ceremony has got good vibes in spades. 

So if you’re in the Grafton area give it a gander, or if you’re not, it’s certainly worth the trip. Tip: Parking is plentiful for only $1/hour on Grafton Road, 2-minute walk from the Park Street Cafe.

Cafe Adventures: Atomic Roastery Kingsland

 Another weekend, another excursion to yet another one of Auckland’s many beautiful coffee roasteries.

Looking back at the number of cafes I have gone to in the past year, I’m sure that I come across as quite the caffeine addict. However after a while I had to question the undeniable appeal to frequent such top-notch roasteries given the fact that quite honestly, I don’t really love coffee. Don’t get me wrong, I will most certainly appreciate and savor a deliciously creamy hot cup of liquid caffeine but it would never be my first choice. As a person who orders extra hot ‘soy’ flat whites, I’m sure that the baristas of Auckland are glad.

So remained the question, what was my addiction? I guess as a creative and dedicated foodie, I appreciate the artistic process of coffee making that seems to have become strongly embedded into New Zealand’s culture. The gastronomic art relying on the perfect combination of complex elements from milk temperature, bean quality, roast and ratio. And on frosted mornings, a hot cup of anything is never half bad.

Not only that but its the atmosphere that seems to occupy the truly successful faces, an ambience that one can feel when you walk in almost indicating whether or not its going to be good. The warm sense of content as quiet conversation mingles with the rich scent of rich roasted beans. The wanderer part of me simply loves sitting in cafes with a drink and paper, soaking in these atmospheres as I watch peoples worlds go by. Coffee connesuours peering judgingly at the quality of their latte art, gossiping mothers whose continual visits allow them to order their ‘regular’, university students staring exasperatedly at glaring mac screens, and old friends attempting to catch one another up on their lives, cold coffee giving way to rapid conversations. Unified by their love of a decent coffee.

Wandering into Atomic Roastery Kingsland, escaping the rainy cold tantrum Auckland had been throwing, I was more than open to the idea of a hot drink. When my cup arrived I lifted it to my lips and braced myself for that first sip. See it’s all about the first sip, the moment that will tell you if the $5 was worth it and the baristas have their shit together. Unfortunately that soy latte was the best I’ve had in a long time, meaning that I will forever try to find reasons to make the 15-minute drive over to Kingsland. 

So if you want to experience that wonderfully beautiful first sip of a coffee made by baristas who know their espresso from their ristreto, put on your raincoat and head on over to Atomic Roastery Kingsland. Serving coffee so good, who knows, it may even convert a few sworn tea drinkers…

Cafe Adventures: Good One

 Large, naturally lit space, coffee brewers who know their stuff, beautifully designed branding, Little & Friday baking and damn good coffee. 

Based in a refurbished old manufacturing building hidden in the skinny backstreets of Ponsonby, Good One has been serving up Supreme Coffee (and filter) since 2008. With Ample seating, high open ceilings, chill tunes, simple yet delicious food menu and over 45000, Good One attracts a diverse crowd. Expect to see friends catching up, students finishing caffeine fuelled essays, work colleges reading the paper, and the token hipsters bringing their tongues drinking coffee before its cool.

A flat white for me, a mocha and chocolate caramel slice for Craig. 

Will definitely be back soon, if not for the coffee then to try and sneak out some 1990 National Geographics. 

Good One

42 Douglas St

Ponsonby

Auckland

09 376 2784

Monday – Friday 7am – 3pm

Saturday 8am – 3pm

Sunday 9am – 3pm

Silo Park Markets

Life can be a little crazy sometimes. One day you’re lying in the January sun, soaking up the last of the summer holidays with a weekly schedule that consist of “tan…read…eat…repeat”, the next, 8 weeks of school have passed and you’re driving into school at 7am on a Monday morning with a to do list that has become decidedly less thrilling. Whether its school, university or work it’s easy to become overwhelmed with the to do’s, a list of tasks which supernaturally manages to never shrink no matter how hard you work. By the time you survived to Friday your #TGIF celebration is often dampened by the fact that your ‘crazy weekend’ will probably consist of going between watching procrastinatively and work.

To be honest I had been feeling pretty shit this Friday, un-productive day, plans cancelled last minute and the idea of a free weekend slowly disappearing under a mound of design and photography work. Taking a few hours off get my ass to the gym (my membership was growing cobwebs) then visiting a Silo Park markets in town was the last thing on my mind, yet ended up being just the thing to get me out of my funk. After getting on a sweat at Les Mills, my beautiful mother and I drove to Wynyard and after a couple minutes of scoping out the carpark, managed to steal a park.

I forgot how important it is to take a break every now and then, put life on hold and surround yourself with good music, delicious food, happy vibes and interesting people.

With over 20 food stalls/trucks, an outside movie showing, cute little clothing stalls, fresh air and crowds of people ambling around, Silo park is definitely the place to slow down, grab a seat and indulge in some cheap eats and good old-fashioned people watching.

mmmmm Balsamic and Onion Soft Pretzels 

$12 Beetroot Burger courtesy of The FoodTruck 

A Super Photogenic Very-Berry Natural Fruit Ice-cream 

So get out of your weekend sweat-pants (we all have a pair), step away from the work desk and get out into the big wide world for a few hours. It'll be fun, promise. 

Cafe Adventures: Goodness Gracious

Goodness Gracious! Yet another bagelry has decided to grace the Auckland Café scene, and there are most certainly no complaints here as finally the humble bagel is gaining the kiwi recognition that it deserves. Brainchild of Greg Cornes, the already Popular Goodness Gracious café came about after Cornes did a short-term stint across the ditch in Melbourne cafes, where he first had the idea.

8.30am Tuesday driving down the Eden Terrace I was dreading the task of hunting down a park along the packed street that wasn’t too long a hike from this shoe-box café. GG had me before I even walked through the door with the free 5-car car-park located right outside. So.Much.Win. You go GG, you know how to woo a busy Auckland Foodie.

Of course the only thing that impresses more than free parking is a café design that is sharp, well executed and full of character. Regardless of it's narrow and long room layout, GG delivered an minimalistic, hip and stylized space with glossed white tile walls, grey concrete floors and urban brick/metal detailing. Definitely a place where you want to occupy for the afternoon, sipping on their salted caramel smoothies while breakfasting, lunching and dinnering on golden rings of doughey goodness.

Not feeling the need to be super fancy with flavor combinations, GG’s bagels proved to remind us that the classic combinations are classic for a reason, they’re damn good. Although there are some new, exciting fillings for the adventurous bagel lovers. Craig went straight for ‘The Classic’, coming out with generous creamy layer of lemon infused cream cheese, packed in with light pink salmon and a sprinkle of capers.

I instead went for the other old favourite, the BLAT. Golden crispy toasted sesame seed bagel, slathered in copious amounts of  sweet tomato relish and savoury garlic aioli. Overstuffed with hunks of butter-like avocado, ribbons of warm bacon and delicate leaves of wild rocket. This is the sort of bagel that needs your full and undivided attention, a bagel that silences any doubts of disbelievers who think “yeah bagels are alllright I guess, I don’t see the big fuss’… “Hush” says the mighty BLAT in all its delicious glory. Not wanting to make any threats, but a certain popular Bagel café better watch its back.

Leaving just past 9, the café became quietly busy with a small crowd of customers patiently milling outside, waiting for those little cups of caffeine that gave their Tuesday permission to begin.

So, if free parking, awesome designed cafes with good music, attentive friendly staff and delicious bagels overstuffed with fresh fillings sounds like your jam then give GG a visit. If it's not your jam, I seriously advice you take the next 2 hours to quietly reflect on your life priorities.

Happy Tuesday, may your week be filled with productivity and good coffee!