24 Prosford Street,
Herne Bay,
Ponsonby
Auckland,


(09) 360 6261

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4 out of 5 stars

Slick and smart under a block of apartments, Blake St is the kind of neighbourhood cafe you wish you had around your neck of the woods. Ironically the polished concrete tables and modern decor conceals the rustic and robust nature of the menu.

My initial behaviour is pretty rustic too as I mange to crash into a dog bowl full of water as I take my seat. I’m blaming jetlag, OK? With wet socks I order off a menu that straddles both breakfast and lunch options. The friendly and non-plussed waiter has obviously seen mini-disasters with Fido’s watering bowl before.

Blake St was one of the first Auckland cafes to adopt the practice of offering a range of side dishes to go with meals. Today there are Toulouse sausages and Kaipara bacon on offer, but I play it straight with Bubble and Squeak topped with a Venison Sausage and a Fried Egg ($15.50). The egg is nice and runny and is the ideal partner for the creamy Bubble and Squeak and an exceedingly lean sausage. With a few hours sleep and damp footwear, it’s ideal comfort food and a subtle step up from the eggs, sausages and hash browns on offer at other places around town. Carol’s Eggs Ciabatta ($16.50) comes with roasted vine tomatoes and Kaipara bacon and is a mini-mountain of crunchy bread and creamy egg. For smaller and quicker weekday appetites there’s fruit with muesli, and a whole raft of bread and bagels with homemade preserves,. A European tinge is added with Bircher muesli and the Euro Breakfast Plate with a selection of meats, cheeses, fruit and sourdough bread. It’s the kind of thing you’d usually have before a day exploring a European capital by foot, so probably best shared on a more relaxed Auckland weekend.

Once breakfast and brunch is over, Blake St morphs into a very convenient lunch spot for local workers and residents. A small selection of wine and beers partners well-priced menu items with an Asian-tinge included a lime infused tarakihi salad, and four classic curries from Thailand and India ($18.50). Most food is available for take out if you just have to get back to the office. Freshly prepared counter food is also available for ordering on the go.

While too many of Auckland's cafes offer the "same old, same old" for brunch, the innovative Blake St always pull a few surprises.