groundup cafe

this has been a popular brunch excursion for my partner and myself for many years, always enjoyed it until last visit. food was very average, my eggs benedict came with round pre sliced supermarket processed ham! come on guys, you charge the gourmet price and deliver stuff like that! i don't know if the ownership has changed or what's happened. won't be going back in a hurry.

facing a busy road is groundup cafe. there are basically 3 areas for seating: indoor, alfresco or seats facing the road. they have ample car park lots behind it too!
foodwise: by the time we arrived, kitchen was closed so we were only limited to choices in the cabinet. it was a huge variety and everything looks great! i also appreciate it when crews recommend whats good as opposed to "everything's good!" ikr. so anyway, we chose a bacon spinach pastry and a croissant loaded with bacon, egg and veg coupled with a warm mocha and latte. guess what? everything hit the spot. special shoutout to the barista who made our awesome coffee and the very friendly max. no reason not to visit when it's so near my place :) highly recommended!

my favourite cafe in wellington. the coffee is consistently excellent, staff friendly and would sort any problem for you. food is great, not cheap but very enjoyable. open long hours which is great as you can get a coffee from 7.30 am and until 5pm when most cafes are closed. would love a  little more choice and change of cabinet food especially smaller savoury foods (like club sandwiches) for those of us who don't want something too sweet, although the slices are amazing. best cheese scones ever. love to sit outside to enjoy the interesting location. suitable for all ages. you can bring your dog to the two outside areas and water bowls are available for them. happy to recommend groundup.

just been here today (wednesday 20th jan 2016) for lunch, and it was absolutely delicious. i came with 6 friends and we all had a good lunch. i ordered the special of the day which was a chicken salad, $16, but well worth it. yummy. and an english breakfast pot of tea.
overall, good staff, good food, and good atmosphere. very good.

groundup...  most definitely the go to cafe in the porirua region
a wonderful variety of both cabinet and menu board food to tempt even the fussiest taste buds, staff that deliver service with excellence, and coffee to die for!!!
all this and a magical setting and relaxed atmosphere

a bit of a trek to be an everyday coffee place for most but when passing through the haywood it deserves a stop off. haven't had food here yet but it all looks and sounds very tasty. coffee is very good.

been here today at lunch time around 12.20pm. with only two small tables left. till was very busy with long cue. atmosphere warmly welcomes people. set up of counter is great. organised and clean. plenty choices in cabinet. good plating skill. presentations really make those foods attractive. but we still decided to try their foods on menu.
4mins waiting time on both coffees. latte and flat white. 9mins for both dishes. blat and corn fritter.

coffees were very good. no matter milk, temperature, or taste. same ripe coffee bean, i would say this barista really knows how to play with his coffees, comparing to other premises.
foods are very average. blat was good. nice presentation with freshness everything. but corn fritter was a bit disappointing me. cuz i ordered extra bacon which makes the plate more eatable. over coloured corn fritters. or overcooked? very soft, which was falling parts hard. what i reckon they recooked it and warmed it up in microwave. otherwise it wouldn't have extra moisture inside and abnormal soft texture. 17.50 for this corn fritter with those cheap chips was another point letting me down. should be hand cut chips/wages or something price/matchable sides. anyway, salad was a+, fresh with capsicum, mesclun, cucumber and onion. dressing was just good. personally, i prefer corn fritter with avocado, tomato with bacon, and this salad on side. the traditional way.
cuz of the first excellent coffees we decided to have second one with dessert for both of us. desserts were good. only suggestion is maybe more lemon taste to balance its strong sweetness of citrus slice?
i like this place. only reason i didn't rate 5 is that corn fritter dish.

another time here
coffees are always perfect. rated for 5. can't find anymore cafes doing better coffees than here.

stopped in here the other day just for coffee to go with a friend and we walked out with a yummy savoury and sweet treat.  the coffee hit the spot but the food is always hard to pass up, it's just so darn good!

parking easy, toilets clean and good variety of food priced fairly. service is not overly friendly though would think this is due to them being under the pump.  

consistent and worth a visit.

first time at this café - was very busy yet the service was quick and friendly - the corn fritters outstanding as was the side salad - scrambled eggs among the best and the coffee was outstanding - latte lovely hot strong coffee - will definitely visit again

have been here a couple of times now love the service you are always greeted in a friendly manner i come from the cafe industry so know that some days are crazy but these guys don't show it love there coffee as i drink it black i can tell if it's a bad one keep up the good work guys i will be back

while i am going to phone the manager of this cafe, when i looked up for phone number i can see i can also post my opinion here.

at both queens birthday and easter this year, i got a large latte on my way up north. it was awful!! rephrase that - disgusting.
yes, okay, i should have learnt my lesson the first time but trip warranted it and i didn't believe it could be as bad - well it wasn't, it was worse the second time.

while i'm okay with it hot, it was scalding, burnt and bitter in flavour. actually, i had to dump it on the latter occasion and couldn't drink much of the first.

i enjoy great coffee and don't believe groundup provides it.

i noted on both occasions that the staff were all males.
i didn't want to give a star thinking it meant a minor pass but it means terrible.

decided to pop in the groundup cafe for a easter monday brunch.
i had the big breakfast with a hot cross bun, my wife the eggs benedict and our daughter the hot cakes, great fast service, great meals at a not too bad price. the big breakfast was a good size and very filling. my wife and daughter were very happy with their choices.
only two things, bacon could have been a bit crisper and hot cross bun was grilled and flattened without checking with me if i wanted it heated or not, it was just assumed. i didn't. will be back to try the lunch menu very soon.

love the food, love the coffee, and the staff are super friendly. i regularly have business meetings here, as well as stopping in to grab a coffee when i don't have time to eat (and when the queue is not too long!). the location is really great, especially in summer, all we need now is an evening service with a courtesy bus!

this cafe has in the past provided great coffee. today was not one of those days. i watched the staff member making the coffee scrape off the extra ground beans in the portafilter with his index finger (he also was texting not 5 minutes later).
i had the vege mixed grill... for the prices, i'd expect everything to be made from scratch on the premises. the hash browns are the same as mcdonald's and the tomatoes were warm but very close to raw.
several times i noticed staff on their mobiles. if i were the owner, i'd be worried.

i had the hotcakes which were beautifully presented (photo added). three huge hotcakes presented with bananas, mixed berries, rock melon, bacon, maple syrup & cream with a marshmallow garnish. almost too pretty to eat. but i did & enjoyed it thoroughly. my fiancee had the mixed grill - a hefty portion of kransky sausages, tomato, eggs, hash browns, & bacon (how about some mushrooms?). we were so impressed with the food we will go back again. the staff were friendly and the environment pleasant - i don't have a lot to say about these aspects as it was just the same as anywhere else - neither bad nor fantastic. for me though, i've had the only two things on the menu i would eat so the excitement has passed.

my husband's point of view:
an early sunday morning breakfast for four bought us back here a second time, after a pretty impressive first visit.

the venue is pleasant and the service is to an acceptable standard.

all members of our group were very satisfied with the food. the salmon and scrambled eggs dish was well received, with compliments on the amount of salmon supplied.

the missus and i both had the big breakfast, and after she got my tomatoes and mushrooms, and i scored her bacon and hash-browns, we were both very happy. i thought i'd live life on the edge, and after paying asked if mine could be accompanied by a small bowl of hollandaise. it was a casual request, if it happened then all good, if not then life goes on.

it did happen, and i was impressed. often a request of that nature can cause raising of eyebrows, but they didn't miss a beat. well done guys.

the sausages that come with the dish were a bit odd - the missus thought they tasted 'off'...but then there's so many different types and flavours these days it might just be how they are. i was however a bit disappointed to note the poached eggs had been cooked in an egg-poacher mould, and not free-styled as any competent cafe chef should be able to do. still, they were quality eggs and tasted just the same as usual.

the only change i would like to see is printed menus that you can take to the table and peruse at leisure, as opposed to the blackboard by the counter. this would stop people getting in the way of each other, and those deciding what to have jostling with those who are ordering and paying. but hey, when in rome..

all in all, we'll be back.