maranui cafe

frequent here often. just good tucker with a busy hustle bustle atmosphere, with the views to compliment.

all meals from brunch to lunch a brill.

a typical wellington cafe you must visit. considering how busy it is, thestaffdo well to keep it all cool & calm.

obviously on wknds be prepared for the wait at the door before you can get your table, but once in you forget about the wait and come back to do the same thing next time.

i went there for the first this sunday (since it was re-done). got a seat pretty quickly. not all thestaffwere as on to it as they used to be, something i used to love about this place.

as for the food, the counter-top cakes and thick-shakes were supreme. the food off the menu however was average. i ordered the halumi and roasted tomato bagel, well the tomato was barely cooked and the bottom of the bagel was soggy :(
my mates toasted sandwich was a bit better, but both seemed a little pricey.

hope they can get back to where they once were.

seashore cabaret has a twin sister, maranui cafe. if you didn't know any better, you'd get a sense of deja vu when you step in there that is how similar they are.

but anyway, my experience. mr raerae and i headed in on a monday arvo. i've tried to pop in there before and been thwarted by queues. despite all the weekend warriors being at work, the place was still busy.

service was great. true kiwi style. had a wee laugh with one of the waitstaffand they let us know there would be a 30 minute wait on food.

i got a vege gf green thai curry. the thing i liked about it was that it took inspiration from the traditional and cranked it up with a modern vibe. it was yum and definitely would have it again. mr raerae had a toastie and said it was awesome. yep, the meager toastie can be amazing when done right and it hit the mark for him.

he had a jaffa thick shake. the straw was standing to attention when it arrived so it was definitely thick. and it was jaffa'y. super jaffa'y. yes, that's a word.

the atmosphere is very kiwi and tips its hat to the fact you're in an old surf club. it's great. if your heading there on a date and get a bit bored, there is lots to look it. spoiler alert: i only got to look at the bits and bobs on occasion because mr raerae isn't boring.

and the music. well, despite my youthful demeanor, i am a child of the 80s so when george michael starts doing his thing, i got a wee bit jiggy much ro the amusement of another patron who was doing the same thing.

only note for would be patrons...if you aren't able to climb stairs, don't try there. it isn't the most accessible place.

so yes, well done maranui. decent visit and i will waking me up to go-go back. get it? george michael? ob yes, i crack me up.

great food! i've never been disappointed. thestaffare friendly and onto it. although there is always a line on weekends, it's never as long a waiting time as they say. in my opinion this is the way to go - under promise and over deliver.  it can get a little noisy on the weekends though with the crowds.

very busy place and nice view. coffee is good and food is ok. there will be long wait when you go on weekend. seating can be better butstaffis quite attentive. cafe is upstairs but toilet is downstairs. the stair to upstairs is a bit narrow. well you can not beat the view hence many people go there. food can be a bit expensive in my opinion. however if you visit there when weather is nice you feel like you are in cuba or one of south american countries.

you drive along this road and you look at the surf club and think it's near empty. then you go upstairs into the cafe and it's filled with people! it's a very popular cafe. we were told it would be around a 40 minute wait for food but it came within 20 mins. the food is beautifully presented and all very fresh. all the dishes ordered were enjoyed and all chowed down to the t. thestaffwere very friendly and helpful.

can't believe i hadn't been here before! we had lunch here on a monday and there was a queue out the door before being seated on the sun drenched balcony. we were warned about the 40min wait for food before we accepted the table so didn't mind at all. my beef quesadilla was delicious and my friends mussels were fab - not to mention really well priced!

thestaffare onto it and cope superbly with the constant crowds. i also love the sunblock and hats they provide!!

this place is deserving of all the hype.

been before and had no problems whatsoever. but the small problem i have us freshly squeezed juice. i don't know about you, but i assume freshly squeezed is that same day. i own a juicer myself so know what day old/2 day old sediment looks like. please, if you're going to serve freshly squeezed juice, don't serve it unless it's been made that day. nothing wrong with the taste of my juice. but there was a hefty amount of oxidation in the apple skin floating around and the pulp at the base of my cup... other than that, everything was excellent. service always 5 stars. and us it just me or does one of the waitstafflook like steve from stranger things!?!?

came here for brunch a couple of weeks ago.staffwere welcoming and friendly despite how busy they were.
we got there around 12noon and clearly got in at the start of the rush, only needed to wait 5mins for a table but by the time we'd finished there was a queue out the door! best to get in early...
the food and coffee were both good, i had the pancakes which were brilliant but my partner had the mushrooms on toast which was very rich and a bit too much of just the one flavour. i'd still go back to try the rest of the menu though, one of those places where you need an extra 10mins to figure out what to choose!

maranui is one of the few cafes in lyall bay so when we wandered in at around 1pm on a saturday, the massive line was no surprise.

the cafe is quite small but has an amazing view of the beach, i can imagine it being even busier in summer! we were told the wait for food would be about 40 mins, so we order a vege sandwich from the cabinet and some fries on the side (which were massive, so great value).

however, it was the service which was below par. i found thestaffto be kind of rude! when asked if we wanted drinks we just asked if we could have water, to which we were bluntly told to go get ourselves...i understand it was busy but if it makes the customer happy, just go and get it. then when we were eating our food another waitress came over and again bluntly asked if we were done and could take our menus, which we had to pass over mid-mouthful. she could've been a lot more polite about this and made all of us feel uncomfortable!

i would return on a quieter day as the menu did look really nice, hopefully thestaffare more friendly next time round.

love! 
i used to come to maranui regularly and since being back in wellington i couldn't wait to go back. firstly and most importantly, maranui has the best damn milkshakes in the world. they are ice-cold, creamy, flavourful and spectacular!!! the food here is also very, very good. i usually get the victory breakfast which is far too much food for one person but goes down a treat upon a sunday morning. this place is super busy, especially on the weekend. it's not peculiar to find a queue which winds down the stairs and out the door. despite this, i never find that i am waiting an onerously long time. the wait is definitely worth it, and if you can get a table by the window you are very lucky; the view is spectacular. thestaffhere work fast and they are very focused. i've always found the service here really friendly. i went here most recently with my family and they all loved it too.

came in this morning with my mum for breakfast. had the muesli which was awesome, especially with the poached tamarillo. mum had eggs and spinach on sourdough, all cooked well - generous portions compared to some cafes. overall really yummy food, coffee was good,stafffriendly and helpful. great place and atmosphere - amazing view. will definitely be back! was also nice to come on a monday as it meant we were able to get a seat without the massive wait!

been to maranui heaps of times as its a classic go-to spot on wellington to get breakfast or lunch a little bit out of the city near the beach. they are always full, but thestaffare good at trying to get you seated as soon as possible. awesome views of lyall bay on a good or bad day. really like the vibe and will continue to go back, however i must admit i've never really been blown away by the food. it's a good menu but the food is just good-to-average cafe style food if i'm completely honest. the milkshakes however are awesome :)

but as i said, will continue to return as its a great spot and the menu is good and so are the staff.

came here with a few friends on wednesday 22nd oct at around 11.30am ish. there was 7 of us, and they managed to seat us with no problems at all. i ordered an english breakfast pot of tea. and i ordered a small mixed bean and kumara salad, i think it was around $9.50. it was the yummiest salad i have ever tasted. it even had hazlenuts and cashews in it. i was a bit unsure about spending nearly $10 on a small salad but it looked so healthy, and it was well worth it. my friends were all really satisfied with their choices too. thestaffare very friendly and helpful. the views are amazing and the parking is great, but we parked further down and walked along the beach. lovely!

the best cafe in wellington (and maybe new zealand) for a beach view. maranui is comfortable and reliable: a consistent standard of food, and friendly easy-goingstaffwho actually seem to enjoy their jobs. on the weekends you definitely have to get there early, cos it gets super-busy from around 9am onwards. not so bad on weekdays though. in fact, a nice, relaxing way to start the day watching the sun rise over the bay. definitely recommended.