pipi's cafe

another trendy place to go in hb. good pizzas. i like the spicy sauce. the rest of the food on the menu is average and slightly pricy. the whole flounder is worth a try! desserts- i'm told are good - i haven't tried. quirky ambience reflects the lovely owners. i take away thepizzaand buy wine elsewhere.

i was told about this place by someone that it was good, thought i try it out and it was great. thepizzahere is the best, it’s beautiful and the bacon pasta is also very nice. i recommend this place to anyone who is near havelock north in hastings. all of the pizzas are delicious. 100%

urgh.. hard to decide on the rating. food was good (4/5), friendly staff (4/5) but not the quality of hygiene (0/5). had sunday night out here and they were very busy. we had to awkwardly stand at the entrance area and had to try our best to have an eye contact with the staff to get seated (well to be honest we had to find the empty table and had to ask the staff whether we can seat there or not). table was not cleaned for us, there werepizzacrums, capsicum, food crums on the table with two used glasses. we just got seated just after previous customer left so aware the table was not ready but expected it to be cleaned. waiter took the order but did not acknowledge the dirty table so i had to ask them to clean the table for us. he took the dirty/used glasses away but did not wipe the table for us so we were waiting for the table got wiped. however, our plates came out and even before i said something foods were placed on the dirty table, on top of someone else's left over capsicum... my napkin had several food crums on it due to this.
until today i can't get rid of the feeling of getting someone else's left over or food crums in my mouth.
i will probably not go back to dine here but maybe take away only :(

jam packed on a friday night but were quickly seated and ready to order. we got a half and half largepizzawith the aloha and capricciosa. the a medium of the saliccisia. quite sweet with the caramelised onion. could do with more cheese. quite spicy. the largepizzatoppings were great! margherita looks tasty too. also had the spaghetti with meatballs. tasty

such a great wee spot, i always highly recommend pipi's!  we moved here two years ago from auckland & regularly visit for the bestpizzain town (in nz imo!). my favourites include the salciccipizzaand the sticky date pudding...cannot get enough! the service is friendly, efficient & genuine - not forced or rehearsed which is a nice change. the ambience is charismatic, warm, quirky & personal. we've often started chatting with neighbouring couples of all ages :). we always bring out of town friends to pipi because it always provides such an inviting atmosphere, you can have a laugh without feeling like you're disturbing other guests. it seems other reviewers have different expectations for a friendly local! i'd also highly recommend the pipi cookbook - such a great gift, and the recipes really are delicious!

we visited pipi recently on a family holiday and tried thepizzaas a takeaway. we had expected a wait for our food, given the other reviews, but we were served really quickly. the garlicpizzabread was delicious and we really enjoyed the salsicci and margherita pizzas. the only comment i'd make was that the i didn't enjoy the herb stalks on the salsicci, a minor point. the bases were perfect. thanks for a great family dinner!

great place, excellent food, excellent service, a place you would be proud to tell people about. when in hawke's bay and looking for a relaxed place to eat, you can't go past this cafe.
be prepared to sit and relax together with other diners, try the garlicpizzabread to start and then pick your choice of pizza, plenty to choose from. many thanks for a great night.

recently paid pipi a visit on trip down from auckland last month. we were in the bay for week and went to pipi twice. it was my first time and i must say this place is a relevation. dispensing with all of that palavel that you can get in restaurants these days, pipi gets straight to the point with friendly service and serving delicious food.

it gets hard to decide what to have,pizzais a good start on your first visit. we often eat italian food in auckland, particularly at prego. i guess the pipi menu isn't completely italian, but also reflects the chef's (owner) upbringing in rural nz, the background is all in her book which is the reason we ended up there.

thoroughly recommend, but the no bookings system is tricky. maybe get there early, or if you arrive in the thick of it you can have a bit of a wait at their bar which isn't the end of the world.

cheers.

we have dined at this restaurant in the past and love the busy atmosphere but things have gone downhill. the alohapizzawe ordered read on the menu that it came with cheese - there was so little on the pizzas' it could not be seen, the fungipizzahowever was delicious. the place is quite dirty and the wine list poor, our wine and water glass were given to us hot. however the atmosphere is great.

pipi's is one of our favourite places to eat in havelock north
- also very popular with our b&b guests; they love the food, casual atmosphere, greatpizzaand service; always plenty of choice in their other main dishes - my husband always orders the fish cakes!
ist rate

i love pipi’s in havelock north and will quite often go there with friends and have a laugh. the restaurant is quite basic with bench chairs with cushions, old household furniture such as side boards and kitchen tables and an assortment of not too expensive art on the walls. every table has candles and you are jammed in to a small but wonderfully busy, exciting, pumping, electric environment. the pizzas are amazing and the desserts are yummy. we ordered 3 pizzas and a plate of penne pasta, 3 desserts, two bottles of montepulciano and 2 bottles of beer and it only came to $60 a head. oh by the way the beer you help yourself too out of the fridge. well worth it if you ask me was the large alohapizzathat i ordered. it was the size of a car tyre. i can assure you it did not taste like one, smothered in an amazing tomato based sauce with mozzarella, pineapple and bacon, it was delicious. check out the image
if you want a great night out, awesomepizzaand want to go where the locals go then pipi’s should not be missed. if you are a bit fussy and like a clean sterile, quite environment with not much atmosphere then pipi’s is not the place for you. be prepared for average service which can require some self-help activity, great food and big crowds, but the locals will tell you that’s what it’s all about. pipi's reminds me of the many great family run restaurants in europe that i stumbled upon.

pipi is a favourite with us - very relaxed atmosphere and very busy and buzzy so go early. grab a table outside (they have great heaters if its cooler) if you'd prefer a quieter environment. thepizzais super-scrummy (cipolla, salsicci especially) and so are the pastas. yum. the only thing i would wish for (being a regular) is to have the specials menu changed more often.

we decided to try out pipi's after reading various reviews (good & bad)& hearing feedback from others. overall the pizzas are great, made in a traditional style, and generous sizes which my italian partner loved. so far they are best we've eaten in the bay. it reminded me of the hip, alternative eateries in melbourne- op-shopped furnishings, casual staff, art on the walls. the atmosphere was chaotic. the eatery is on the cramped side and was full of diners. i wasn't able to order desert with ourpizzaand there was a short delay before our table was cleared for us. however our waiter was very friendly, my wine arrived fast and the head of house remembered my desert and came back to check on us. we also liked the communal shared tables & help yourself fridge. overall we enjoyed the experience. we came to pipi's expecting a very laid back, casual, eclectic eatery with greatpizzaand that's exactly what we got.

thepizzawe ordered was really good, the waitress was great (and child friendly) as was the atmosphere which is an important part of the dining experience.
but one waitress couldn't have been more sullen and morose if she tried and seem hellbent on making everyone else miserable. smile and her face would have cracked!!

when pipis first opened thepizzawas good, not quite like a real italianpizzabut good, now it's so busy and they're trying to make them so fast they sometimes forget about the taste and presentation. service was average and it is dirty, the menus, cutlery, tables all had food on them. i do like the help yourself beer fridge. luckily they are the only pizzeria in town.