Overview
It was always going to be hazardous putting two self-indulgent gastronauts to this task. Being no virgins to the locations on this list, it was simply an excuse for excess. And it was vindicated. We think it’s such an exciting sign of the times that Auckland’s hospitality industry has reached the kind of maturity that can support a legitimate dessert scene. Many restaurants of Auckland have splendid dessert menus, but these days we have the privilege of choice. The choice to mix it up, switch destinations for the best course of all, to somewhere where dessert is what they do. Single-destination dining excursions aren’t the only game changer.
Here are the findings of two expert sweet teeth on a pretend-journey of discovery (meeting near death by calorie along the way).
1. Milse
When it comes to the ultimate in decadent luxury, the crème de la crème of gastronomic delight in Auckland’s dessert and patisserie industry, there is no doubting Milse’s place at the top of the table. On offer is a regularly updated dine-in menu showcasing a range of sublime dessert options presented in fine-dining style, with degustation desserts and à la carte edibles made up of a scintillating mixture of ice cream and gelato, baked goods, sauces and whips, fruit, froths and much, much more – all prepared before your eyes by their amazingly talented team. Dessert is taken to an art form here, the haute couture of after dinner delight, done in a compact eatery tucked away in the Britomart complex. The small number of tables, cosy atmosphere and intimate setting only adding to the experience as does the quality selection of dessert wines (Amisfield, get it). Conversely as with all exclusive and small experiences long waiting times are a regular occurrence (but worth it), luckily this is balanced by a superb take-out range of ice-creams, macaroons, pastries and sweet treats we are unable to identify should the yearning for sugar-laced satisfaction call you. Milse is our number one dessert destination choice – do try it.
27 Tyler Street, Britomart
An honourable mention….. Milse is a corporate cousin of the Hip Group, hence why the slick outfits under the Hip umbrella all offer an astoundingly delicious range of dessert options including the same delicious gelato and a sampler of Milse’s patisserie. For those not in the know this includes Café on Kohi, Takapuna Beach Café, Rosie, St Heliers Bistro & Café, Richmond Road Café and The Store (of Britomart and acting as sidekick takeaway store to several of the cafés).
2. Giapo
A home of ice cream and gelato delights, Queen Street’s Giapo presents itself as ‘haute icecream’ and delivers superbly on these promises. Once a dinky, colourful and child-like dessert store, following the explosion of frozen yoghurt and gelato outlets across Auckland, Giapo has been transformed into an ultra luxury-style eatery with truly premium and creative fusions of innovative flavours and toppings. Head Chef Gianpaolo Grazioli is a self-taught ice cream maker, and has combined a scientist’s desire for discovery with the creativity and skills of an old fashioned pastry chef – resulting in crazy (sometimes good, sometimes not) combinations like chorizo with caramel topped with a Greek ‘akataifi’ pastry, or chocolate and blue cheese. Every ice cream flavour comes with a pre-set topping that is sure to satisfy, and if the slightly too crazy flavours are a bit too much, rest assured the classics are all on offer in a top notch fashion. Taking this frozen art form to the ultimate level, Giapo also provides a five-flavour degustation menu and offers a range of artisan chocolate, yoghurt and sprinkle covered cones. In short, when it comes to ice-cream and gelato you’ll no find no better offering than this Queen Street dessert destination – as evidenced by their Tiramisu taking out the 2012 Cuisine Artisan Award.
279 Queen Street, CBD
3. Little and Friday
If you don’t know about this place yet you’ve been living under a very depriving rock. Self-taught baker Kim Evans started the fabled Belmont store from humble beginnings but has since spawned a beautiful empire. Little and Friday do wonderful savoury things but it is the sweet stuff that steals hearts of 20-something chicks Auckland wide. Who then buy the cookbook thinking they can imitate art before realising how much time, effort and ingredients go into this stuff. The gigantic individual cakes and tarts decked out with oversized garnishes are fantastic Instagram material. If you like nutella then the hazelnut-coated Baci cakes are for you. The inventive fruit tarts are equally rave-worthy. I don’t even need to mention the chocolate chilli donuts; they have a reputation of their own. On weekends the Newmarket café has a permanent line reaching the door for a reason. Little and Friday is another really good excuse to have dessert with lunch.
43D Eversleigh Road, Belmont; and 12 Melrose Street, Newmarket
4. Moustache
Little more than a hole in the wall on Wellesley Street in the CBD, Moustache might be small in size but it’s gigantic in presence amongst the dessert destination scene. An all-American milk and cookie bar inspired by the lip decoration that follows such a snack, this eatery holds just a few bar stools meaning take-away is your most likely option - but no matter as satisfaction and delicious cookies don’t require a seat. In terms of dessert choices your options range from the traditional; choc-chip, peanut butter, white-choc macadamia, through to the slightly more exotic; oreo marshmellow (our favourite), snickers bar or cinnamon. These warm and melty-inside delights are partnered with drinks like mom used to make (and better), so consider accompanying your cookie with dunking milk (normal or flavoured) or an exceptionally delicious milkshake - full of authentic flavour and range from chocolate to peanut butter, to banana, to Aero peppermint. When happiness comes in simple form, Moustache is your destination.
12 Wellesley Street West, CBD
5. Vaniyé
Auckland has several reliable sources of French patisserie but we maintain that none are comparable to Vaniyé. The discreet Parisian style patisserie emits its own aura of brilliance that murmurs “I am excellent, but I don’t need to brag about it”. For a fair $10 you can acutally participate in this fascinating world of culinary haute couture, and mon dieu you should. Vaniyé masters the classics like the millefeuille and éclair, but the stars are pastry chef Sonia Haumonte’s designer creations which go a damn long way towards toppling some of those pretentious Parisian stores off their perches. All the way from little old New Zealand. Each delicate dessert is architected by Haumonte and her team in the kitchen behind the store and is so pristine it seems wrong to disturb. It may not be open evenings but in France dessert is a part of la vie quotidienne, eaten twice daily after lunch and dinner. Like a drug. So we feel no shame having daytime desserts and neither should you.
1/7 Windsor Street, Parnell
6. Chocolate Boutique
A Parnell and Auckland institution, Chocolate Boutique sits atop Parnell Rise and for years has provided coca inspired decadence in many forms – even attracting Bill Clinton on his last visit. Offering more than 100 hand-made gourmet chocolates, truffles, liqueur, non-liqueur, nutty rochers, and pralines available in the cabinet along with an extensive imported selection, the boutique is technically a chocolate store, but has a decent spread of indoor and outdoor seating and an expanded menu to complement their cabinet offering – and this is where the magic happens. To accompany your bite-sized delights hot desserts like chocolate steamed pudding and a range of freshly cooked waffles, hot fudge sundaes and many more ensure prolonged death by chocolate. Similarly cold sweets like passionfruit parfait give some escape from the chocolate overload, but really, why else would you be here? Beverages are another area to celebrate, with the cafe showcasing a number of coca infusion hot drinks seen nowhere else – a unique Italian denso (a thick rich hot chocolate) with exclusive twists like Mexican spice or chilli. Or a ‘submarino’, hot steamed milk with chocolate bars (milk, dark, bittersweet, praline and white) melting into their hot, sweet, chocolaty goodness. Truly these are a gift from the dessert gods, and when partnered with a selection of locally hand-made coca delights, take you one step closer to heaven.
323 Parnell Road, Parnell
7. Casa del Gelato
Authentic Italian is not what comes to mind on first impressions of Casa del Gelato. The vibe of the stores is a little kitsch, and the website uses comic sans. They do gelato like most European gelato outlets, whipping it into glorious frozen swirls and showering it in confectionary (that you never get any of) and Cadbury trademark-infringement. Nonetheless, the store’s slogan “Premium Gelato Without Compromise” is no farce. These people put the work into their craft and the results show; the gelato is sublime. Casa del Gelato use the traditional Sicilian method of gelato making using only fresh milk and cream (each vat is delivered to the stores daily) without preservatives or artificial sweeteners. They source their nuts from Sicily and their blood orange, lemon and mandarin from Palermo. It’s delizioso! Casa del Gelato are building a quiet little empire with stores in Mt Eden, Parnell, Ponsonby, the Shore and out West. Our favourite is the cutesy little parlour tucked in off a brick lane in Parnell. It’s even got a separate seating area that makes you feel like you’ve been invited into a cosy private lounge.
Various locations across Auckland
8. White’s & Co
In a world where dessert is often associated with guilt and greed, yoghurt doesn’t get such a bad rap and even gets the ‘good for you’ label a bit too frequently. However, to smother your fro-yo in a shroud of coke-bottles and caramel fudge sauce defeats the objective entirely. That, my friend, is no longer yoghurt (not pointing any fingers whatsoever at that shady crowd of flo-yo-lo type establishments around town). More to the point, self-serve is self-destructive for anyone lacking self-control. That’s why we like it that White’s & Co do it for you so you don’t make any reckless decisions. Their laidback little stalls in Parnell and Vulcan lane serve frozen and greek-style yoghurt in a range of natural flavours, made by the Collective dairy stars so it’s fresh and locally sourced. The vanilla is delicious, channelling the long lost frosty boy once found in health stores (before they realised it was devoid of nutrition entirely). Except there’s specks of vanilla pod in it, which is always a good sign. Then there’s the wholesome topping bar with a satisfying range of options like stewed fruit, amarena cherry, nuts and even toasted muesli (breakfast for dessert must be healthy, right?). FYI, hundreds and thousands made the cut for those that can’t let go.
44 Te Aara Tahuhu Walkway, Britomart and Vulcan Lane (118-124 Queen St), CBD
9. Bluebells Cakery
The location is confusing. Heading from Auckland central you kind of feel like you might have taken a wrong turn and are on your merry way to the airport, but then you’ll see the pastel hues and vintage cake stands through the shop window and you’ll know you’ve landed. In heaven. Bluebells owner and chief baker Karla Goodwin has perfected the art of butter-cream and showcases that talent splendidly in her retro-styled tearoom festooned with fresh flowers and vintage crockery. The little girl within you (in you too, boys) will yelp on arrival to this land of sugar and spice. Heralded for the best cupcakes in Auckland but also yielding quality slices, donuts and other niceties, Karla changes up the counter regularly mastering the classics Grandma used to make (think coconut ice) without being Grandma-ish at all. She also makes gorgeous cakes to order and is the darling of the moment for corporate catering around town. Bluebells Cakery is an absolute treat well worth the journey.
161A Hillsborough Road, Hillsborough
10. Torchon French Creperie
This well-established affiliate of Elliot Stables boasts a full-spectrum French menu, yet visiting for the dessert crêpes alone is completely justified. The crêpe is yet another paradigm of dessert excellence brought to us by the French, and where better to enjoy the celebrated ‘skinny’ pancake than in the full unabated glory of a cheesy French restaurant. Despite the casual tone of the establishment, their dessert crêpes are presented with tender delicacy, neatly folded into a fan-shape on your plate like a little handkerchief. A very tasty handkerchief. The selection of sweet crêpes range from the simple classics like lemon and sugar (at a mere $5.50) to the more elaborate multi-discipline variations such as the theatrical crêpe suzette doused in Grand Marnier and set alight before your very eyes ($12.50). The crêpe au nutella is exactly what you’re after if that’s your spread of choice, jammed full of the glorious stuff and topped with toasted almonds. Wash it down with a little pastis and you’ll find dizzy heaven.
39 Elliott Street, Auckland City
Written by Jenny Wylie and Will Seal