Parade

New Ponsonby opening Parade was built between lockdowns. The idea for the project, which comes from the team behind Newmarket's Mutual Friends, was born during New Zealand's first-ever brush with self-isolation. Nearly 12 months later, it opened right before Auckland's week-long lockdown on Saturday, 27 February.

The American-inspired dining experience is centred around soft stuffed pretzels, pretzel burgers and decadent sides. The three owners, Sean Bone, Bryan Anderson and Nick Fury, were looking to expand their operations and came across the trend of Chicago stuffed pretzels on Instagram. Over the six-week lockdown they started experimenting with recipes to create their own product, something rarely seen in New Zealand.

It took almost eight months of testing to get the pretzel dough right. Nick says the team explored both traditional German recipes and American styles, but eventually settled on a recipe combining the best of both worlds.

The signature pretzel dough is made from scratch daily and comes stuffed with everything from meatballs to barbecue jackfruit and spiced apple — which is considered to be the eatery's signature item. Weekly specials have included an indulgent cookie dough pretzel and another filled with slow-cooked beef, jalapeño and cheese.

Of-the-moment smash burgers are another main component of the menu. You can order them as a single or double, with fried chicken or as a vegetable option. Hot Cheetos have made an appearance between the pretzel buns, too. Fries come loaded with the likes of barbecue jackfruit with guacamole and sour cream, and then to complete your meal, there's street corn drizzled with mayo and broccolini.

While Parade is currently a temporary operation, the team hints to keep an eye out for a permanent location sometime in the near future.