The Ribz Shak - CLOSED

Overview

Island Bay has gained another foodie hotspot. Having recently won the latest season of The Block NZ, Lisa Ridout-Gordon and Chris Gordon have embarked on their next project, The Ribz Shak, a takeaway eatery focusing on smoked and slow-cooked ribs, pulled pork and burgers.

We visited the newly opened Island Bay eatery for an early Sunday dinner. Arriving at 4.30pm, only half an hour after opening, there was already a small queue leading out the door. Owners Lisa and Chris and the staff happily welcomed familiar and new faces alike.

The menu is short, offering ribs served with chips, slaw and sauce (you have a choice of three here), plus burgers ranging from pulled pork to fried chicken and classic beef. There are also the options of loaded fries and Monster Milkshakes — to satisfy those sweet cravings.

We ordered the half portion of ribs, The Ribblet, and after being informed that the pulled pork was sold out, we went with the Motherclucker chicken schnitzel burger, which comes packed with grilled cheese, onion rings, slaw, roasted garlic mayo and Lisasoutthegate sauce. The value for money here is fantastic — we were surprised with the fair amount of food for the price. The burger was massive, and the accompanying portions of chips and slaw with the ribs were also super generous. We loved the Slapiton sauce that we chose for the ribs — the combination of hoisin, orange and sesame worked incredibly well with pull-apart ribs.

We were very happy to see that sustainability has also been taken into consideration — all meals are packaged in cardboard and the water available for purchase is canned.

The Ribz Shak is predominantly a takeaway spot, but securing one of the two tables at the front of the store will guarantee a sun-soaked experience with the buzzing, friendly atmosphere radiating from inside.