Wellington Cheap Eats

Last night I received an email from my affiliate  FoodNinja  informing me that April's partner restaurant of the month is Origami Japanese Restaurant. Located on upper Cuba Street, they have operated since 2015 and do some of the better Japanese food in Wellington. I'd place them in the Top 5 easily. I place a delivery order using the easy-to-use website and eagerly await my food. It arrives well within the estimated delivery time (about 35 minutes), slightly worse for wear. Apparently sushi, especially topped with mayo, does not travel so well. It is visually very appealing, but they are a bit stingy on the pickled ginger, and it that dyed pink stuff that costs about $3 a packet from your local supermarket. At $15 for six pieces it is one of the pricer sushis around, notwithstanding the seafood offerings from Tatsushi, or from Origami's a la carte sushi menu. I take a bite. Umai! As the Japanese would say. The salmon is fresh and tender, and to offset the creamy fatt...

It's a lazy weekend lunchtime and we are feeling peckish, with a particular hankering for pizza. Unfortunately Pizza Pomodoro does not deliver at lunchtime (someone should start a petition), Sal's is a bit expensive and Pizza Hut and Dominoes are terrible unless you're absolutely inebriated. For a price to quality ratio we choose Hell's. Boy were we wrong. I order the Brimstone (Cajun chicken and avocado) with a thin stretched base, totalling $13 dollars (the thin base is $2 extra). Feeling daring, I order "Hot as Hell" and do some customising for free, adding jalapenos and garlic (which is slightly burnt on arrival).  It is delivered nearly 20 minutes late as the driver took a wrong turn and consequently the pizza is not as hot or as fresh as usual. The driver forgets the chicken wings. We call and are told that he will turn around and come back with them. It takes about 20 minutes, by which time we have stuffed ourselves and have no gastric real estate ...

It's a Saturday lunchtime and I am hungover. Try as I may, I am unable to summon the strength to change out of my PJs and leave the house. Who you gonna call?  FoodNinja ! I want to sample all of this month's partnership options, so I order my tried and true Basil Chicken. If I ever got another tattoo, it would definitely be "Basil Chicken" in Thai script. People would ask "oh, does it mean 'love' or 'good luck?'" and I would say "nope!" I wouldn't even need to order, I could just point at it. Aroy has a somewhat unfortunate reputation as the "McDonalds of Thai" but in my books there is no such thing as bad Thai, and I've never met a Basil Chicken I didn't like. Aroy Cuba St (before the revamp) was my first Basil Chicken experience outside of Thailand, so it invokes feelings of nostalgia. It costs $14.50 including rice, and I of course order Thai hot. I am again impressed with the functionality and ease of F...

(Full disclosure: KrishnaFoods approached me via Instagram and offered me a free meal in exchange for a review. I accepted, but my opinion is still my own.) KrishnaFoods is located at Victoria University's Kelburn campus in the Old Kirk building. The space used to be occupied (and this is going back a very long time) by Illot Cafe, notorious for their burnt coffee and soggy, overpriced fries. The vegan and vegetarian food options on campus have increased prolifically since I last stomped these corridors. Back in my day, the only vegatarian/vegan option was hot chips. KrishnaFoods is the cheapest eat on campus, and one of the healthier options. Previously, KrishnaFoods operated out of a container. They now have a standalone restaurant and also a kiosk at the Law School (located in the Old Government Building near the railway station). I arrive, verify my identity as a food critic and influencer (haha...) and am served their best seller, the Krishna Plate. At $6 it is the ch...

Full disclosure: I have entered into a paid partnership with local food delivery company FoodNinja. However, this review was drafted before this, and in no way have my opinions been compromised. Please see the end of my post for a sweet discount! A couple of days ago I received a private message on Instagram (@wgtncheapeats) from FoodNinja asking if I would be interested in a partnership. I replied in the affirmative, stating that my reviews would still be 100% honest. They were happy with that and we finalised details the next day. Before we made anything official, I decided to place and order to check them out honestly. They have an app and a website ( https://www.foodninja.nz/ ). I downloaded the app but unfortunately it didn't work on my phone. I'm not sure whether the fault is with the app or my phone, which is old and creaky and has seen better days. Instead I try the website. It is easy to navigate, clean design and works just fine. The background is red, which, acc...

Lemongrass and Chilli Chicken was the first Vietnamese dish I had ever tried in New Zealand (I have dim recollections of a Vietnamese meal in Hong Kong, but that was literally a decade ago). Where's Charlie began as a humble stall in the Capital Markets and has grown to five locations at a rapid pace. I have never been to the Thorndon Quay branch but my mother offered to shout me lunch, and this is the nearest one to her work. I'm impressed. It's fancy, with wooden floors, high ceilings and verdant indoor plants everywhere. The kitchen is an open kitchen, and the staff don't seem to hate being there, contrary to some other establishments that shall remain nameless. And it's licensed! I wait for my perpetually late mother to arrive, and savour the aromas emanating from the kitchen, Oh, and they do breakfast too. Not my favourite meal of the day, but some of their offerings do look tempting. Maybe for a hungover Sunday brunch. My stomach is growling in anticipat...

As far as dollar sushi goes, TJ Katsu is one of the better ones despite being a chain. I used to frequently haunt the Manners Street branch when I was a student at culinary school, being on a budget and trying to watch my figure. Ha! Good luck with that at cooking school... I'm at the Courtney Place branch. This one is licensed and there is a row of sake vessels lining a high shelf, myriad colourful pieces of sushi lining the counter. I select four pieces of salmon and avocado. Unlike the precise rounds at California Sushi there are some bigger, messier end pieces so I opt for those as I love a bargain (blame my Lebanese heritage). Four pieces sets me back $4. I am asked if I want wasabi and ginger. I reply in the affirmative. TJs is very generous with the condiments, and the soy sauce at the table is the Kikkoman brand. There is music playing in the background, a mix of Japanese pop and easy listening. It's inoffensive but a little loud. I pile pickled ginger on a piece...

It's a glorious Wellington Sunday and that means one thing: Harbourside markets! I roll out of bed and stumble to the transformed parking lot and survey my options. My first choice, MexiCan is sadly not there this week, so I opt for the tried-and-true chicken sando from Rotisserie du Canard. They have been around since 2012 according to their Facebook page, and park up at Harbourside on a Sunday, Thorndon on a Thursday and Friday often and I have spotted them round Miramar. At $10 the chicken sandwich is one of the more affordable food truck options, and it is pretty filling. For $2 more you can get a duck sandwich, which I am dying to try, but I want to buy a plant too and my budget is limited. Harbourside Market is outdoors, so the ambience can vary from 1/10 to 10/10. Today it is a perfect 10. Tables laden with colourful produce abound, and there is a variety of food trucks to whet your appetite. As previous experience has taught me, the sandwich can be on the dry side so...

I'm hungry, broke and lazy so I head to my local chippie. After perusing the menu online I spot something intriguing. For $2.90 you can get a "paua fritter" or, for more more than double you can get a "Real Paua Fritter" (please stand up please stand up). The friendly chef is a bit puzzled by my request for one of each , but obliges. It is a cozy little place neighbouring a catering company and a cafe (that's a review for later). In the tiny waiting area there are two chairs, a drinks fridge stocking the coca cola range and that ubiquitous Seafood of New Zealand poster. It brings back memories of anticipation at my childhood fish and chip shop pouring over the various photos of aquatic life in the days before smartphones (also, my mother wouldn't give me 50 cents to play Mortal Kombat). Classic old-school kiwi entertainment. The chef assures me it will only take ten minutes. There are a large variety of deep-fried goodness to choose from, in...