The Store

Another great brunch place in Britomart. We had to wait a bit to be seated but it was worth it to sit outside and enjoy the weather. The menu is pretty similar to the restaurant next door so I wonder if they’re owned by the same person. Nonetheless, we got the gnocchi and ricotta pancakes. The gnocchi were pan fried, smaller in size and topped with arugula, pine nuts, and egg and some other items. I didn’t think this wools be a breakfast food but it was a great meal and not heavy like pasta typically is. The ricotta pancakes are amazing!!! They’re beyond flavorful and fluffy and everything you’d imagine in this type of dish.
We also had the lemon dessert and it wasn’t that great… didn’t taste that fresh.

This is my lunch staple. I super love their smoothies. If you’re trying it for the first time, get the ones with plum. Plum, yoghurt and honey or the plum, almond and flaxseed — both are really good even if a little pricey at $ 7 for a small glass. You feel good about yourself after knowing there’s superfoods in your drink.
I’ve tried their pastries, too. I had the apricot jelly filled doughnut yesterday. It was a little over the top. Fortunately, that’s how I like my jelly doughnut. If you bite into one, expect that jelly will be all over your chin in a minute or two. Definitely a fun eat. Pastries range between $ 3 to $ 3.50, so a pretty good deal.
Too bad they don’t have a lot of seating space, but you can always plunk down on the grass over at the Atrium across the street and enjoy lunch among the afternoon crowd. BTW, there’s usually a long line in this store because I heard their sandwiches are excellent — although I have yet to try it.

Great weekend breakfast, very nice staff. Good food and ambiance, coffee spot on. A bit of a wait to get a seat but well worth it. Give it a go…

The line is always extra long during lunch so when I saw it wasn’t that busy I went in. They have great assortment of fresh salads. I had the grilled eggplant salad and it was just delicious and very filling despite it having no meat It’s abit pricey doh especially their desserts
Bought a custard sugar donut as a treat but didn’t really enjoy it as much as I thought I would. Custard was flavourless and the donut itself was salty.

I get my morning coffees from the takeaway part of The Store, and have had lunch from the sit in and takeaway.
This café is consistently good. Always has a great food and the coffee is spot on nearly every morning. When I came in for a sit down lunch I was really impressed with the table service and also the food that came out. This wouldn’t really be a great place for a work meeting but definitely a lunch-​date or a place to grab a yummy sandwich before heading out for your lunchtime walk.
Staff are always really friendly, no matter how busy they are — and they are always busy!

The Store is my go to for the morning coffee and breakfast on the way into the office. So many diffident breakfast options I never get bored. I would recommend the soup on a cold wintery day, hearty filling normally packed with veggies you feel like even thou you are eating out at least it is jam packed with nutrition. Friendly staff that are quick and efficient.

Failed to find one listed coffee shop so came here since we knew where it is and love the Kohi branch. Takeaway selection not as extensive and view not as glorious but coffee just as good and the pecan tart and shortbread slice sure hit the spot. Noticed the map location is not correct. Will try to fix.

The Store is a great place to brunch.
Somewhat traditional French fair, the croque Madame is delicious!
They bake their own bread onsite, the croissants are so flaky and the cronuts from the other side where you can get takeaway are the best I’ve had so far.
Annoying thing is the small tables if you order lots of food!

Just dropped in for coffee. Great bustling and funky ambiance. But the proof really is in the pudding — or the coffee! I’m a bit if a caffeine diva and this place delivers! The barista was on fire. Jovial and stopped to chat and shoot the breeze when he delivered my caffeinated goodness. Another Hip Group success story!

What a pleasant lunchtime experience.
We arrived at 1:25 for lunch, and wanted to sit outside. There was a short wait for an outside table, so we perused the menu and waited inside while we ordered our drinks. Five minutes later we were given a table in the shade per our request.
Staff was very accommodating in allowing me to try two different red wines, before making my final selection.
My wife & I both ordered the chicken salad: mine with extra anchovies, $ 20/​ea. This was a generous amount of various greens with shredded chicken, w/​radish and other assorted ingredients. It was devoured with pleasure (see photo).
Our wines by the glass were an sauv bl, $ 8, and a montepulciano, $ 9; both excellent.
Afterwards, our server was kind to walk us over to their sister restaurant, Milse, specializing in desserts, a few feet away (see photo).
I look forward to returning.

The Store is one my favourite places to go for brunch in Auckland. They have the right mix of an interesting menu, good service and it’s not usually too hard to get a table.
I was a huge fan of their slab bacon (HUGE FAN!) but sadly they have taken it off the menu. It was life-​changing bacon. They said they had changed to a thinner, crispy bacon as that is what the people want. Not this person! Luckily you can still buy it from them ($ 32/​kg) to take home as it comes their own butchery. Phew. Bacon aside their menu is delicious. My favourites are the bacon, pork & garlic sausages, portobello mushrooms, potato galette and poached eggs and the Smoked pork sandwich; sauerkraut, emmental, campagne, agria crisps (although this wasn’t on the menu last time I went it’s still on their online menu). They also make their own sausages which are delicious.
Their portions can be very generous depending on what you order. I am always happy and full and can’t think I could possibly eat another bite, but then I go up to pay and see the gelato…
After my last visit I discovered the takeaway side of The Store and popped in for a look. Everything looked fantastic, definitely a great takeaway lunch option next time in the area.

A welcome addition to the Britomart scene, The Store has brought a happy medium between café lunches and interesting takeaway options for the many workers in the area. The ethos of The Hip Group (behind Ortolana, also in Britomart) of having locally grown, mainly organic produce is appealing and reflected beautifully through the quality of the meals.
On the café side it is hard to guarantee a seat, and they are mainly outdoors so it is definitely more appealing in summer. They also have a delicious range of gelato, which again lends itself to the warmer months.
I love the takeaway side, on the street corner. To the untrained eye, you’d have no idea what’s inside. To walk in and discover a small shop area and find that a majority of the space between there and the café is a kitchen for all their baked goods is somewhat surprising. Love that this happens in the middle of Britomart! Definitely a unique situation.
The takeaway side offers all sorts of baked goods — bread, pies, sandwiches, tarts, pastries etc. all of the most delicious quality. Some really refreshing different flavour options on offer. By the time you get a savoury option and a sweet treat, then add one of their freshly made juices, things can get a little pricey. But it’s all worth it for breaking up the monotony of boring lunches in your work break!

Came here for lunch and got to dine-​in and order from their daytime menu. Had the brown turkey figs, yoghurt, raw honey, walnut– which was a beautifully simply presented breakfast/​brunch-​type meal. Was delicious– fell in love with all the components and was exactly what I needed. Loved that they used raw honey– which was so much more tasty than standard honey, the figs were very interesting and was a nice contrast between the crunchy walnut and creamy yoghurt!
They also have a great cabinet selection/​takeaway menu which I was eyeing up– especially their gelato– which would be perfect on a summer day.
They have a great outdoor seating area with straw hats for customers to wear to protect from the sun which was neat!
Would love to come back and try their savoury meals and their smoothies/​other drinks.

The idea of sitting outdoors to dine in the midst of winter was enough to send this Melburnian in to a spin. Really? Eating outside? Are you bonkers?
Clearly the Auckland winter isn’t as harsh as my home town and it was actually a delight to sit in the winter sunshine, the warmth of the outdoor heaters on our back, while scoffing plates of lush greenery and protein. I really love that so much of the produce served here comes from The Store’s own garden and that the daily greens change depending on what has been picked that morning.
This is a great option for a fresh and seasonal meal accompanied by people watching

A brilliant option for lunch if you are Downtown! The Store has several to-​go options — sandwiches, cakes, wraps — which you can pick up from their takeaway window on Gore Street or grab a table in their courtyard in the pavilions.
As with all the Hip Group restaurants the menu focus on fresh, seasonal produce, a lot of which is sourced from their own farm. Today I tried their version of a chicken caesar, which has kale instead of romaine. It worked really well and dressing was perfect — just the right amount of anchovy and garlic.
It’s also worth mention that they have takeaway breakfast options including poached eggs on a tomato ragu with croutons — perfect for those on the go!

This is less of a «Store review» and more a «cronot review»
The cronot was the push for me to check out the Store’s bakery side… The sweet sickly smell of icing and sweet pastries had me melting before my foot followed my nose inside the store.
On the counter several trays of tall cronots (croissant meet doughnut) with thick glossy icing awaited to follow me home.
handing over a crisp $ 20 bill for four cronots I was salivating…
I did refrain from stuffing my face for fear of crumbs and frosting all though my car. But it wasn’t easy!
Pouring a big cup of coffee I made the mistake of trying to cut it… not with a butter knife not even with a serrated knife… Just bite! yes you’re gonna get a face full of frosting but its worth it… I promise! Its so light and crispy and the bottom layer is almost translucent butter and sugar flake.
I think I’m in love.

I had heard about the The Store’s infamous cronuts at their Takapuna Beach store– but I had no idea they had a fabulous restaurant menu to offer as well.
We popped in for a quick breakfast before work after an early morning gym start and were greeted by a lovely maitre de, who welcomed us to pick a table in the cool morning air. The tables were set with sparkling water (not really my forte– but we were ordering a smoothie and coffee so it wasn’t a problem).
We ordered a Dairy Free Banana and Spiralina smoothie and a Mocha. The smoothie was represhing and tasty, and it as lovely to have a dairy free option on offer, and the coffee was smooth and of a good size. Would happily stop in for a takeaway coffee when in the area.
For breakfast we both ordered the eggs benedict, one with bacon, the other with cured salmon and we shared a side of wild mushrooms. Served on a less than impressive «english muffin/​round piece of toast», the hollandaise and perfectly cooked eggs were the saving graces of these plates. The yolks were popping and the sauce was tangy and fresh– just as it should be. The mushrooms were a fantastic flavour addition– but it would be good if the eggs benny had be served with some kind of vege/​greenery as well (if anything to compensate for the hard «bread» it as served upon.
Reasonable CBD pricing, quiet fresh air dining with a decent tasting holladaise– this place is definitely a safe stop for your early morning breakfast meeting or on the go morning brunch. Would love to come back and try the cauliflower or beetroot salads listed on their all day menu.

I had seen The Store while walking around Britomart but never got close enough to find out what kind of store it was… Being close to Lululemon and Yoobee (RIP), guessing it was a café/​bakery was not an easy task! So I have to thank my fellow Unilocalers for writing tempting reviews about this place. So one lunch time I ventured on the side of the Gore street entrance and got myself a ham and cheese baguette sandwich. This is not a sandwich for a hungry man but coupled with one of the sweet treats like the Portuguese custard tart, the French Cannelé or a macaron, it makes for a yummy lunch!
I was reasonable that day though and chose to try one of their homemade lemonade, rhubarb and apple. There was also feijoa and lime and regular lemonade on that day. I’m not sure if the choice changes every day (but I will try to check that out just for you and will update my review accordingly!). My lemonade was the perfect refreshment: it tasted like a dessert without being too sweet and I am not sure how big that cup was but it was not small. Really fair for the price I think, and if you have read some of my reviews you must know by now that I always love a fair price!
I have already converted a co-​worker to The Store and will no doubt go back there soon to try one of their soups or quiches… Virginie! Virginiiiiie!
See? They’re already calling my name!
***** Cronut update!
Since I wrote this review, I have been to the Store numerous times and they now have a range of cronuts (or do they call them cronots there?): deep fried croissant pastry covered with toppings such as chocolate and almonds, chocolate and coconut and coffee and almond. Having been a Loaf cronut addict for the past few weeks, I wanted to give a try to the Store’s ones…
Unfortunately we were disappointed. No I haven’t started using «we» instead of «I» but I am referring to 2 of my co-​workers who shared the cronut with me. We found the topping did not add much to the cronut and the cronut itself was very oily (not buttery… oily, like when something is fried but the oil is not hot enough and the pastry soaks up the oil…). Unlike the Loaf cronut, those ones do not have a filling inside (a bit closer to a croissant than a donut in this respect). I do appreciate the fact that they are selling their own creation rather than being a supplier of someone else’s pastries so despite the fact that I do not like the cronuts, the Store is not losing any star with me.

I went into The Store today for an iced coffee. I’m not usually an iced coffee drinker, but I thought considering the day was ridiculously sunny and warm, that it would be a good opportunity to check out the relatively new to Britomart establishment, and try something new.
It was pretty damn good — they make their iced coffee with espresso gelato so the thing is like a bloody milkshake. It tasted amazing but I’m sure the fat content was through the roof. My friend had an affogato and that looked pretty amazing too. I say friend, but really I was having a meeting with this person so I didn’t know them well enough to ask to try it which kind of sucked, but I guess that gives me a reason to go back.
On a side note, these people next to us ordered a bowl of chips and they looked awesome — all hand cut and golden fried and shit. I will be trying the food next time. In terms of service, the waiter was friendly and genuinely nice and I felt like he wanted to be there. Helped that he pretty cute too.

The Store makes a truly wonderful addition to the Britomart Precinct. One of my Britomart favourites, the store has two entrances, from Gore Street which is the nip in and grab a gourmet baguette and coffee and The Pavilions entrance which is for the bistro. This side is for when you have more time to sit and enjoy the menu offerings and coffee, amazingly good coffee. The coffee beans used at The Store are Allpress.
The service here is beyond amazing, as soon as you step into the courtyard you are seated and within seconds sparkling water appears (yes sparkling) The Store has a ‘real food’ philosophy which is another reason why I like it so much. The menus are very much grower to plate and much of what you see on the menu comes from the owners orchards and farm land. I like coming here for breakfast, a plate of fresh, slightly chilled fruit and honeycomb, delicious. The last time I came my breakfast buddy ordered the poached nectarines with granola and yoghurt, what a way to start the day! The Store also produces on site, award winning sorbet and gelato. It is heaven in a cup … it all is actually.