January 2014
La Cigale
This fabulous French-themed market is open every Saturday and Sunday morning, and we went every weekend! Growers bring produce from all over New Zealand, but French food, cheese and baked goods are featured. We’d start by getting cappuccinos from the truck and picking up a couple of croissants while the coffees were being prepared. We’d then have our little breakfast under a nearby tree.
Afterwards, we’d peruse the food tables which always offered samples of whatever they were selling. We’d buy some goodies plus a selection of French cheeses and a baguette to bring home for the night’s dinner. This sort of thing is fun in a box for us, and this market alone would be reason to live in Auckland! (Below, a few photos; click to enlarge and scroll through.)
Parnell
La Cigale market happens to take place in Auckland’s most charming neighborhood, Parnell. Especially pretty is Parnell Road lined with brick-paved courtyards and cottages full of quaint shops, cafes, and galleries. Not surprisingly it’s a pretty wealthy neighborhood, so we’d have to win big in the lottery to buy our cottage here and make weekend trips to the French Market before taking our dogs to play in the dog park. No, not in the cards for us, but a person can dream!
Elliott Stables
This downtown “dining village” is housed on the ground floor of a historic building. The entrance is through stable-like doors off a small street. Once inside, there’s a sky-lit, stone-paved lane that serves as a courtyard for several restaurants, all of which will bring food to these central tables. This allows customers to pick and choose courses from whatever restaurants they choose, a pretty cool idea, but the real attraction is the moody historic atmosphere. Unfortunately we never managed to eat here, but we passed through a few times and always loved it. If we ever get that cottage in Parnell, we’ll make this a regular spot for dinner when it would be even more moody and atmospheric.
Victoria Park Market
This cluster of historic buildings was saved from demolition by public protest. Now it’s been converted into an area of shops and restaurants, recently opened and rather quiet when we visited, but I imagine it’s fairly lively now with over 40 shops and restaurants. When we checked it out, we found a great gelato shop and were charmed by the butterfly garden planted along the outer wall of the building.
These aren’t the only pockets of charm in Auckland, but these are the ones we found that appealed to us most. Maybe someday we’ll get back there and hunt down a few more. -Cyndi
