{"id":533061,"date":"2026-07-19T02:38:09","date_gmt":"2026-07-19T02:38:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/533061\/"},"modified":"2026-07-19T02:38:09","modified_gmt":"2026-07-19T02:38:09","slug":"aucklands-best-under-20-eats-according-to-chefs-and-culinary-students","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/533061\/","title":{"rendered":"Auckland\u2019s best under $20 eats, according to chefs and culinary students"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hugo\u2019s Bistro \u2013 chef Alex Llewellyn and culinary student Fable Karimipour<\/p>\n

Llewellyn: Sushi-Ya Sushi, Birkenhead. I get an avocado nigiri, a mushroom nigiri, and a couple of little chicken katsu rolls. I\u2019m against salmon farming practices so I no longer buy, or cook with, salmon.<\/p>\n

Karimipour: Xi\u2019an Food Bar. Personally, my favourite item is the hand-pulled noodles with braised beef for only $15.50. It\u2019s an incredible portion for the price with tender meat and tasty broth, and the added benefit of being able to see your noodles pulled before you makes the whole experience feel fancy for cheap. At such a good price and with such incredible flavours, it\u2019s my go-to for a winter night. My only fear is that by writing about it, I won\u2019t be able to get a seat.<\/p>\n

\"DumplingsDumplings in spicy sauce from a crowd favourite, Eden Noodles Cafe.<\/p>\n

Advieh \u2013 chef Gareth Stewart and culinary student Alisa Jantharasaman<\/p>\n

Stewart: Pork and chive dumplings, chilli sauce, extra hot from Eden Noodles, Commercial Bay.<\/p>\n

Jantharasaman: Master Pig Pork Rice (multiple locations) does a really good beef brisket noodle soup for $16.80 and for an extra $2 you can get unlimited soft drink refills. It\u2019s a great deal, especially because the portions are generous.<\/p>\n

Onemata \u2013 chef Rob Hope-Ede and culinary student Kasmira Moodley<\/p>\n

Hope-Ede: The $15.50 hand-pulled noodles with cumin lamb from Xi\u2019an Food Bar in Northcote.<\/p>\n

Moodley: Ajisen Ramen in East Auckland. It\u2019s $25, but I like getting their beef kimchi spicy ramen.<\/p>\n

Depot \u2013 chef Al Brown and culinary student Maggie Bullock<\/p>\n

Brown: \u201cMousetrap\u201d (Swiss melt) bagel, at Best Ugly Bagels \u2013 $10.90.<\/p>\n

Bullock: Eden Noodles\u2019 noodles with beef mince and long beans (spicy). This is my go-to lunch when I\u2019m at uni and getting a large size usually means I can get an extra snack from it later. (Multiple locations including Wellesley St E).<\/p>\n

Soul Bar and Bistro \u2013 chef Gavin Doyle and culinary student Alexandria Clarke<\/p>\n

\" Butter chicken pie from Beabea’s Bakery \u2013 best paired with a canele and a coffee, according to one top Auckland chef.<\/p>\n

Doyle: I\u2019m a very happy man after a quick stop at Beabea\u2019s Bakery, Westmere. A butter chicken pie, a canele and a flat white. Hard to beat.<\/p>\n

Clarke: Definitely the souvlaki chicken kebab wrap with aioli and sweet chilli from Kebabs on Maskell (St Heliers). An insanely delicious kebab packed full of flavour for only $17, or you can get the rice meal version which honestly is big enough to be a meal for two, for only $20.<\/p>\n

\"AA selection of dishes from Kebabs on Maskell, as reccomended by “next on the pass” Auckland Restaurant Month participant, Alexandria Clarke. Photo \/ @kebabs_on_maskell<\/p>\n

Ahi \u2013 chef Ben Bayly and culinary student Georgia Breeze<\/p>\n

Bayly: Commercial Bay\u2019s HNT (\u201chammer and tongs\u201d) Kitchen. A great variety of [gluten-free] meals and snacks under $20.<\/p>\n

\" HNT Kitchen in Commercial Bay is chef Ben Bayly’s pick for an under $20 eat.<\/p>\n

Breeze: The Panda Rolling Running Pot on Lorne St. My favourite place when it\u2019s winter or I have a university break. It\u2019s a hot pot-style train with tonnes of different yummy ingredients and all for really great prices. My favourite combination is the mushroom broth with beef slices and bok choy. Such a great comfort meal.<\/p>\n

Esther \u2013 chef Ellie Corfe and culinary student Chamee Ratnayake<\/p>\n

Corfe: One of my favourite spots is Elliott Stables. It has a great selection of under $20 eats. My favourite is the Angry Bird bao from Bao Baby Bao.<\/p>\n

\"AA Vietnamese classic from Newmarket’s Mrs 3 Banh Mi. Photo \/ @mrs3.banhmi<\/p>\n

Ratnayake: Auckland has so many great affordable eats. O & Bowl (Newmarket and New Lynn) would probably be my pick \u2013 their small donburi bowls are around $15, and the quality is incredible. Mrs 3 Banh Mi (Newmarket) is a very close second.<\/p>\n

Restaurant Month, organised by Auckland\u2019s Heart of the City and focussed on the central city dining scene, starts on August 1. For a full list of events, visit heartofthecity.co.nz<\/p>\n

Kim Knight writes about food. She has a Masters in Gastronomy from AUT and her current under $20 favourite is a shitake mushroom rice paper roll and a cup of pho from Hello Mister.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Hugo\u2019s Bistro \u2013 chef Alex Llewellyn and culinary student Fable Karimipour Llewellyn: Sushi-Ya Sushi, Birkenhead. I get an…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":533062,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[2327,3225,95,51,3952,3390,6326,53988,85817,22503,7011,7490,156,21409,111,139,69,10270,11584,3767,165,61,8238,540],"class_list":["post-533061","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-2327","tag-according","tag-and","tag-auckland","tag-aucklands","tag-best","tag-biggest","tag-chefs","tag-culinary","tag-dining","tag-dollar","tag-eats","tag-entertainment","tag-names","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-restaurants","tag-stretch","tag-students","tag-their","tag-to","tag-under","tag-where"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/533061","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=533061"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/533061\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/533062"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=533061"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=533061"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=533061"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}