• 5
• Pleasant every time

The Wise Cicada an unlikely refuge in its Newmarket neighbourhood. The busy, car-dominated streets, big-box stores and mainstream retail of the area make this vegan cafe and organic non-veg grocer (and bookstore, and healing center) a bountiful urban oasis. The strong community sense around this institution is unusual and wonderful for Auckland. You might think that it’s to do with the alternative-minded adjoining bookstore or the pricey but high quality grocery section, or that the staff are knowledgeable and responsive to specialised diets, but my personal theory is that it’s been embraced because the food rocks. You can come to this place and be served a range of hot prepared meals from a slow-cooker, plus there’s a breakfast buffet and a generous menu of hot drinks, but what stands out is the salad bar. The selection is dynamic - it changes with the seasons, what’s available and what’s sprouted that day. It’s always fresh, always colourful, and brings juicy new flavours to even the most experienced vegan foodie. So if you want to experience the Wise Cicada’s glory then get a large (really large) selection of salads, sit at a long table, eat slowly and let yourself fall into a nearby conversation. It’s a very social cafe (especially for NZ) with frequent meetup groups, friendly regular characters, and occasional live musicians. You won’t struggle to find someone to eat dessert with, and despite my best intentions I don’t think I’ve ever left the Wise Cicada without dessert. Today I had a raw German-style chewy chocolate cake, last week I had a decadent raw cheesecake, but my usual is the chewy coconut-chocolate rough speckled with flecks of tangy dried fruit. If you like the Wise Cicada (the new-age sense is not for everybody) then this is one place you can return to for a further exploration of what’s on offer.