Where to eat in New Plymouth – an insider's guide

Winemaker Jules van Costello shares intel on New Plymouth’s tastiest dosa, cardamom morning buns, (certified) Neapolitan pizza and much, much more.

Ngāmotu New Plymouth is the land of many charms. There’s the bewitchingly rugged west coast, Taranaki maunga glancing over the city, the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery’s undulating stainless steel facade, Len Lye’s kinetic sculptures, a thriving surf scene, striking architecture, artsy retail, and a heap of surrounding natural beauty. It’s also a great place to wine and dine, says winemaker Jules van Costello.

Van Costello, the founder and winemaker behind wine and vermouth producer Known Unknown, moved from Wellington to New Plymouth with his wife and eight-year-old daughter in 2020, relocating the business there the following year. 

Their family has since grown to include a four-year-old son, and over the past six years, van Costello has become ever-more involved in the local food scene in his adopted home. He has worked on Feastival (a twice-yearly food festival), The Taste of Taranaki Map (showcasing a range of food and drink producers that travellers to the region can visit) and is currently the chair of the Farmers Market Taranaki Trust. “I love Ngāmotu and Taranaki and really feel at home here,” he says.

He’s recently launched ABC, the Aotearoa Bitters Company, which makes hand-blended botanical cocktail bitters made with premium natural ingredients, while also working as a digital marketing consultant for a number of wine businesses around the country.

Read on to learn what Van Costello thinks should be on your culinary radar in New Plymouth.

Three words (other than vibrant) that sum up the food in New Plymouth: Connected, diverse, underrated.

Everyone has a dining out pet peeve. Mine is: Not having good, interesting, non-alcoholic options. I think it’s disrespectful to the growing number of diners that either don’t drink (or are just not drinking tonight). House-made sodas (for example) are such a high-margin product too, so not having good non-alcoholic drinks is also just leaving money on the table.

The local dish I crave most: The sausage roll from Coronation Bakery, which is one of the best bakehouse places locally. I’m a sausage roll person, not a pie guy. Not that I'd say no to a pie.

The best restaurant in New Plymouth is: Black Sand in Ōakura

Why I love Black Sand: The food is stunning. They make some of the best pizza in New Zealand. They are one of three spots in the country certified by Associazione Verace Pizza napoletana, AVPN  (The True Neapolitan Pizza Association) – along with Farina in Auckland and Pizza Pomodoro in Wellington. When Matt, who is the chef and owner, took over he started introducing some more relaxed non-pizza options and the food is always super seasonal, super delicious and really interesting. It's also a kid-friendly place – I tend to hate taking kids to nice restaurants, but it's a place where kids feel welcome.

My go-to order is: Pane fritto to start – they basically just get pizza dough, deep fry it and serve it with the most amazing parmesan and garlic spread. We usually get a pizza or two as well. This is usually whatever the special is because their special pizzas are absolutely fantastic. And then a couple of their “bistro dishes” to share – they’re always really, really good.

When I’m craving something cheap and cheerful I head to: Liardet Street Projects. It’s this little spot in the middle of town with five or six food trucks. All of them are excellent but it's just such a nice place to chill out, have a beer and have some food. Especially when the weather's nice.

The most underrated local gem is: The sandwiches at Rose’s Deli which is a recent-opening. They’re absolutely fantastic. Or, Volcano View which is in Egmont Village. It's super lovely out there (especially in summer).

Celebrating with a group? Book a table at: Snug Lounge. It’s just a really nice vibe, with lots of space. The food is delicious, it’s sort of Asian fusion. It’s in a really lovely courtyard that shares a space with three other businesses that are owned by the same group. It’s chill.

Pub or bar of choice: The Hour Glass is an amazing wine bar with great food as well.

The BYO I keep going back to: Arranged Marriage which is an Indian restaurant serving Keralan cuisine in the middle of town. We’re not vegetarians, but my wife and I will often go there for their vegetarian food because their vegetarian food is phenomenal. Their dosa is amazing. Like not amazing for New Plymouth, just amazing full stop.

For a late-night food fix you’ll find me at: If you've had a little bit too much to drink, there’s a really good kebab truck that sets up in the right in the middle of town, sort of at the nexus of all the different pubs. Occasionally if I'm working late or have been out, I will get a cheeky kebab (either chicken or falafel, with garlic yoghurt, chilli and hummus) on the way home. 

Got visitors from out of town? I’m taking them to: Either Black Sand, which I mentioned earlier. Or, Shining Peak Brewing which is an excellent brewery and really great restaurant in the middle of town.

An ideal date spot would be: My date spot for my wife and I is a little cafe in Ōakura called Dawn. We pop in for a coffee or something if the kids are with their grandparents or if we have a day off during the week.

New Plymouth’s best… 

Breakfast: Monica’s Eatery, which is right next to the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery. They just do breakfast really, really well. On their breakfast menu there’s always a bunch of classics as well as some more interesting options. It’s also a beautiful room – it feels more sophisticated than New Plymouth should be (in a good way). 

Coffee: Buttercup on Govett [Avenue] for a flat white or filter coffee. It's a brand new place which is very much in the suburbs of New Plymouth. The guys who have it also own a cafe in town so they set it up to service a more suburban part of town. They have amazing sourdough, really interesting delicious pastries, and of course, delicious coffees.

Sandwich: Rose’s Deli, hands down. The fried chicken one is especially amazing.

Noodles: The crispy pork pad thai from Thai Delight.

Pie: Coronation Bakery.

Fish and chips: Rumpty’s Fine Foods. It’s really solid. I think my wife used to go there when she was a kid. It’s been there forever. You can kind of tell by looking at the menu and how many times they’ve had to adjust the prices. My order is always crumbed fish and chips, because I know my daughter is going to eat at least half of my crumbed fish.

And the best place to unwrap and eat them is: Ngāmotu Beach. Mostly because the beaches on the other side of town can get pretty windy.

Bread: Billow. It’s a cool little bakery in a shipping container along the main drag. Their "chad" sourdough is fantastic. 

Baked treat: Billow again, for their cardamom morning bun. 

For a serious sweet tooth, head to: Come to the Taranaki Farmers’ Market. We have some really good sweet food vendors. So the doughnuts from Baked by Blanche are very, very popular. He’s based in Hāwera and he does the Whanganui on Saturday and the New Plymouth market on Sunday. There’s also this fantastic young cook who has started bringing cinnamon rolls to the market. I am a sucker for a cinnamon roll.

The place to go if you want to feel virtuous/ healthy: Wild Pear Kitchen is a plant-based cafe in the middle of town. They’ve just started doing Saturday morning coffee raves with djs and music. They’re also really cool people.

A splurge that’s worth it: An all-stops pulled out dinner at Shining Peak Brewing.

The dairy with the best lolly selection: Highlands Local Dairy. They have these really delicious snails made by Mayceys and they are so good. They are what I will buy a little $2 bag of. If you put an open bag of lollies in front of me it will definitely disappear so a $2 bag is very much my go-to.

A little local treat that always cheers me up: The sausage roll I mentioned earlier, or coffee at a local roastery: Ozone, Escape, Proof and Stock are all excellent.

My favourite grocery shop: The Waitara Bin Inn. It’s fun to go out there and grab a bunch of stuff. They have some really unique things and I think they're about the only place you can get nice cut cheese locally. 

For the best produce, I stop in at: Either the Taranaki Farmers’ Market or Crazy Pumpkin who have a few spots around Taranaki and Whanganui. Most of the vegetables they sell in store they grow themselves or are locally grown. Also, their specials are incredible which is great because it means you're eating in season and not spending a chaotic amount of money to eat good food.

A perfect place to linger over a drink: The Hour Glass. It’s got such a lovely vibe.

My favourite local hospo personality: Jenna, the owner of The Hour Glass. She has been so supportive of us with our business and is just such a supporter of small producers from the region, as well as around the country.

For outstanding people watching, go to: Ozone’s New Plymouth Roastery Cafe. It’s very busy so people come and go but it’s the place that people go to when they want to be seen doing business together. 

The place I’m most likely to bump into someone I know: Probably Shining Peak Brewery.

The place I go to avoid bumping into anyone I know: Haukai Bistro and Bar, which is the restaurant at the Novotel. I’ve been to a few things there and the food is really good but hotel restaurants are always a little bit more anonymous.

A local spot I wish we could bring back from the dead is: State Pasta was an epic little pasta bar which closed in 2022. It’s left such a gap, and there’s nothing else quite like it.

A restaurant I would love to relocate to New Plymouth: Speaking of pasta bars, I’d love somewhere like Pici in Auckland or 1154 in Wellington to open in New Plymouth. I love a pasta bar where you can go and spend a decent amount and have a really nice meal, but you can also just pop in and spend a little bit of money for a simple but really delicious bowl of food.

The place I return to again and again:  Shining Peak Brewery. It's a great brew pub. The beers are some of the best in New Zealand. It kind of doesn't matter why you’re going, whether it’s just for a beer, or even for a full meal, it's always going to work. Unlike some other breweries, I really like that they’ve created their beers to suit the regional palate without compromising on quality. So, you can go with your granddad or your weird uncle and there's a good lager that they’ll like. They used to make a Taranaki draft which I think they still do once in a while. The beer is still really good without having to be cloudy or crazy (even though they do those beers too). It’s a place that suits any person or any occasion.

Why I love eating in New Plymouth: I live here and I love living here. It’s a fun little city. I love taking friends from outside the region to eat around New Plymouth because people are always blown away at the quality of almost everything. Like except for a pasta bar, we have almost everything else you could ask for. And people are doing stuff as good as anywhere else in New Zealand. The coffee roasteries I mentioned make excellent coffee, Black Sand is making some of the best pizza in the country, there’s award-winning breweries, there’s just so much happening here.