Guide to drinking and dining in Wellington

Saturday
Everything on the menu at the Fork and Brewer is designed to go well with the beers they make onsite in big steel drums. They have a dedicated menu just for fries and favour hearty fare like goulash, chowder, burgers and ribs, perfect for lining your stomach before you take a swing at the 30 craft beer taps they have behind the bar.

Sunday
Save your Sunday lunch spot for the Harbourside Market. Locals flock here to buys big bags of fresh fruit and veg for the coming week, and they are joined by a veitable UN of food trucks, selling everything from Chilean hot pockets to chimney cakes, jerk chicken, dumplings and Dutch pancakes. 

Saturday
They use the word shack very loosely in NZ, because the Ortega Fish Shack may be a little kitchy, decked out with old nautical paintings, but it’s no slapped together establishment. This is the place to eat seafood in Wellington (do not skip the oysters) with a whole lot of excellent local wines for company.

Sunday
It’s definitely worth the cab ride out to the suburbs for a meal at the Salty Pidgin. The husband and wife team that run the kitchen and bar provide simple, instinctive cooking that’s all class. Perhaps you get a bowl of plump local mussels in the day’s broth, or a pieve of moki, pan-fried and topped with melting crayfish butter.

Saturday
Perch up at the solid timber bar at Ancestral for late night yakitori and whiskies, or nab a spot on the heated concrete seats outside in the courtyard for cosy al fresco drinks.

Sunday
And no visit to Wellington is complete without stopping into the lovely craft beer bar that the famed maverick brewers from Garage Projects have opened across the road from their brewery and tasting bar. This is where you’ll drink craft beer at it’s most creative.

Check out the great everyday fares to Wellington with Air New Zealand.