Maranui Cafe

Love this place. Busy as it is, the service is always attentive and friendly. Their food is great, especially their fries and neat take on aioli. Good coffee too, with a wonderful view to wrap it up.
Pro tip — get there at opening and there will be others around but it won’t be crowded and you will have the run of the place.

Came here on a very busy day. Apparently Kiwis like their Dads and treat them for breakie on Father’s Day
Did you hear that kids, did you? Be nice to Dad at least once a year ;-).
Anyway as I mentioned it was very busy even at what I thought was the ungodly time of 7.30am (my kids are grown up so I have rediscovered what Sundays morning are for — keeping hangovers at bay.)
They told me it would be a 40 minutes wait but I can get a table. Great can now read newspaper get a cup of tea and hopefully give my poor head a chance to recover from last nights excess — which involved me drinking too much trying to impress a large chested lady called Hannah. Hannah managed to resist the charms of my drinking pre mating ritual and hence here alone.
It is cold this time of year but had motorbike gear so asked for a table outside. GET A TABLE OUTSIDE !
amazing views and listening to the ocean makes you feel almost like a normal person
The 40 minutes wait was actually only 20 minutes. Therefore I had to finish my other Sunday morning ritual getting a call from my ex explaining the many many (most of them justified) reasons on why we are no longer bound in wedlock. So I had the greatest of pleasure in cutting her off in mid sentence as breakfast had just arrived. Happy days
FYI I ordered the big bay breakie ($ 20) plus black pudding ($ 5). I was pretty much wowed the moment I saw it.
Normally places with view just really on the fact that people to stuff their faces and look at a beautiful view at the same time pretending to be at one with nature, or is that just me?
Poached Eggs perfect — I even liked the sun dried tomatoes I would come here for the breakie alone. But the views make it amazing. If you are in Wellington this a must.

Expect to find this classic Wellington café packed on the weekends. Decked out in a beachy-​theme, Maranui keeps things casual. And the location can’t be beat — nearly every table offers a surf-​side view. There’s brunch, lunch, and toasted sandwiches on the menu, along with coffee and sweet treats. My dining companion and I both ordered the mussels with cream sauce. The thick toasted bread served on the side was delicious. My one complaint was that two of the mussels I was served were unopened. My unscientific survey of the waitstaff came back with the advice not to consume them. Which makes me think that they shouldn’t have been served — best case scenario it’s a messy challenge to open them, worst case I get sick. Neither option is nearly as nice as being presented with a full plate of tasty, open seafood. Despite that, I’d recommend this popular spot for both locals and visitors. If you’re coming on a sunny weekend, just be prepared to wait.

One of the best places to eat in Wellington. The crowd says it all.
Fantastic array of food choices for all eaters. Great on a sunny day for brunch. Desserts are to die for. Worth the wait.

Fantastic food, comfortable setting and efficient friendly staff, despite the queues.
The Big Bay Breakfast was excellent. Highly recommend it.
Will definitely return.

This is a great spot. If you can get a table near the window, it has an amazing view of the bay. The food prices are average, about $ 17-​$ 20 for the meals. Food is good and service is great.
It’s always really busy is the only downside so sometimes the lines are really long and the wait for a table can be quite long.

My favourite place out of the city centre. Always worth the journey to get there — coffee, food, and huge windows over looking the ocean are amazing.
go off peak for the best tables: D

A hidden gem in wellingtons southern coastline. Master crafted breakfasts that only the skill of a breakfast minded chef can create. Poached eggs white and fluffy like clouds served on home baked sour dough bread and once penetrated yolks as golden as the best sunset marking a symbol of fine free range eggs. The manuka smoked bacon accompanies the eggs to bring a complete harmony of goodness. Honest prices for honest food all dished with a serve of great service. The building is cute, perky and charismatic with old surf life saving memorabilia and large oversized fish hanging from the walls tying in the beach and bay living. The wait time at the beginning is outweighed by the whole package of greatness. Next time your looking for your breakfast or brunch fix let the team at Maranui take you on a culinary journey filled with salivating happiness.

There’s a lot of hype about this place and it can get very busy, so I was hoping not to like it so much… but unfortunately I love this place!
The pancakes are perfect, with a generous amount of steamed fruit and yogurt. If you are lucky, you will get a seat looking out on the beach. The coffee is excellent and the cabinet food is great too.
Service is quick and friendly. To avoid the crowds go during the week or very early in the morning.
The owners of this place apparently also have another smaller café nearby which I’m planning to hunt down and try out.

One of my favorite brunch spots with a fantastic breakfast menu.
Can be crowded at times with a line out of the door on weekends, but my advice is to go when the weather is poor, which keeps the crowds at bay. Try any one of their milkshakes. The pancakes deluxe and big breakfasts are insanely good.
Service is fast and friendly.

Fresh food, good coffee, and a glass dessert case that had my mouth watering.
This little café can get quite crowded so be ready for a line but it’s totally worth it. I’m an American that came here with a small tour group traveling through NZ and our local Kiwi guide recommended it to us. While it has the standard breakfast items, their menu also offers an eccentric/​refreshing mix of flavors. I had the kumara/​pumpkin curry cakes, an orange/​date scone, and a cappuccino. The cakes came with this sweet chutney sauce and salsa. Ah it was just so freakin good. The eggs benedict seemed to be the popular item, a lot of my tour mates got that and every one was more than satisfied with their meals after a long night of dancing (happened to be there during the Sevens which was amazingly lucky!). I wish I could go again but I doubt this little American will be in kiwi central any time soon. But do yourself a favor and go!

The Maranui has quite the reputation and I can see why — delicious food, great décor, friendly staff and a spectacular view. The only thing that lets it down is its reputation… and subsequent popularity. The chances of getting a seat for a Saturday or Sunday brunch are slim and would involve a LOT of décor appreciation

Love going to Maranui when the waves are big or the sun is out. Its a great little surf café /​dinner that’s got some really amazing breakfast and some awesome views of lyall bay. It can get a bit busy at times, but they usually get you seated quickly and your food comes out fairly fast. Most of my mates swear by there milkshakes and I’m always a huge fan of there pancake stack with bacon. Really good eats if your in the area and def. worth a trip out to it if your looking for lunch slightly outside the city.

First of all Lyall Bay is in Wellington not Porirua but there seems to be something wrong with the qype google map. Secondly this place is amazing! It is on the top story of the old Maranui surfclub and is the only café right on the beach. Yummy fresh salads and cakes! Perfect to sit in the window seats on a cold day for a hot chocolate and watch the storms roll in!