What a tremendous spot for a Saturday morning brunch. My preschooler and I occupied the window-seat bar-stools, where the windows were thrown wide open to the morning air.

My omelette had all the right flavours going on, with asparagus, feta, caramelized onions, and a rather stunning mystery thin-mayo drizzled over the green lettuce salad accompaniment. A very small slice of extremely tasty sourdough was enough to leave me replete, but not too full to polish off my daugthers mouth-watering crepes. She was thrilled with her nutella-filled crepes with strawberries and icecream AND cream. (So was I! Yum, and she left the blackberries for me.)

Also excellent was the coffee.

A big shout out too to the manager/owner? who provided us with lots of brilliant childrens’ picture books, and some clever little toys, and gave my daughter a Christmas teddy bear as a treat. Thanks!

Went here for lunch as had heard good things about the restaurant, and the menu looked reasonable with a number of dishes around $15. Despite the meals tasting perfectly okay, the restaurant looking beautiful, and friendly staff, however, we were somewhat disappointed. The cream of almond soup ($16) didn’t seem quite sufficient for the price as it arrived without bread, and I was only able to spot button mushrooms in the “trio of mushrooms” ($17). Perhaps the previous reviewers came for dinner rather than lunch?

We booked an Entree/Main dinner voucher deal for two and it was excellent value for money. Otherwise the entrees are around $17 and the mains around $27-30. We had the Gnocchi and the Duck breast as a main. The food was well presented and tasted delicious. The service was friendly and knew the menu well. We also liked the ‘Hemingway Cafe’ -like atmosphere. Overall a great evening.

Having just moved up from Christchurch we become aware of Ella. Having read the positive reviews we purchased the voucher.

As soon as we entered the restaurant we were impressed by the ambience of the surroundings, candlelight tables, great background music and a buzz of the people enjoying their meals and the atmosphere of the restaurant.

On arrival the greeting was friendly and attentive and we were given a choice of tables to sit at. The pate and french onion soup as entrees were divine, followed by fish of the day and duck. The staff were very knowledgeable of the wine list and the matching of our wines with the food was superb.

The steward was friendly, attentive and had a good sense of humour and a wonderful smile.

Thank your for the wonderful experience and we look forwarding to coming back with friends.

Had a very nice evening at Ellas on Valentines Day. The food, ambiance and most of the service was excellent. The portions were full for both the entrees and mains, well cooked and with great presentation and taste. The wait for the mains was a tad too long but when considering it was a busy night we graciously accepted the delay. We did not have dessert but those on other tables looked superb. The prices were such that we got great value. There are not enough of these smallish, affordable restaurant/bars in Auckland that are run by passionate front office and kitchen people. The service was mostly good excepting that the waiter was a little vague on information and did not respond to our questions in a timely manner and he had to be reminded some 20 minutes later that we were still awaiting answers to our serious questions re a specific food allergy. Another slight but very annoying problem we encountered was our choice of seating – in keeping with the heat of the night we chose outside seating and had to request inside seating after the couple on the table next to us decided to light up with the smoke wafting across our table which was only about 40cms away. Not pleasant when eating food. Overall dining at Ellas was a beaut experience and we hope it will be around a lot longer than its predecessors. Well done, keep it up!

great restaurant with a great feel and consistant food.. had the steak tartare and the beef cheeks. was a beautiful place to take my partner and enjoy a great meal with great service

What can I say? The whole evening was absolutely delightful. I have been to Ella several times over the last year and every time I have been, I have enjoyed it thoroughly.
I had heard that a new menu was coming out so went there on Friday evening to try it out with two of my girlfriends in tow.
The owner, Erwin, was charming and warm as always and service to our table was attentive, yet not intrusive.
I settled on the cured salmon as a starter – mmmm, melt in your mouth. Delicious! For my main I had the 10 hour lamb, which I had actually also tasted a couple of weeks ago at Ella, on National Roast Day. It did not disappoint – cooked to absolute perfection. I could have had lots more….
I tend to stick with the Wooing Tree Pinot Noir, but the waiter did tempt me to try another wine, which really complemented the lamb.
I didn’t have dessert on this occasion, but being a bit of a traditional girl, I always enjoy the rhubarb and apple crumble with vanilla ice cream. My mouth is watering just thinking about this meal – that, and I am hungry…. I might make my way to Ella’s Sunday roast – slow cooked pork shoulder with bacon fried sprouts and potato. Bon Appetit!

After hearing how wonderful Ella was my expectations were naturally high when I made my first and last visit.

My main was disappointing and extremely average and not at all deserving of it’s pricing.

I found the desserts also overpriced at $15.90 and inferior in both size and taste.

Given the now numerous offerings of fine bistro style restaurants to choose from in Auckland I shan’t be returning to nor recommending Ella.

I’ve had the pleasure of dining at Ella numerous times and felt that it’s about time I show my appreciation. Fantastic food, friendly staff and great service. Last night I began with the Waiheke oysters served with shallot vinaigrette – which I’m happy to say seem to frequent the specials board a lot. As a main I enjoyed a better than amazing duck ragout paired with a lovely Lamont Pinot.

Thanks so much Ella! Astonishing!

Looking forward to trying the brunch menu with my wife this weekend.

A fantastic hideaway from the chill of winter and a great spot to enjoy a glass of wine in the afternoon sun. The friendly and attentive team of staff made for a relaxed environment and an all-round enjoyable dining experience. If I could live on that calamari I would. I will be looking forward to my next visit.

We always love coming to Auckland for a holiday and when we saw Ella cafe and Lounge we had to go in, because it just looked so inviting, warm and dry! and we were not disappointed. The menu had lots to offer, I had some beautiful oysters from Waiheke to start and a perfectly cooked rib eye. My partner enjoyed the fish special of the day with a well executed risotto. The wine recommendation regarding our pinot was spot on.
The service was friendly and relaxed which made us feel right at home. Will definitely go again. I hear they do a fantastic Sunday roast!

We returned to Ella after dining here about six months ago. We both enjoyed our meals, they were fresh and light, you could taste the flavors. But the experience was let down in other areas. The portions seemed to have reduced since our last visit, or maybe it was our choices but a main and starter still left me a bit hungry which is very unusual, often a main alone is plenty for me and then I pick at my partners dessert.

Secondly the service was acceptable but nothing more no one was rude but neither was anyone attentive. When we asked for a recommendation for a big meaty red wine to go with our meal, the waiter first looked very very lost and then stammered a pinot noir, hmmmm, he needs some education in this arena. The red we finally chose came out in a white wine glass, basics you expect a restaurant to get right. In addition the pours were on the stingy side.

Overall the prices seemed to have gone up about 20% from our initial visit six months ago. From memory our mains were a touch over $30, desserts $15, and I can’t remember the starters. Note to everyone a bottle of water at Ella costs ten dollars, these little things can put you off.

Six months ago I would have given Ella three stars, but today only two. We did not feel that our patronage was that valued. I would probably eat here again if my dining companions really wanted to but would choose elsewhere if I was doing the choosing.

A friend and I recently had the pleasure of dining at Ella for the first time. The corn fritters and coffee we enjoyed for lunch were freshly made and delicious. No bulk buy salsa and reheats here! A delightful establishment with experienced, relaxed staff and a warm European environment. Irwin and Larry have put much thought into the detail, and our happy experience was rounded off with a gift of tiny, melt-in-your mouth sweet pastries. Would definitely recommend a visit, day or night!