Ella Cafe and Lounge

Ella is really taken for granted I think when it comes to Ponsonby dining choices. I hadn’t heard of it for years even though I lived just around the corner from it. I went there with some work friends and couldn’t believe how awesome it was.
First thing that striked me was their awesome French/​European feel. It’s a long building with a huge bar and wine bottles everywhere. Because we were quite a big group we booked out the top story and it was amazing. It felt as if we were dining in someone’s beautiful European home.
I had the Pork Belly and it was A-​MAZING. You can’t really go wrong with this dish and they so did it justice. The service was really awesome too, top notch.

Ella Café and lounge has a name that beckons you to it, at least that’s what she did to me.
I was happy to spend a birthday lunch here, in need of a brekkie strong enough to awaken the sun in me, I was happy to see that Ella’s Breakfast was large enough to fill the gap in my stomach.
Nicely seated into the back of the cosy café, the décor has a uniqueness about it, which screams out style. I felt very happy to sit and sip a latte on a busy Saturday.
My brekkie was superb, just the right portion of everything, and tasty as anything.
My Coffee was silky and creamy smooth, and the service was pleasant and warming to match.

Restaurateur Erwin Zimmit was nominated for Metro’s Restaurant Personality of the Year a few years back, and it’s easy to see why. He’s pretty much always at Ella — his little restaurant baby — talking to customers, making coffees, suggesting wine matches for meals and being an all-​round nice guy. He’s made a business out of providing friendly, familiar service to regulars and first-​timers alike, and he does a damn good job of it.
The team at Ella are always innovative with their menus. I remember the first time I went there seeing a sign offering up a meal of skate. «Let them eat skate?» I joked, thinking it was some sort of awful rollerskating joke, but it turned out that skate is stingray! I tried it and it was surprisingly good. Ella also made a damn good Sunday roast, where the roast is brought to the middle of your table. I hope they do that again this year!

The best thing about this restaurant is the building itself. It’s cosy, it’s warm, and it’s a nice alternative to the other restaurants on Ponsonby Road. The owner is friendly as ever and the food is really nice too, and the service is pretty good as well. For dessert I got this lemon meringue thing and it was so yummy. My dinner wasn’t the greatest, but that’s probably because I didn’t order very well, stupidly, because my friend only raved about her dish. I was jealous. We got some nice «special» coffees afterward and they were yum too. A bit pricey, but nothing too bad.

You’d think a big plate of fried squid would be a bad way to start a hungover morning, and as soon as I made my order I worried that I’d regret it. But when the food arrived it turned out to be exactly what I was after. The coffee was also excellent, although at that point I probably would have said that about any coffee. We went on Sunday and it was surprisingly quiet. It’s not a huge place though so I’d guess when it does get busy it fills up pretty fast. The prices aren’t cheap but I guess they’re reasonable for Ponsonby, which is not a cheap place in general. I’d recommend this place, it had a nice atmosphere (at least when it was half empty. I won’t guess what it’s like when it’s packed).