The Fridge

Great food and big meals. I had the big breakfast which was delicious and a family member ordered the eggs bene which looked awesome. Service was excellent too. However ironically The «Fridge» was unbearably hot on the covered deck on a sunny day perhaps due to being next to the kitchen and our «iced» coffees and water were all lukewarm? Ask for lots of ice. Went away feeling parched but enjoyed the meal.

About a month ago, my Mum and I ventured to Kingsland to try out The Fridge Café. I had received a voucher from a friend and was very excited, as I have wanted to go to The Fridge for ages! (Sadly, probably due to the fact that I do not hang out in Kingsland as often as I would like).
We arrived at The Fridge around 2.30pm on a Saturday. We decided on a hot drink and a sweet cake. [Side note: I had previously read every review of The Fridge online, so thought it would be interesting to go for afternoon tea instead of breakfast/​brunch as this is what most of the reviewers had wrote about].
Service was friendly when we walked in. Not overly attentive, but not distant either.
The first thing you notice is the large cabinet by the till — except when we arrived, there was very little food left. The cabinet looked tired and unorganised. My Mum pointed out that as the food dwindles throughout the day, they should still make sure the rest of it looks good. I totally agreed. Nothing looked highly appealing, except for a few sweet cakes.
We ordered a an extra hot, trim flat white ($ 4), an extra hot, trim hot chocolate ($ 4.50) and a Sticky Date Pudding Cake served warm with cream ($ 5.50). We also bought two chocolate chip cookies ($ 3.50 each), to take away.
Both drinks were perfect — extra hot and strong! I do find at most cafes that there will be a ⁵⁰⁄₅₀ chance whether they will make it extra hot or not. Usually I just take it back if it is not hot enough. If you do come to The Fridge, I recommend ordering a hot chocolate as it is sweet and comes with marshmallows and a chocolate fish! One of the few places in Auckland that gives you both!
However, the highlight of our afternoon tea was definitely the Sticky Date Pudding Cake! It was delicious! It was warm the whole way through, very moist and had a good serving of dates inside the cake. It was just like eating the real dessert!
As for the décor, well it was a bit too casual and alternative for my liking. The Fridge has many different seating areas with odd chairs. Personally, I think it is a bit of a waste of space.
Overall, The Fridge had great coffee and sweet treats. Just a shame about the décor and funny seating… May go back to try one of their pies — I have heard they are pretty good!

Nice café in Kingsland. Don’t be fool by the narrow front shop, there’s like tons of seats in the back.
Nice cozy Sunday brunch setting for the family. Might be a little squeeze if you have large family.
The eggs benedict was good.

You’re in Kingsland, you need a pie, you go to the fridge. It’s as simple as that. They also have a brilliant eggs benedict on hash browns if you’re in morning after mode.

I went there today for breakfast with the grabone voucher. 20 dollars for any two main breakfast items. Wasn’t feeling that hungry so I opted for the homemade baked beans with spicy sausage. It was served with a hash cake and a poached egg. I enjoy the way the egg was soft poached so the yolk was still runny when I cut into it. The homemade baked beans was slightly un flavourful, but since I have not had any homemade baked beans before so I am not the best judge of quality. The portion was more than generous. We also ordered two lattes, the coffee was very strong. So if you can your morning brew, the fridge has pretty good coffee. The only let down was the décor, I can understand that the retro 70s look is very chic at the moment. But the old couch in the room brought back many many bad memories from when I was a poor uni student. Overall, the food is great. No faults there. :-)

Amazing coffee! And the selection from the deli as well as the all day menu is really nice. You’ll notice that they have the regulars as well as unique meals not found at most cafés. Wonderful atmosphere in the back yard. I ordered the Halloumi salad and they were happy to customise a little bit and add poached eggs — no request too difficult! Outdoor space is not the most child friendly but indoors is great for that — they even have a play area to keep the little rascals busy. Will go again for sure.

Everytime I visit the Fridge, it is for a creative meeting funnily enough: to discuss theatre projects or media interviews.
I would have the say the staff are transactional, not that friendly so this does not fare well with me.
The Fridge offers a cooked menu with all the normal contenders: Eggs Benedict, hash browns, paninis and so forth. Apparently the gourmet pies are die for, sadly I didn’t feel like one.
They also do scrummy salads and homemade sweets including rocky road and lamingtons.
This time I had a mammoth banana and chocolate-​chip muffin that I couldn’t finish, with a triple shot coffee. The coffee was average and the experience sitting outside in the courtyard was pleasant.
The Fridge is mad busy with locals so be prepared to wait in line! :)

Probably got to be the most overrated café ever. The Fridge is OKAY. Not good, not bad. Very, very average and might I add, their pies are not that good. The cabinet food looks nice all out for us to look at, but when it comes down to taste, it’s pretty meh. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a nice place to come sit and chat… but the fact that people seem to think Jesus was born here is what gets me. Pricing wise is pretty standard and you do have to order at the counter. On weekends it’s crazy, crazy busy so you might have to line up for a while. No comment on the staff, they’re usually pretty busy so there’s not a lot of time for small talk, just getting the job done.

The pies are good, everyone knows it. They’re not cheap — on the scale of pies, they’re at the higher end, but you get what you pay for, I guess. I like the steak and cheese but I feel like throwing up immediately after I’ve eaten it because of the pastry and the cheese. It’s worth it though.
The food generally is pretty bloody good. I don’t think I’ve ever had any ‘regret’ purchases from The Fridge. Other plusses include the fact that you can get a freshly squeezed orange and lemon juice, which is my favourite, and there’s a deck you can eat on.
On the flip side, the parking around there can be pretty rats.

I used to work in Kingsland and The Fridge was a weekly favourite. Whether I would pop down for a quick takeaway salad on a busy day, or meet friends and order a fresh-​cooked meal to eat in the courtyard, the Fridge offered plenty of options for my midday meal, all of them delicious.
I would say the homecooked, fresh food and quality ingredients justified the prices, but still they are a little steep. Where else do you pay over $ 5 for a pie? Just saying.

I first started going to The Fridge three years ago as a Uni student. The great selection of food and reasonable prices were reason enough for it to become one of my favourite local cafes, however it is the combination of these factors and the great amount of seating available that has kept me coming back again and again.
The Fridge has more seating (both indoor and outdoor) than most cafes around central Auckland, and is therefore ideal for meeting large groups of friends, and — in my case– holding study sessions. Keep yourself motivated and alert with the great Fridge coffees and sweet treats before recharging completely with one of their delicious gourmet salads or pies.
The staff are very friendly and while they are attentive, also recognise a serious conversation or study session and know when to just leave you to it.

The Fridge is one of my favourite cafes in Auckland. What better place to sit in the courtyard and soak up the morning rays. The staff and quirky, interesting and fun.
If only they had Bloody Marys, which in my case are often needed alongside breakfast on a weekend morning. Oh well, I’ll make do with the Vege Stack.
On the odd weekday I’ve also been known to pop-​in for a sneaky pie. I need to be careful with this as my girlfriend would not be happy about it. Thankfully the staff are discrete and the pies are worth the risk :)

The Fridge is the home of really hearty café fare — delicious pies, rich cakes and sandwiches that require two hands. I love going to The Fridge for a Mexican-​inspired wrap or a surprisingly filling salad with a coffee to match. If you’re not familiar with the Kingsland area, you might think The Fridge is super small, when in fact it plays home to a massive upstairs dining area and and even bigger outdoor patio area. The staff are really friendly and genuinely stoked to be there — it’s the kind of place you’re remembered (sometimes by name) after being there just once. Definitely my favourite café on the Kingsland strip.