Matakana Market Kitchen

Absolutely delicious. Scallops are to die for. Leigh snapper amazing. Easily best out of Auckland dining experience.

This place is «nice».
Nice like when someone describes another person that they like but will never date, saving a zombie level apocalypse. Everything looked like it would be amazing, but ended up being just nice.
Service is friendly, seating area is lovely, food is passable. Ok, I probably expected a bit too much out of a avant garde Xmas menu at a café, but still don’t talk a big game if you can’t step up to the plate.
Speaking of plates… bread baked in a pot is cute, but not delicious, unless the intention was to have the bread absorb the ceramic thickness qualities of the pot. Might have just been the one we got. Balsamic accompaniment was solid (good).
Didn’t get it myself, but steak sandwich and chips looked like the way to go here. Let me reiterate, staff were very friendly, food was not bad, just not epic
I’ll probably come back, but not for a date, just to hang, maybe with a movie…

Not a great experience for our first and probably last visit. To be fair my wife’s fish and chips were great but that is the only positive and redeeming factor. There is no indication as to whether you need to seat yourself or wait to be seated. After waiting a few minutes to be seated we found some menus tucked away at the bar and negotiated through the very busy café to find an empty seat. We waited to be served and after fifteen minutes I joined the queue at the bar. After queuing for a few minutes My wife calls me back because a waitress has come to take our order. We ordered two orange juices ($ 9 each!!!), my wife’s fish and chips and my meatballs. We waited a very long time for the food to come and in fact after about 20minutes a different waitress approached us to take our order. My meatballs arrived after 35mins and they were pretty cold but disturbingly seemed hot in some areas but cold in most.
They earned a star for the fish and chips but lost several for the meatballs, price, confusion and slowness of service.

Just what Matakana needed! MMK is perfectly located next to the Matakana Markets, overlooking the river. We booked an outdoor table and enjoyed the entertainment of the ‘duck wars’ under the trees. Open from breakfast through to dinner, the menu is interesting and varied (difficult for a poor decision maker like myself). We eventually went for the Haloumi salad and Scallop risotto. Both were large servings and came out quickly. The risotto in particular was delicious; rich and creamy and they weren’t stingy with the scollies! Washed down of course with a bottle of local wine. I was pleasantly surprised when we paid, not too pricey. It’s good to see they haven’t out priced the locals. I think they’ve really positioned MMK well; it has a relaxed, country feel, but at the same time a sense of occasion.

This restaurant is a must if you are coming to the Matakana Village, I have to say though the very first experience I had wasn’t the best — we waited over 60 minutes to get our meals but were never told there would be a delay when we ordered. However I did decide to give them a second chance, and we have now been back about 5 times and I love it here.
You can either sit outside next to the river or inside and both have a completely different feeling, I like both. Inside its very rustic and a bit more buzzing and outside is a bit more relaxing being next to the water.
The food is just great, I have had the best big Vegetarian breakfast ever here — you get crispy coated eggs, wow, avocado slices and grilled halloumi cheese yum yum yum, I would come here just to have this dish. Theres also lots of other dishes on the menu that are very tempting, I really love their menu as its very different and rustic.
Oh at the nutella pancakes, yummmyyy !

MMK is a great dining experience in the heart of Matakana. I really enjoy going up to Matakana early on a Saturday morning, walking around the farmers market, ending the journey with a sit down lunch at MMK. They have a great selection on their menu using fresh organic food from the local market. Not only are their breakfast, lunch and dinner meals appealing, but so is their dessert menu. They also cater for children, making it a delightful experience for the parents as their little ones are entertained.
The only disappointing time I have had with MMK is when I ordered the calamari. It was not fresh and had an incredibly rubbery texture. Also, for roughly $ 20, I would expect a calamari meal to have more than four pieces.
However every grey cloud has a silver lining and I would still recommend making the trip to MMK.