Slowlane Cafe — Restaurant in Maungakiekie-Tāmaki

A solid brunch spot, but I’m not sure it lives up to the hype—or the wait. We visited on a Saturday around noon (2 people), without much urgency, just keen to finally try this place. It definitely has potential, but there are a few things that need work.

First off, it wasn’t clear at all that there were two lines—one for takeaway and one for dine-in. There was no signage outside (only a small one inside by the counter), and no staff helped clarify, so we spent a fair bit of time waiting in the wrong queue until we overheard someone else figure it out. Once we spoke to the staff, they took our number and said they’d call when a table was ready. That’s fine and fairly normal, but we noticed a few empty tables that hadn’t been cleared. There seemed to be plenty of staff around, though perhaps some were still in training. Also worth noting that they don’t take bookings on weekends.

When we were finally seated, it was a bit unclear how to order. No one told us whether we should go up to the counter or wait for table service—there didn’t seem to be a consistent system. The staff were friendly but slow, and we had to ask for basics like water, glasses, and cutlery.

As for the food—we had the avocado smash ($25) with house-cured salmon (+$7), and the matcha strawberry French toast ($25.50). Honestly, I wasn’t blown away. The avo smash had potential—the strawberry salsa was interesting, but it clashed with the creaminess I usually enjoy from smashed avo. Might work better as an optional topping, alongside something like lime and basil. The house-cured salmon had a very strong fennel flavour (and fennel has quite a piercing flavour already) — not really my thing, but maybe others would appreciate it more!

The French toast was the bigger letdown. What we got was more of a loaf than toast—thick bread that hadn’t been soaked enough in egg or properly pan-fried, so it ended up kind of plain and dry in the middle. I was expecting a nice golden crust, but the sides were basically untouched. That said, the strawberry and matcha flavours on top were genuinely good. It felt like it was a great concept that just wasn’t executed well.

Maybe we just picked the wrong dishes? There might be other menu items worth trying, but for now, I don’t think I’ll be rushing back. If you’re after a smooth, no-fuss brunch, this probably isn’t it. But if you’re curious and don’t mind a bit of a wait, then it might still be...

First of all, few bullet points to save time: Very decent cafe, but not amazing. Great amount of portion, good feed, reasonable prices compared to many other cafes. Way too many customers, therefore slow service. On street parking, hard to find parking spots.

Here's the details. I know there's a lot of advertisements going on, but if you set your expectations so high, it's going to let you down. The cafe is very decent, great portions, unique menu, but the food and waiting time is not a fun experience. The meatball spaghetti was flavourful, but the meatball were super dry. Even burger fuel meat patty would be juicier. The Kimchi fried rice (I do not remember the actual name) came with good amount of salmon and egg omelette which was great, but the fried rice was bit too sour to our personal preferences, and was less salty. The strawberry matcha french toast was very sweet (good for people with sweet teeth tho!) but the matcha flavour wasn't very strong. The French toast was soft tho. The matcha latte was $6 for a very small cup, and only came about 30 minutes after we ordered. The flourish smoothie came very quick, and was very smooth compared to other places, and not powdery at all. However it tasted rather watery, not sure whether it should be blended with ice or not? There are a lot of people, but thank you to the crews for arranging tables so everyone gets a table. Just like I said, there's a huge amount of customers, the waiting was really long. Understandable, but you should be aware before going there. Maybe early morning would be much better, since less people = more parking spots & less waiting time. Once again, it's a very decent cafe but not extraordinary. If you treat it like a normal cafe and don't set your expectations so high, you would be...

Super disappointing brunch experience at Slow Lane – do not come here for gluten-free food!

I was really let down by both the food and service at Slow Lane Cafe. From what I saw on their social media, I was expecting a really good breakfast/brunch menu and a vibrant atmosphere, but sadly I was left feeling really disappointed.

My friend and I came for brunch, and while I understand it’s a busy spot, we waited over an hour for our food and coffees. When they finally arrived, everything was cold. I ordered gluten-free eggs on toast and it was probably the worst gluten-free meal I’ve ever had. It looked and tasted worse than something someone could make at home while only half trying. The bread was a budget gluten-free Vogel’s that was dry and hadn’t even been buttered (I had to ask for a side of butter to make it edible), and the poached eggs were cold and not even runny. The whole dish was dry, cold, and incredibly underwhelming – literally just two unbuttered pieces of toast and two poorly cooked eggs. That’s it.

The coffee was overpriced ($7.50 for an oat cappuccino) and not worth the long wait. The service was pretty inattentive and lacklustre.

The outdoor area, which I hoped would be a nice spot to relax and chat, was incredibly noisy with loud pop music blasting and kids screaming, making it hard to have a conversation.

Overall, the food felt like something thrown together at home without care or effort – literally the worst gluten-free breakfast I’ve ever had. The service was inattentive and lacked basic customer service, and the whole experience was a letdown. I definitely won’t be...