Review The Shelf - Auckland Central

Came here with a friend - love the vibe. Mixing the chocolate shot and the chocolate stick into my mocha was a lot of fun. Food was beautiful. Just wish there were more fruit topping for the waffles, it was a bit sweet They have a good setup of 2-seater booths for those who want to work/ study

I swung by The Shelf on Sunday around 2pm to grab a quick bite with my brother. Let me tell you, the place was hopping! Luckily, we managed to snag a table towards the back. The staff wasted no time in taking care of us and getting our order. Now, let's talk about the menu. It's seriously got something for everyone. We ended up going for the Chicken Fettuccine and the Kimchi BBQ Pork Belly with Scrambled Eggs. And, we couldn't resist trying the Orange and Passion Fruit Ade and the Tim Tam Freak Shake. Both the food and drink was out of this world! Both dishes were bursting with flavor, and the portion sizes were just right. That Pork Belly? Oh my, it was heavenly! And the Ade? So refreshing! But let me tell you, the Tim Tam Freak Shake was a showstopper. Talk about creativity in a glass! As for the vibe, it was totally chill and inviting. If you're looking for a great spot to grab a snack or quick lunch, I can't recommend The Shelf enough. Trust me, you won't be disappointed!

Tried chicken sandwiches and hot white chocolate. Food was good. But hot chocolate was not hot enough. The ambiance is good. Caramel bite was too hard.

Chanced upon this cafe in High street on a Sunday morning quest for brunch with friends. Loved the cafe ambience. It was clean and cozy offering seating in a variety of configuration ranging from high tables to single booths. Service was quick and food incredible. The place allows its customers the opportunity to mix their drink to suit an individual’s taste. For instance - the quantity of vanilla shot in my flat white, milk in my ice coffee etc. Loved this concept. The French toast was outstanding. Highly recommend this place.

Came in with some hungry lads and was greeted with good service! Good choices in the menu and even better with the food! Some of the best brunch i’ve had in a long time. Would recommend!

A nice breakfast meal range including the drinks. The 'mash mash' meal was very delicious, the corn beef was very flavourful and every bite was delicious because of it. The egg, potatoes, spinach, tomato and feta was a very nice combination. The Peach iced tea was also on point which I'm really happy about. The service and atmosphere is nice also. Highly recommended place for your breakfast needs!

Phenomenal food and quick service with no wait on a Monday morning. Will definitely be going back - the waffle was punishingly good though I sampled my brothers egg Benedict and that was even better. Update: had to go back and tried the salmon bagel. It just knocked it out of the park

Super cozy space on the inside, just a little hidden away in High St. We had the French toast and the waffles - both were absolutely delicious, good portion, fresh cooked, nice and crispy with candy floss on top. The only criticism I have would be to add a bit more maple syrup, but honestly it was totally perfect otherwise. They also had a lot of cabinet food and drink options that looked amazing. The service was quick and helpful, and they also had free WiFi that was quite fast. Already planning on going back sometime soon :)

It’s all good. Atmosphere, the drinks and food. Needs repeated visits. Helmed by a Korean couple with efficient service. Get yourself a table, order & pay at the order and your selections will be sent to your table promptly. I had fun with my hot chocolate which is hot milk in a cup that has chocolate at bottom, a stick of Whittaker’s chocolate and served with a small cup of yummilicious chocolate syrup.

Really nice place for teas, coffees and sweet treats. They also offer more substantial items and a full menu but I haven't tried it. Nice teas, coffees and cakes and they have made a lot of effort with the decor to make what might have been quite a dark dive into a very pleasant place to sit and pass the time.

Great cosy cafe for a read and a coffee, I typically do my work here during the quiet times, the staff are very accommodating and the coffee is great.

I say it is perfect, good food, delicious breakfast. Good coffee as well.

We enjoyed a delicious breakfast at the Shelf during our stay in Auckland. Our coffees were delicious, and their menu has a great selection, from simple healthy items to larger breakfasts. We had the scrambled eggs on toast and the homemade granola with yogurt - both delicious! Highly recommended.

Visiting from Christchurch. Came very hungry, and was not disappointed. Warm friendly atmosphere and great service. Food was the best I've had in years, maybe ever. 10/10, highly recommend!

Delicious toast but the chai latte is too sweet.

What we ordered: - Belgian Waffle -Watermelon milkshake - Mango Smoothie The price is a bit on the steep side but the watermelon milkshake is amazing! I didn't really love the waffle, I just found it a bit too sweet, but the watermelon milkshake was such a unique and delicious drink!

Although this place has cute instagram-worthy food and decor, the food quality was pretty average for the price. We ordered the New York smoked chicken sandwich <br/>& the belgian waffle. Both tasted average with nothing too spectacular about it. The chicken sandwich felt like something I could make at home and the belgian waffles were soft and stuck to the teeth. The whipped cream also melted really fast and it became a soggy mess by the end of it. Staff didn't really come around much and the booths at the back with tables that are planks with giant gaps are not a vibe. <br/><br/>Food - 3/5<br/>Ambience - 3/5<br/>Service - 3/5<br/>

Glad to discover this cute cafe. I tried their hot chocolate, deconstructed mocha and normal flat white. Lovely chill atmosphere to hangout with your friends. Love all their beverages which was well presented. I’ll visit again for hot chocolate and try some food.

This my second visits to The Shelf, it's a lovely little cafe to catch up with friends. Their hot chocolate is amazing. This time I have ordered the orange latte and quiche. The quiche is a bit too dry but the orange latte is nice. Would like to visit them again.

Always disappointed with cute places with not so cute food. The food here has never been great but this time it was worse than I remembered and the staff had become very complacent. The drink was cute but didn’t taste particularly delicious and the entire sprig of mint inside did absolutely nothing for it except for add a few bugs. My friends meal had arrived for 15+ minutes before I tried to flag down a waiter. I ended up walking to the counter and explained the situation to get told to go back to my table and wait and proceeded to have them walk over and then ask what I got again... twice... I just walked back over and pointed. Even the calories consumed were not worth the trouble and being looked at like I had done something wrong for asking for my food after they had clearly forgotten. There was no acknowledgement just a person hastily dropping the food onto the table like they had something more important to do... B I G S A D.

The food and coffee was soo good. Bagels and salmon was my favorite! Everything in that dish blend in so well together 🥺 I really love this cafe but wish it was a little less expensive 😢

Presentation 10/10<br/>Flavor 5/10 <br/>Ambience 8/10 <br/><br/>For cafe food, it was really not up to par. The scrambled egg in the pork belly kimchi dish was undercooked, the pork belly had no Korean kimchi taste and was rather dry, not succulent and oleaginous like you’d want. The big breakfast was also very dry. The dry bacon and sausages on the multigrain Vogel bread was like eating leggo’s on cardboard, really not a good pairing. One egg was poached beautifully with a runny yolk and the other yolk was hardened. The mushroom was chewy, no juicyness. The tomato had a nice taste and so did the hash brown but not worth $22 at all

Enjoyed their korean pork belly

The smoothie was good! Nice place to chat and catch up with friends :)

Nice coffee shop discovery, while walking around the city. They had good flat white coffee and a quaint atmosphere.

Atmosphere was amazing, it felt so cozy to be inside. I loved the wooden plates that was used to serve the food/drinks (which tasted good and made us full). Coffee design was also a plus!

Have yet to try the food but the coffee here is good. The deconstructed hot chocolates is novel although doesn’t really work for impatient people like me as I end up eating half the stick before it’s melted haha.

This shop have a very bad hygiene practice. Which is a lot of cockroaches hanging around.. i even fell no appetite to eat. If you don’t care about your shop . Please think of other people may be get sick.. auckland council should know this asap ..

Location & Deco 4<br/>Food 2 <br/>Service 2 <br/>Overall: Not enjoyable <br/><br/>Being polite and welcoming is the most basic courtesy. <br/><br/>Been here a couple of times - The lady here never smiles and always gives you a face, she also ignores you when you ask her for help at the counter... <br/><br/>

The cafe was super busy on a Sat afternoon. But It seems like lots of customers were hanging around at the cafe for hours with just a couple of drinks.<br/><br/>Beautiful presentation for the mocha, however the almond croissant (forgot to take a pic) was a big let down. It was quite soggy after we've had it heated up.<br/><br/>Tbh, the biggest let down wasn't the food or the service, but it was the hygiene and the state of their bathroom. The floor beside the toilet was wet, smelt bad, the sink cabinet was held together by translucent packing tapes and chewed up gums. There was also a power board dangling beside the sink that's being "waterproofed" by a plastic bag. Seeing this had really dulled down my overall experience.<br/><br/>Will not be going back here in a hurry.<br/><br/>

Came by for breakfast/brunch for a handing in celebration. A friend recommended this place because of their deconstructed iced mocha. There were quite a few tables along the restaurant. We grabbed menus and a table and then went up to order. We did notice that one of the stools on the table by the door kept falling off the ledge as people tried to get on.<br/><br/>Both the waffles and french toast looked interesting so we got one each and shared. The freak shakes on the menu also looked quite interesting so grabbed a few of those as well.<br/><br/>I wouldn't go for the freak shakes again. We got the tim tam (caramel) and oreo one. Both were quite icy and not as flavourful as we were hoping. They tasted mostly of milk and vanilla.<br/><br/>The food, on the other hand, was quite nice. The french toast was very eggy and quite airy, both of which I liked. The waffles had a good texture, crunchy on the outside and a bit chewy on the inside. I liked the flavours of both and candyfloss on top was great.<br/><br/>I would probably come back for the food but maybe not the drinks.

The place is very well-decorated and staff are nice and attentive. The food is delicious and well-portioned but definitely on the pricier side of brunch food.<br/><br/>I ordered their waffles and added bacon to it, which was a delicious addition to the meal but quite pricey for what it was. The food was delicious and filling and presented very nicely.<br/>One small point that was a bit awkward was my friend's food came out way earlier than mine (by about 10-15min) and so waiting to start eating together was a bit of a problem. But other than that, the food was good and service was fine.<br/><br/>Overall, would recommend this place as a nice spot for brunch every once in a while with friends or even alone but is less realistic as a daily lunch spot.

The atmosphere here was so great. One of the go to places for a coffee in Auckland. The food and desserts here were great too. Came here multiple times and was never disappointed.

I came here on a Wednesday for lunch. It was my first time trying this place and I loved it! I ordered the green omelette which was different from what I had imagined it to be like. It was very unique. The green colour was very beautiful. If only the portion of the smoked salmon was a little big bigger. I left the Shelf feeling very satiated.

I decided to have brunch with a friend at The Shelf because it’s one of her favourite places. The decorations were super pretty and it was so quiet so it was a good place to have a chat without screaming at the other person. <br/><br/>I got the Belgian waffles with seasonal fruit and the banana smoothie and my friend got the French toast with bacon. The banana smoothie did not disappoint, it was thick and tasted super delicious, you could taste it was super fresh and I’d definitely try other drinks next time. When the food arrived, it looked super aesthetic and the portions were surprisingly massive. I usually worry at brunch places the waffles (or sweet food in general) wouldn’t fill me up but I struggled to finish this!! They forgot the bacon on my friend’s french toast but they quickly bought it over when she mentioned it and even gave us two free shortbreads, which was highly appreciated but unnecessary :) <br/><br/>I’ll definitely be back for the excellent food and service. I’m in love with this place.

I went to this place with two friends.<br/><br/>Atmosphere: 3/4<br/>The place is really nicely decorated! Good for small groups.<br/><br/>Drink: 3/4<br/>I had their detox juice, my other friends had flat white and hot chocolate.<br/>* Detox juice: wasn't amazing<br/>* Flat White: was pretty good, and<br/>* Hot Chocolate: was pretty fun to make.<br/><br/>Despite, the detox juice not being that amazing, however I did love the fact that the place had variety of drinks.<br/><br/>Service: 4/4<br/>Easy to order,<br/>Quick to receive.<br/><br/>Cost: 4/4<br/>Pretty affordable.<br/><br/>Recomend to anyone who wants to treat oneself a pretty drink at a pretty place.

The shelf amazed me with their beautiful ambience with a front section of tables and even lamps?? Further out back is a section with wooden tables and cushioned seats. They had a beautifully stocked cabinet with full stock of foods that were hearty portions and looked super filling. The staff were also very friendly and the kitchen chef was so lovely, helping me to new cutlery when I accidentally dropped mine! <br/>I got two cabinet items-almond croissant and a New York cheesecake slice. <br/>Almond croissant had no filling (contrary to the famous Dunedin Friday bakery ones however, I was still pleased. It was so buttery and full of taste with crunchy edges to drool over. The almonds were flaky and in good amount, and if I was being super harsh then only the centre was a little bland and could’ve been improved. 4/5<br/>New York cheesecake was so good, best one I’ve had yet, super creamy with a solid toffee biscuit-y base. Base was slightly inconsistent with soft mushy bits but was mostly solid and just the right amount of sweetness. It is topped with one grape and a creamy cheesy icing. Loved it! Creamy enough for a cheesecake but not heavy and dense that it would make you feel ill. I rate 😍 4.2/5<br/>A cafe that I would definitely love to be back at and have more cheesecake dates ✨

Over priced for average food and average service.<br/>I've ordered egg beni and sausage roll , egg beni looks nice but the taste is average.... Sausage roll was still cold in the middle and has way too much herb.

As I work in town I've often come here for coffee. Even if you're not a regular mocha person, grab a mocha or hot chocolate to have in - proper chocolate syrup with chocolate on the side makes for an indulgent experience.<br/>Decided to try out the menu today with a 'magic breakfast' for brunch. Wow it was delicious! If I could be picky, I prefer my potatoes mashed or hashed rather than roasted, however they still soaked up the delicious flavours.<br/>Interior is cool and hip - you will struggle to get a seat though! Not suitable for large groups either.

A good cafe in the heart of the city..nice vibes and interior was great..food is average though..not extraordinary..and a bit expensive........

Excellent tasty seasoned food from the magic breakfast meal to the French toast big portions an great presentation. In addition the green tea shrek milkshake was awesome. All in all great service an atmosphere.<br/>

Food was good-not great but the interior is beautiful and classy. Service is exceptional, prices are usual cafe-expensiva type but i guess thats what you can expect from a fancy cafe.

We ordered the Shelf Breakfast and the French toast and both came out with really nice presentation. However, the shelf breakfast was a bit underwhelming in terms of portion and taste but the eggs were cooked really nicely though. The French toast was really nice with great texture.

The environment is great but their coffee was under the average😅. it’s not worth the price. Even Starbucks is better than it. Anyhow I won’t be back to it.

Beetroot salad was terrible, it was overpriced and you got dry chicken, no feta, and a bunch of rocket. And the drinks are also overpriced. I was so disappointed in the food.

This is probably one place that il never stop going to! Whenever I get a craving for pasta, I have to go here! Their fettuccine is so creamy and the serving size is perfect for sharing or eating alone. I’d recommend eating during the cooler season, it adds that “feeling” to it haha. Theres alot of other good things on their menu and cabinet. For drinks we had their chai lattes and the milk was so smooth and the froth was A+. Some of their drinks usually come in very quirky ways where its usually deconstructed and you have to make it yourself, its cute. The staff are very friendly and quick and the vibe of the cafe is nice aswell. Highly recommend!!

I normally don't write reviews, but I was so disappointed I had to write one.<br/>I ordered the Korean spicy pork bun which was over $20, and it was super underwhelming.<br/>I usually order burgers at cafes, because I know from experience that burgers priced over $20 are always a good dish.<br/>However, what came was a simple burger that looked more like a sandwich, with pork, few pieces of lettuce and cheese placed between two brioche toasts. Also, there were just a couple of potato chips on the side, not even fries.<br/>So, so disappointing, I can't believe I paid $20 for this.

The eggs Benedict was average, eggs cooked beautifully but flavours were quite basic. The pickle was super bitter and sour and wished there was more betroot chutney.

My go to place whenever I’m in town and want breakfast or brunch! The food continuously upholds my expectations and I really enjoy coming here! The place is tidy and kind of aesthetically pleasing. The white hot chocolate (not sure of the actual name) is soooo good omg!!

Good coffee Terrible services. Never coming back again. There is a nice coffee shop using the same coffees beens in 1km from Shelf, your coffee is not that good for customer to endure such a poor service.

Had my first breakfast here a few weeks back and I must say I was not only impressed with the service but the food quality, OMG!! Definitely recommend eating here.

Came here with one of my best friends and got breakie here the other day, was so happy with my waffles, such a pleasant taste and the appearance was really pretty not to mention the portion size was really good as it filled my up so much. The service was okay i guess because usually at most cafes they bring you water when you order, but i felt that the appearance of the cafe could’ve been better.

Used to come here a lot for brunch, love their Moroccan Lamb Salad, also tried the Chicken Fettuccine, Belgian Waffle, The Shelf’s Breakfast which are all so delicious. Love how every dish and drinks is nicely presented, love their coffees, really like the Snow White Hot Chocolate and really like their iced teas. Cute place, friendly staff, would always return, love this place.

I like to go to this cafe at my leisure time. I always order french toast. It is thick and sponge. The banana is sweet and a bit crispy. But I cannot get used to the bench, when I sit done I feel uncomfortable.

A slightly hidden getaway on High Street. The interior of this cafe offers a modern yet rustic vibe - a good contrast from the busy city. Would recommend the seating near the entrance if you are after some aesthetic photos. Although a little crammed and toned down, the booths at the back offer a bit more privacy. <br/><br/>The service input was minimal, it took a while for any staff to notice we had been waiting to be seated, then when we decided to just take a seat it took a while for the table to be cleaned. As it was quite busy, it is understandable that staff couldn’t attend to us immediately, and that the food took a while to be served once we ordered. <br/><br/>A variety of food was offered and each option seemed just as tempting as the next! I decided on the green omelettes which was so tasty, albeit a little dry. The portion was good too! My sister ordered a big breakfast, and in my opinion, it seemed a little disappointing. Perhaps it was the fact that it looked small being presented on a big platter, or maybe that it was just an average breakfast you could get anywhere else. The presentation of both meals were impressive, and the desserts on the menu is definitely something I’d like to go back and try! <br/><br/>Ambience: 7/10<br/>Service: 6/10<br/>Food: 8/10

CRAFTY. From deconstructed special beverages to perfectly constructed freak shakes and smoothies, @50theshelf offers one of the most interesting range of drinks one could fine at a café. <br/>Not only will you have an eye opening experience as to how many crafty ways a drink can be presented, but they also taste amazing. The brilliance of deconstructed drinks is that you can tweak them to your liking! <br/><br/>Their food are just as crafty, with beautiful presentation and generous portions. They boast some unique options on their menu like their Homemade Black Rice, Mama’s Eggplant Lasagna, and Spicy Pork Belly Burger – all of which I have yet to try. <br/><br/>Unfortunately I only had an hour so I tried to squeeze in a monstrous Eggs Benedict that I could barely finish. Regardless, the eggs were made to perfection, with that heavenly consistency of oozing yolk smothered by a rich hollandaise sauce that wasn’t too overpowering as they can usually be. It would be interesting to know if their Ciabatta is made in-house, because if they’re not, I’d like to know where they get it from since it’s incredibly light yet chewy and crunchy on the outside. Just from a standard Eggs Benedict alone, I could tell that if they do the usual café food well, surely their specialties must be good. I must admit it can be hard to attain a niche as a café, however I love what’s going on at The Shelf and will definitely have to go again! They have a friendly team that are very welcoming - located in High Street.

Nice place to just chill and hang out. Food was great. Ordered the egg plant lasagne and the green omelet.<br/>The cups for the water were not clean at all. When I went to get new cups they were sticky as well. Ended with giving up on drinking any water

I was waiting for the menu yesterday and no one attended me to provide me a menu. I went to the counter myself for this and ordered 3 beverages. The beverage were lovely and were presented well, but the prices were highly priced compared to other cafes on average. The interior was a dimmed mood that had little separation for 2-4 people out the back of the cafe fit for private talks whereas it had a open space for the middle and near the entrance area. Had good free wifi. The toilets were a little unhygienic. The sink was blocked and the water didn’t go through.

Read till end this may sound good but wait there's more?<br/>👍👍👎I loved this place. Been there many times and love the food and drinks. Price is a bit on the high side, but worth what I got. Had it several different times but I'm slowly seeing stuff hidden under the rug (metaphorically).<br/>Wish they would clean more and learn the language more. I just scrubbed a bit of the bottom of a glass and saw alot of black gunk.😖😖😖<br/>I tryed to ask them to clean the cups I was met with a sorry or huh 4 or 5 times when repeated. Finally when she said okay which I don't think she understood I gave up.😧😧<br/>The food and drinks were delicious but everything else maybe...😓

Nice little cafe located in high street with very nice ambience. It’s very relaxing, there’re seats towards the end that provide a bit more privacy as you get your own space. <br/><br/>More than the food, this place is good for when you want to study or for catching up with friends in a quiet, mellow environment.

One of my favorite spots in Auckland for cafe food. Ordered the big breakfast and bagels with coffee on this occasion. Would definitely recommend going here for a meal. They have great waffles too!

The interior and ambience is nice, very friendly and welcoming staff. Only thing is the food is a little pricey but if you’re willing to spend some extra cash I would recommend this place :)

Very good service, food was delivered quickly and is delicious. The restaurant itself is very pretty and has an appealing appearance. Friendly staff and environment, would absolutely come again.

It’s on high street, very easy to find. A stylish cafe, and presentation is excellent. A little bit pricy, but good for friends to have a relax here. We went there on a public holiday, they will charge you extra.

Cute little spot. Usually come here to get the chicken fettuccine which is great. Decided to get the eggs Benedict with salmon and Belgian waffle today. The food looks and tastes great. Was expecting liquid sex yolk but unfortunately, the poached egg was almost completely boiled. Otherwise, I would’ve scored this place a 4. Also, the seating at the back can get quite humid.

Ice mocha was pleasant : ) Its a modern layout with quite spacious areas in between tables. Food was average but coffee is worth the short walk outside.

Had been hearing good things about Shelf, went on a Wednesday morning and it was relatively busy. Cool open layout inside, tables are spread out so doesn't feel too cramped like some cafes, although our table was really wobbly which was an annoyance (a pet peeve of mine), I get it for outdoor tables on uneven ground but it shouldn't be the case for indoor tables at a cafe. <br/><br/>I ordered the big breakfast - some things were good (poached eggs, sausage, fresh toasted bread) and others were below average (fried tomato wasn't ripe, hash brown was soggy and both were under-cooked, bacon also was under-cooked). Cup of tea was nice, hour glass it comes with was cool. Didn't like the oversized flat wooden plate with handle - with 2 of us having the same meal the 2 wooden boards were bigger than the table. I think a move back to more traditional dish ware would be smart.<br/><br/>Overall I was mildly disappointed vs. what I was expecting. I will be back sometime this month and if everything is better I will amend my rating like I've done before.

Cosy little cafe on High Street great for a quick coffee break.<br/><br/>If you want to be a little fancy, why not try an iced mocha? The best part is you get to assemble it yourself.

Coming from Wellington I am used to quirky cafes everywhere. This place I really enjoyed. It is the perfect place to work if you are a contractor too. Great cafe and great presentation of food. If you want to impress your instagram following, this is the place! I got the granola and it came out looking very impressive. Candyfloss all over! I am only giving it 4 stars because I am not a fan of sweet and I didn't expect it to come with candy floss everywhere.

Each time I walk into this beautiful cosy cafe you are greeted with a smile and a warm welcome. A fine selection of drinks, hot and cold food and delicious treats like the almond croissant. The team at The Shelf are friendly, helpful and with lots of seating options, free WiFi you can enjoy your time here, perfect for remote workers, catch ups with friends or a little treat yo'self with tasty food and drink, it's worth a stop, Thank You Team Shelf.

In this Korean cafe, you can get all the fancy drinks and desserts you want. Clean environment, nice staff, prettiest food. Best place to have a coffee with friends

First impressions are always the most important and ambience of this place really gives a good first impression.<br/>Just stopped there for a takeaway cappuccino with cinnamon on top, needless to say it was great, definitely worth coming back for more as they offer coffee card.<br/>This place made me feed that it is an artisan place, most of the bakes and pies looked amazingly delicious and so good that it would be shame to eat them.

Food and service were both great! There wasn’t much noise in this cafe which makes it a perfect place to catch up with a friend or two. The shelf has a range of both sweet and savoury food.

Great place for brunch with my boyfriend. I love the hot chocolate since I can control the portion of chocolate. The food are also good tasting.

Super nice interior and ambience to have a chill morning. I only ordered the special hot chocolate here and it definitely was pretty special - it comes with a dark chocolate stick and a shot of chocolate which you mix by yourself into the cup of milk.

to be honest The food here is not that bad but it’s not like SUPER WOW and I will NOT RECOMMEND!! I will NEVER BE BACK again because the service was absolutely disappointing! LOL🤷🏻‍♀️ sorry not sorry 😒 #BADexpereince #rudecashier #rudestaff #ruderuderude #didnotenjoy #annieeats_ #eatsinauckland

Such a good place for catch ups. The cafe is so cute. I only ordered coffee as i already had lunch, their mocha is so good! My friend ordered a cabinet food and she also loved it. Will be back to try their food. 😊

I have been planning to visit this place since “Forever”, so finally when I got to go there last week I was hoping not to be disappointed . <br/>Being a dessert lover I can get picky sometimes, the Belgian waffles we ordered was excellent on the taste side, definitely value for money :) . However, I was dissatisfied with the food. Ordered for the pasta and the coconut chicken , it definitely lacked flavour. <br/>Browny Points for the ambience though ,it was pretty trendy and uber comfortable 🙂

Ordered the Belgium Waffle which came out with kiwifruit and grapes, candy floss and whipped cream. Value for money, waffles were crunchy and sweet. Their cabinet food also looks appealing.<br/>Trendy interior, service is good and the place always seems to have customers.

Always love coming here for a catch up and coffee. It has the perfect environment just for that. The food looks spectacular but haven’t had the opportunity to order anything. Coffee is fab, staff are friendly, great location. All in all a wonderful cafe

This place is surprisingly tucked away on High Street, but offers an excellent hide out to dash out some productive work. It's very much a cafe and I didn't get to try their food, but their hot chocolate was made really well, in fact, I was delighted! The staff also seem to acknowledge and welcome long staying guests, which is great for students / freelancing, and the WiFi is great.<br/><br/>If there's any feedback I have, it's to stay open later - I think they've got the potential to capture a bigger market after standard work hours. Also, the wooden seats are a bit wobbly, but not a big deal.

I expected the green omelette to have lots of spinach leaves & other salad greens garnished atop as part of the omelette but it’s been given that name literally because it’s been coloured green. My mistake was not asking to swap the prosciutto for mushrooms so had to just pick it out. could do with more salt. Average tasting. <br/><br/>Soy mocha was good tho. Slim Whitaker’s chocolate bar (which I’d already mixed in before I could get a pic) plus choc sauce to add in yourself was a treat.

Today a friend and I went to the Shelf for breakfast. I decided to try their Maldives latte.... And I learned very quickly that it isn't one of my favourites. I also tried their eggs benedict and it was OK. My friend tried their green omelette and hot chocolate and thought they were to her liking.<br/><br/>The shelf was one of my favourite places to hang when it first opened. After visiting it a few times over the past three years, I have come to the conclusion that this place is a nice hangout place for sweet food and drinks but savoury food is definitely not one of their strong points. I recommend you try their hot chocolates and waffles but you are better off spending the money elsewhere if you are craving some savoury dishes.

Went to have late lunch with my partner on Sunday last week, their food is amazing. Eggs bennie with bacon and mash mash was very tasty. Everything at shelf was nice. Decorations, led lights was unique and staffs were very friendly. Only thing is a coffee. They either dont think latte art is important or they have a bad barista. So i took a photo without a coffee because it didnt look good with the food. I will give 5 stars if coffee looked more nicer but other than that, it was amazing.<br/>

Been to this place a few times and truly enjoyed the food. Its gourmet meet uni days! The Oreo drink is a must try ! Central location is a bonus ! Highly recommend

This is such a cute place with amazing food!! <br/>It’s just down the road from Uni and I’ve walked past it multiple times and it’s quite easy to miss. So luckily a friend mentioned they had eaten here and knew where it was.<br/> This place is one of those cafes thats a hidden gem! <br/>I had the waffles and my friend had the French toast and both were sooo good! The presentation of the food was gorgeous and the flavours were awesome! Definitely a must try if you’re looking for somewhere new to eat!<br/>Also the lemon and lime ade is SO GOOD!

This is a super cute little cafe that serves wonderful food. The food looked amazing and tasted pretty good too, though the flavours may have been lacking just a tad in comparison with the food presentation; my expectations were set high (I mean LOOK at that presentation, WOW).

Came here for lunch on Saturday. One of the first things we noticed was how dusty the shelves were. Being allergic to dust this wasn't a great start.<br/><br/>We ordered the big breakfast and mash mash.<br/><br/>The big breakfast had one cold sausage which implies that the food may have been precooked. Pretty unacceptable quality overall<br/><br/>The mash mash was confusing as I wasn't sure how balsamic dressing goes well with something that's supposed to be savory.<br/><br/>The only thing good about the place was the coffee and would return just for that (for a takeaway).<br/><br/>Overall it looks like the cafe started out really well in the beginning but the lack of maintenance and quality assurance is slowly bringing this place down. Should also note that the cafe was relatively empty for what should've been peak lunchtime period

Great coffee, great breakfast and super awesome croissants. <br/>Must try - French toast, chocolate croissant, espresso, iced tea.<br/>Also, the ambience is really appealing.

I came here on a Saturday afternoon to do some writing (and charge my devices!). I enjoyed The Shelf's free wifi and the mood – it’s quieter and more intimate than Mellow down the road. I kind of wish they were open later on Saturdays though; it’s hard to find good weekend spots in town for arvo/early evening breaks (that aren’t Starbucks).<br/><br/>Service was friendly (but could still be warmer) and I had a tasty spicy chai latte that was milky and creamy. Would be happy to come back and try some of their cabinet food.

Coffee is great, the iced latte with coffee ice cube, cute! oreo cheesecake is already brilliant. Also wifi was fast and good, was there for 3 hours on my laptop. Also a cosy place to catch up with friends.

5 stars for this cafe would be an understatement!!<br/><br/>The Shelf cafe has the most chill vibes ever and is located perfectly in the middle of the CBD on high street! <br/><br/>The one thing that keeps pulling me back to this cafe is the cakes and drinks menu! I am a big fan of fresh Orange Juice, no cafe around the CBD serves up such great juice like they do!<br/><br/>The drinks menu is huge, they even cater for those Instagram shakes! :PThe dessert menu is also big, my favorite being the New York cheesecake, you get a pretty decent size and after eating one you want to eat more!<br/><br/>In terms of the food - The chicken fettuccine is my favorite, and is normally what I go for! It's flavorsome and has the right amount of everything and it's a huge portion - easily can be shared amongst two people!The Moroccan lamb salad - the lamb is best when it's not fully cooked - but the portion is once again huge and comes with lots of elements on the plate!<br/><br/>The cafe has great service, the staff is really lovely and overall, always a great time here!!<br/><br/>The cafe has free wifi as well!

If you are ever strolling down High Street you have to try this cozy-cool lil cafe! From the chilled vibes to the neat decor, to the friendly staff, and not to mention the GREAT food I promise, you ain't gon leave dissatisfied. <br/>As per usual, looking at the menu knowing I was gon' order the same thing, I was expecting a standard eggs benny with spinach and bacon. Howeeeever, they whipped up more than I expected with a dash of (what I think is) berry compote. It turned out to be surprisingly delicious and complemented the eggs benny so well! whether its berry compote or something else just know, I STAN! Coming back soon :)

Nice decor & drinks. I'm not a fan of hot chocalate but The Shelf's hot choc is really a wow for me. Imagine how cool it is seeing the chocolate bar melting into the hot milk in front of ur eyes. I quite like the Moroccan lamb salad as well though the lamb is a bit more salty for me. Still overall, this cafe is my best place in CBD to hang out with friends and have brunch. Definitely will come back & try other stuffs :)

Love going to ‘The Shelf’ ❤️! Huge fan of their Hot chocolate and their Ice Chocolate 😊 Always a pleasant experience with great service and exceptional food. <br/>Thanks guys 🙏🏼

Went here on Sunday for the first time. Love this place. The service was great & staff friendly. Coffee and tea are great. Food is delicious too. Definitely will be back. ☕🥐.

I’ve been here for a few times and I just realised I never write a review 😂<br/>Came here with a friend from aussie and we ordered a piece of rocky road, a lamb salad, a spicy chai latte and a hot chocolate. Rocky road is literally a piece of chocolate with all the goodies like Oreo, marshmallow, choco buttons. It’s a bit hard so actually the fork doesn’t help so I used my hand to pick it up and it was quite messy haha<br/>Hot chocolate is awesome because you get a glass of hot milk with a chocolate bar and you can pour some melted chocolate into the milk to make your own drink. Better take the picture quickly because the chocolate bar will melt and disappear in the glass. The lamb in the salad was nicely cooked and flavoured. Perhaps we were too hungry and we found the serving a bit small.<br/><br/>Good that they have free wifi and the environment is cozy.

I feel bad, why because all the other coffee shops that I rated as 5* . The Shelf is a 6*<br/><br/>Hands down the best Mocha in Auckland, possibly the world 😁<br/><br/>It's chilled, good tunes , happy staff and oh did I mention the AMAZING Mochas

Breakfast here the other day was lovely. Warm and inviting atmosphere with a cool vibe to it. Friendly and approachable staff who greeted me immediately. Ordered the vegetarian eggs Benedict with mushrooms with no hollandaise and it was amazing. So filling I couldnt finish it all. Nice and cosy and didn’t feel rushed.

We had brunch at shelf today. I had green tea latte, spicy pork belly burger. My hubby had eggs bene & latte. Really like the latte and eggs bene.<br/>Great food friendly staff. Highly recommended.

Very good presentation. The french toast was good but the candyfloss on top just made it too sweet. Poor cistomer service. The girl serving wasnt very polite. We felt rushed while placing our order and she was giving us the look. The flower on our table was also wilted so we took the one from the other table.

Extremely good service, delicious food (though a bit pricey) and fast internet. My go to when I’m out with friends or wanting to treat myself. Their hot chocolate is simply DEVINE!!! Cute decor as well and a pretty good variety of items on the menu to satisfy everyone- really decent portion sizes as well! I’ll definitely be back!!!😋😍

Had the Belgian waffles and a peach iced tea when I came here for lunch. I throughouly enjoyed the meal and found it to be very filling. The waffles tasted great and were very nicely presented. The overall atmosphere of this cafe was enjoyable and I would definetly return again.

Todays lunch was mushroom and bacon soup.  Sounded appealing. I ordered a take-out.  I kind of misheard the price until $14.40 came up on the eftpos machine.  I queried it, and for some reason I had 10.40 in my ears, but this new figure was correct.  Benefit of the doubt I decided this must be huge and well worth it.  It arrived in a standard coffee cup to go, a small bag with a tiny piece of focaccia. I continued to believe this would be culinary nirvana.  Weeeeeell?  6.5/10 for flavour.  1/10 for portion size and cost.  I love the food there, and I know both bacon and mushrooms aren't cheap, but I did feel a little ripped off today.

Very nice and quiet place. Friendly and helpful staff with a very welcoming design.<br/>Tried the eggs Benedict with bacon and mushrooms and a fresh orange juice and although they are not the best I ate they also didn't let me down.<br/>A place to visit.

The shelf is always good:) kinds staff and free wifi. I love the latte art the most. Bakery is also good to try. I like the cafe atmosphere. Quiet

Food was not bad however customer service (the female manager) was terribly poor. Have that attitude in the Melbourne coffee scene and you’ll be finished.<br/><br/>Also no tap water offered at all....

*3.5 stars* The special hot chocolate here is great. Its fun to stir and pour the chocolate in yourself. The seating we had was a bit awkward, but okay.

The cafe lives up to its name with the amount of shelves here. You can get all your signature cafe staples here and the prices are reasonable.<br/><br/>The eggs they do here are eggscellent(see what I did there?). They are smooth and creamy and not over done. The coffee here is so rich, creamy and velvety.<br/><br/>Everything was well presented and all good ingredients.

Great place to catch up with friends, food is delicious. Presentation is amazing and it taste scrumptious. The detox juice is so good. I had the waffles with ice cream which full of sugary goodness. My friend ordered the cauliflower salad, the dressing complimented the salad well. I will return for the shakes 💯🙌🏾

Nestled just 5 minuets walk from sky city the shelf is easy to get to and provides delicious food, the cafe its self is fairly small, we had a group of 7 and unfortunately had to sit at two different tables, as they were only set up in groups of two or four which wasn’t a major as they where close together. The food however was devine and got to us promptly, the belgian waffles were sweet but paired with the fruit where not too sickening and the hot chocolates where done with real chocolate 👌🏼 some of the staff could have been a tad friendlier otherwise a great place for brunch/lunch 😊

Came here for brunch with a friend recently. The decor here is cool. The entire place has a relaxed chill vibe. It’s clean and modern and overall a nice place for brunch. I ordered a classic eggs benedict with bacon and spinach whilst my friend had the French toast. Serving sizes are pretty good, both of us left feeling almost uncomfortably full. The eggs bene was really good, pretty standard. The French toast was rather sweet and did get a bit sickly by the end but the first few bites were amazing. The coffee was good. I really enjoyed the matcha latte, it was creamy and sweet with a definite matcha taste. The presentation of the food is also really nice. Service was super efficient and friendly.

Fantastic coffee and food. Friendly staff with beautiful smile. Warm and Cozy! Highly recommend! Barista skill is good! Even cabinet food is lovely.

Their Mocha was amazing! Coffee came with a chocolate stick in there and some more chocolate on the side. Super cute. The place was very busy but quick service.

Awesome food and coffee! Friendly staff! Chicken pasta is really awesome! Price is good at city centre! Very accessible location along High St! Good place to chill out with mates!

Been here twice. first experience was better. Staff is kinda unfriendly and chaste sometimes. I ordered a smoothie once and it was nice but it just wasn't special enough to be so hyped about. I had a vege frittata and it was good, though. My second time coming, I ordered a Matcha Latte and it was gross. It had a powdery consistency. The quiche wasn't as good too because the eggs didn't even seem cooked. My friend ordered drinks we me there though and I guess there are some that look and taste better than others. Not a fan of the setting. It's pretty but too cramped.

Decided to go catch up with a friend over brunch today and I was pleasantly surprised. From the outside, it looks very busy and there was the assumption of a small premise but there is much more seating inside.<br/><br/>I ordered the eggs benedict with mushroom and spinach and a green tea latte, while my friend had the bacon and egg pie. Very generous amount of food, and asthetically pleasing as well. Will definitely visit again to try another dish.

Nice coffee. And nice food, I ordered an lamb which is different from other cafes. It surprised me. And inside of the cafe is unique in the town. Very nice decorations, a lot of funny stuffs on the shelves. And friendly staffs. Will come back again and try other things. <br/>

I love this little cafe! I ordered an almond croissant with a white hot chocolate and will definitely be coming back again. The presentation is amazing, and I love the theme of wood that runs through this cafe. Good, well presented food and drink, it's a bit on the expensive side but kind of expected for an alternative looking cafe in town with quality ingredients.

went for lunch with friends.the girl who served me was not friendly.she seems very cold when she took my order. I don't feel welcome to the place. food was average.

We came here over the weekend for brunch and ordered their mash mash and eggs benedict with bacon&spinach, as well as their special hot chocolate. Overall really happy with the food, hubby was happy with his mash mash, portions were generous and the flavours blended perfectly together. I love the eggs benedict too with a touch of beetroot sauce which elevates the flavours, and there's a lot of bacon in the plate which I'm happy for! Their hot chocolate was pretty good too, service was efficient and friendly but there's one girl who looked a bit grumpy but oh well I would too if I had to work on the weekends.

very cute and cosy cafe. food was presented beautifully and my scrambled eggs were cooked perfectly but will say they were a bit under seasoned for my liking.

A good place to grab some breakfast and the ambience would give you a positive vibe. The food served here is pretty fancy and as you would expect, the pricing is a bit premium. I think the quantity served is alright and would probably fill you up for the morning. So, if you like fancy breakfasts and are not too fussy about quantity and pricing, you should definitely visit this place!!

Cool place!<br/>The fresh orange juice was great. <br/>I also tried the Shelf’s breakfast which was alright. The sausages were delicious but overall it was a bit average. <br/>I’d be keen to try other things on the menu like the french toast, Belgium waffles, and the green omelette.

The Shelf is in a brilliant location on High Street, which I might as well consider my second home at this point. However, getting a table isn't always the easiest. Luckily somebody just got up in time and we managed a spot.<br/><br/>Staff told us we can sit, and it seemed they may bring the menus to us. We had to work with our schedule and hope to make it to our next class, so after a few minutes of waiting I got up and ordered at the counter.<br/><br/>We chose to share the Belgian waffles, adding vanilla ice cream to it. For the price split in half it doesn't really hurt either of us to fulfill our sweet tooth cravings. One waffle each disappeared quickly though, a third to halve would've been perfect.<br/><br/>The food did take a while to come out, and we ended up having to miss our class in the next hour because of the wait. (Not the end of the world, but it's worth a note that The Shelf might not be a good 'stop and go' choice for some)<br/><br/>This is my second time here, had waffles both times. Both times the food never failed me. It's just delicious.<br/><br/>I'll definitely be back at some point, maybe to try something else on their menu this time.

Wow! What a cute little shop this was. The interior decoration was ADORABLE!!! Couldn't possibly ask for more in the decorations, plus the staff were really nice and smily (can never go wrong with a place with happy staff)<br/><br/>Ordered the Mash Mash, Belgian Waffles, and also the Snow White Hot Chocolate.<br/>Let's just keep it and simple and say YUM! YUM! YUM!<br/>Everything was delicious and the beautiful presentation of the food made it almost too good to eat. (it was just that pretty mate), and OH HOW GENEROUS they are with the portion sizes, and overpriced at ALL. <br/><br/>When eating waffles and pancakes, my biggest fear is that I don't get enough sauce and then they go dry. UGH I hate that! BUT, don't you worry! At The Shelf plenty of chocolate sauce, maple syrup and candy floss are served with the waffles. Did I mention the amount of whipped cream I had?! WOHOO! Love a good tall pile of cream. If you have a sweet tooth like me. You're gonna love these waffles. <br/><br/>The Mash Mash wasn't eaten by me, but by my mum (although I had a little nibble). That slow-braised beef was so so SO good it was packed full of flavour. Even though I'm not much of a savoury person, this was good beef let me tell you that.<br/><br/>As for the Snow White Hot Chocolate, I have never come across anything like this. Very special. Basically it was hot chocolate with a bar of white chocolate. DO NOT be fooled, it is a BIG bar of white chocolate. Since the drink is hot, the bar slowly melts and sweetens your drink into more chocolately or you can take it out and bite into a delicious gooey half-melted piece of chocolate. YUM!<br/><br/>Yeah......can't really fault on it. Will definitely come back, and try some other things from the menu, and maybe from their cabinet as well. <br/><br/>XOXO

Probably the nicest place in cbd. Nice n quite. Good service. I have tried many of their dishes but their French toast and chicken fettuccine is my all time fav. Those creative smoothies are worth trying

Small place, pretty crowded in the afternoon. The wait time is short, presentation of food is nice. The lighting is not ideal for photos though haha I wish the place was more bright 😂 My friend had the green omelette which was all good, and I had the Belgian waffle which I thought was average and a tad bit too sweet because it was topped with heaps of chocolate sauce and cotton candy - but maybe someone with a sweet tooth might like it 😊 The seats are not the most comfortable since the place is quite small and near the booth seating area you can feel your seat shaking every time someone in the booth behind you sits down. But overall the staff are nice and food quality is good so it’s worth a try if you’re looking for a place to meet up for brunch with friends :)

Portions are a bit small but the taste of the food is amazing. Service is efficient and the decor is very cute. Great place to catch up with friends.

I enjoyed my smoked salmon pie and matcha latte. Other food on the menu also looked good. I’m not a fan of the fitout as I’d prefer more natural light but that’s just personal. I enjoyed the overall experience, service and probably would come back for the food.

I love this cafe, but coffee is not great anymore... the last few times, I couldn’t finish my coffee. <br/>Food and attention, always the best. :)<br/>

If you’re looking for top rate coffee then this is the place. Deliciously strong soy lattes with beautiful thick crema on top. Really nice layout and interior design. We will be back for sure!

Came here with a couple friends and shared 3 dishes. The atmosphere was very nice and quiet, a nice place to get away from studies and just chill and eat good food :) the lady who was working the til gave us a bit of attitude since we wanted to split the bill but it was alg coz they were a bit busy that day so like, relatable.

My colleague and I were having lunch today at The shelf and heard a girl screaming near the toilet area. All the staff members ignored it until we got up and wanted to know what was happening and went into the ‘do not enter area’. The manager Tony was in the toilet wIth one of the staff members and was physically abusing her. He came out of the toilet pretending that he was the one who got hurt. None of the staff members cared about the girl who then I spoke to and asked if she was hurt. The girl was terrified and she was in a bad state. Tony ran away soon after and the girl left too. We called the cops and reported the incident. So disappointed with all the male staff who were listening to the girl’s screaming and did not care. I would never ever go to this place as i can’t stand abuse on women and would not want to support a restaurant where a girl’s plea for help is ignored. <br/>Witnessing this incident has had such an impact on me. I just can’t get that girls terrified face out of my head.

Food is set out beautifully, loved the deconstructed ice chocolate, ambience is really great :) Nice instagrammable place to come with a friend, and food tastes great too.

Such a lovely unexpected place in the middle of High Street. Great service, fantastic atmosphere - you can try and absorb everything and still be there for ages. Everything is an experience, even just having s hot chocolate. They've really thought about the customer and you can see that in the way they operate. Truly impressed.

A bit disappointed. Now They just use regular ice instead of those made with coffee. I used to love to come here for iced latte. But now i may just go to other cafe as The shelf has just become ordinary and overpriced.

Personally not a fan, quality is tbh quite okay but it does not offer much, coffee is below par, dessert items some are way too sweet. Eggs benny are ok but yea

with my friends eat brunch～paste so nice～but omelet just so so～drink menu amazing～iced coffee and lemon tea i like^-^next time i will be taste another drink～

Taste: 🌕🌕🌗🌑🌑<br/>Interior Deco: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑<br/>Customer service: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗<br/>Recommend: 🌕🌕🌕🌑🌑<br/>Went three times prefer their dessert compares to their mains! Cute decorations but taste not bad but wasn't amazed! But staffs were pretty friendly and the place is pretty cute!

Starting to see alot of these trendy cafes opening up with flash ambience and their own unique way of presenting and serving their products.  Shelf is mainly beverage theme and didn't see many diners eating as i take  it's the drinks many come here for.<br/> I had the ice cold deconstructed cappo and instead of raw sugar, they provided sugar water and the coffee mix separated as per ones taste too. My other diners had a trendy looking smoothie loaded into a trendy looking jar for kids, see pics below.

Love this cute little cafe on High St. It had everything you’d want in a cafe dining experience. Great service, attentive staff, they cleared a table for us straight away, the drinks came out super quick. I had the hot chocolate, he had the ice cappuccino, niece had the organic banana smoothie. It’s presented with the coffee / hot chocolate separate from the milk. Great idea in that you can adjust the strength & taste yourself! What I love most is the ambience, the cute fun pretty shop decorations, beautiful fresh cut flowers, the attention to detail in food and overall cafe presentation. Only thing was the price. We didn’t order food as it would’ve mounted to quite a pricey brunch. Highly Instagram friendly. ☕️🍹

Came here in a rainy morning but the ambience is so warm and lovely. Good service. Nice decoration. Probably the most interesting to serve ice americano here. Would love to come here again.

This place is so cute! I’ve always seen reviews of it on Zomato and I finally got to try it! I ordered the jack sandwich and berry smoothie, which tasted amazing :) I would definitely recommend! This place is also super cute and the staff are super friendly and food came out pretty fast :)

When it ain't good enough you can't sugar coat it in any other way. This is yet another place that has failed to understand the concept of eating together. One person's food is here and it's been 20 minutes for another order. I can't say that it's difficult cause the item that showed up first was cabinet food. Poor judgment poor service. This place is officially on the shelf for life. Ps if you're feeling adventurous the waffles aren't half bad (i.e. 4/10).

One of the staff (don’t know her name) was so rude and unfriendly. I ordered egg on toast which was very plain and cold.<br/>Lots of cafes in High St and Lorne St, NEVER going to The Shelf anymore!

Had eggs bene was one of the top ones I’ve ever had. Got given a deconstructed hot drink which was great. Service was friendly and very fast. Cafe was tidy and great atmosphere

The service is pretty good and the food is alright - but better than average but most amazing. I quite liked their pasta dish however found their waffles kind of disappointing considering everyone seems to instagram it! Good location that's away from the main road though!

Very stylish little cafe on High Street. I like the simple decoration with wooden shelves and tiny flowers bottles on the table. We had the chicken & mushroom fettuccine and Special Breakkie from the kitchen which looked so nice and also very yummy. I'm impressed with the look of the scramble egg. I had a peak at the next table who had egg benedict and it looked so attractive. From the counter we had the chicken filo, my favourite and the smoked chicken +advocado sandwich. I found the dough a bit chewy but the filling was nice. The staffs are friendly and have stable barista skill. I have been here a few times and they never messed up my coffee :)

Food was really yummy, I asked for the gluten free eggs benedict with spinach. Ordered the bacon crispy which was great, I'm not a coffee drinker bit the other people who ordered said it was great. Coule have done with a bit extra sauce, the meal ended up bit dry towards the end and none of us finished our breakfast completely because of this. <br/>The gluten free bread was very thick and delicious.

The place has a nice atmosphere and the food was SOSOSOSO good would recommend coming again!! The staff members were attentive and said thank you when we were about to leave.

This place is for people who wants to catch up with friends and have some light snacks. If you're really hungry and decide to come here, you'll be spending quite a lot as the portions aren't very generous. The service here is always good despite the every day busy environment. The cakes from the cabinet suits a dessert lover as they taste amazing and the sweetness makes you want more than just one. The presentation of the dishes is photo-worthy for the snapchat posters out there. <br/><br/>Taste - 8.5/10<br/>Size - 6.5/10<br/>Quality - 8.5/10<br/>Price - 6.5/10<br/>Service - 7/10

Nice ambience, relaxing music, good food, excellent idea for the drinks (I really love it), and also thumbs up for the customer service! The staffs were friendly and they even let us borrow plates for the cake we bought somewhere else. We appreciate it. 😊

Came here a few years back and thought the cafe/restaurant was really cute and aesthetic (sorry don't have photos from then) however a little expensive. <br/>Now I understand the reason for their pricing. It is definitely worth it. I mean, just look at their decorations!! It's not all looks too, the taste is really good too. Wouldn't come here often but once in a while a brunch here with friends would be lovely. They are also exceptionally busy during lunch hours

Come at your own risk. You may not just get what you ordered.<br/><br/>Hit and miss is the best description I can think. I ordered the "Special brekkie" on two occasions and had two different plates presented to me. One was bountiful with 4 mushrooms a generous amount of bacon and what seemed like a 3-4 eff scrabble. The other time could be described more appropriately as the leftovers from somebody.

Loved this place! The Shelf is incredibly cute and cosy and always busy- be prepared to potentially wait as it's always in high demand. The drink and cabinetry selection is always really creative and interesting, haven't had menu items but am keen to soon!

Not really good it looks good but actually it was not anyway I wont go there again and staffs were unfriendly :-(<br/>nice photo though ........

The service here is efficient as you have to walk up to the counter and order and pay yourself. The food comes quite fast and the presentation is unique and nice. The food has a lot of flavour and the portions are decent. The restaurant itself is super cool with ornaments and different decorations everywhere.

I love how extra their coffee serving style is. I live for things this extra - so obviously I loved this place! The coffee was decent and tbh, I wasn't the happiest with the Oreo Monster Shake. Casa Del Gelato is so much better at Freakshakes. But regardless, their service is quick, the staff is friendly and the ambience is 5/5. I would totally go again and try their hot chocolate!

I've been struggling as to what score to give this place - despite having what I believe to be two of their only downsides, The Shelf is still a place I find myself returning to when I want a place to study with good food. <br/><br/>As I no longer drink coffee, I like to compare the hot chocolates available across all cafes I go to. I can confidently say that so far, The Shelf offers one of the best hot chocolates I've ever had. A thin chocolate bar is placed into the nicely steamed milk, and chocolate syrup is provided on the side. This is a fantastic idea as people can control the sweetness and chocolateyness of the drink themselves - I highly recommend this with soy milk. Last time I visited, my friend tried one of their freak shakes. It looked pretty good, except like almost other freak shakes out there it was simply an oreo thick shake topped with lots and lots of whipped cream and decorated with a few oreos. Personally, I wouldn't try it, but it sure does make for good instagram photos. <br/>Just today I also tried a Peach Iced Tea - this is perfect on a hot day or after a workout, though the price of $7.00 may put some people off. <br/><br/>The food here is also great - dare I say that the cabinet food may even be better than the food on the menu. The banana berry muffin is fluffy and moist, though there seems to be an absence of bananas or berries beyond the topping (still delicious though). I tried the Salmon and Cream Cheese Quiche today. It was served with a delicious caramelised onion jam with went really well with the smokiness of the salmon and richness of the cream cheese. I highly recommend this if nothing else on the menu appeals to you or if you want something smaller than what the menu offers. <br/><br/>We've also tried the Fettucine Chicken Pasta and Waffles The pasta was fairly average and tasted like you'd imagine, but the portion size was good for its price. The waffles might as well rename themselves to diabetes, given how much sugary stuff was on it. For those with a major sweet tooth, the waffles would definitely satisfy you with its chocolate and strawberry syrups, bananas, and fairy floss on top. <br/><br/>What I love most about The Shelf is its ambiance. The place is awesomely decorated (I love the little items in each shelf segment and what I presume to be portraits of the staff) and it gives off a cozy, homey feel. There is also free wifi (Password: billionaire) though it gets fairly loud here sometimes so I would only recommend coming here to study during the quieter hours. <br/><br/>Overall service is prompt and staff are professional. You don't have to wait long for coffee or cabinet food. The presentation is also very nice - I love the assortment of cutlery they have, like the little hand sticks in iced drinks or the crocodile/alligator knife for muffins. <br/><br/>Two things I dislike about The Shelf: occasional bad service and lack of clarity on the menu. Sometimes, I feel as if service is slightly dismissive as the staff member gives off a vibe of being fed up. Attitudes like this always make me feel uncomfortable and remain in my mind through the rest of my meal. I believe it would be better if some staff members were friendlier than what I've experienced. <br/>The prices on the menu are also fairly confusing for me - some items don't have any 'prices' (numbers) at the end of them and I really hate having to clarify at the counter or be surprised when I'm paying. <br/><br/>Overall, The Shelf is a lovely place that I believe everyone should try out at least once. Don't overlook the cabinet food simply for being cabinet food - I think they're even better than what's on offer on the menu. Be prepared to spend a little above average cafe prices for good quality food here.  Will definitely be back again :)<br/><br/>Recommended: Salmon and Cream Cheese Quiche, Special Hot Chocolate.

Love the aesthetic of this place. Things are served very nicely often on wooden boards, and the decor inside is very nice. <br/>The mocha and hot chocolates are served with a stick of Whittakers chocolate and a small shot glass of melted chocolate so you can adjust the intensity of the chocolate, cabinet food was cheap for the size, and overall looked amazing. I really recommend the drinks.

Love the breakfast menu. And their cute signature style of drink presentations. A little pricey. The service is good except I always feel like they will judge you once you've made your order. Especially if there are first time comers. Please bare in mind to always help those in need. No matter how "different" they look than you

Is a lovely place with very cute decorations, great space to have catch up with friends. I have been to the shelf on numerous occations, but unfortunately I didn't the cake or the 'coffee' that I ordered from this visit. <br/>Blueberry cheesecake (2.5/5)<br/>It looks like any other cheesecake, it has a smooth texture to the cheese which I liked. But the cake lacked the blueberry taste. I could barely taste the blueberry taste in the cake. If I didn't see the tag as blueberry cheesecake, I wouldn't have guessed. <br/>Golden latte (1/5) <br/>That 1 point is for the cute little gingerbread man which is really cute. But the drink was horrible, the worst I had...i only took 2 sip and that's it. To be fair, I didn't order with a shot of coffee which might have made it better, but with just milk is pure revolting. It shouldn't even be on the menu. I love their coffee and this drink ruins it. <br/>Caramel latte (4.5/5)<br/>Smell great, presentation was 5/5 and I like how I get to mix the syrup into my coffee by myself. The milk was steam silk smooth so it's a great cup of coffee.

I have been here a couple of times already with my friend. We both love the coffee here and I like their cheesecake. I havent tried meals here but my friend told me that most of the time they serve it in a wood plate so I'm not really keen to try it due to hygiene purposes.

Took us a while to venture into here at first but since then have become semi- frequent customers, so to speak. Firstly upon entering the staff welcome you and i felt the atmosphere within very welcoming and relaxing. It has small tables for two near the door, some more like bar tops and stools and at the rear of the cafe some small booths. The decor is kinda neat too and i would not say no to it in my house....shelves and more shelves, the menus are bound in wooden binders and on one shelves an array of different coffee implements are displayed. The menu for cold and hot drinks has also been drawing on the wall opposite the counter in cartoon form. It shows that , as displayed on the wall , this cafe has some of the best baristas in the country ( numerous barista competition awards are displayed ). Talking of the baristas they have cartoon like face potraits displayed on the wall. . On one occasion I ordered a cappuccino and my other half a Shelf homemade lemon ginger tea, both well presented and sitting there i noticed a couple getting an order that came over as a small jug of milk, glass with ice, and small shot glasses of coffee etc.This turned out that this is how they served thier iced coffees..you get given the " ingredients " and mix as you wish. Being a coffee-holic and unable to resist , despite having just had a cappuccino i ordered an iced macchiato ,and out it came, mixed it all up and turned out one delicious concoction. Have eaten a little here...including a full breakast which is served on like the old wooden chopping board . That was top notch. Plus have tried a few of their sweet delights including the tiramisu which was pretty good.In all, top marks for the service , drinks and the atmosphere. I could have sat there all day if i could have. Well worth it.

The Service was really good. The food which I ordered was delicious. I also ordered hot chocolate which was different style and tasted really good. Would recommend my friends.

Usually come here after uni but have noticed an drop in the service each time we come. The coffee has always been excellent and this continues but the last two times I have been (last Wednesday 19th and today 26th July) the food as been lacklustre. The cheesecake I had was a bit old and had a skin on the outside of it but it was not too bad. Today I was charged $2 for a small side of aioli and had to ask for the onion jam that was meant to come with the smoked salmon quiche. These things are OK but what really lets The Shelf down is the poor attitude of the guy on the till, perhaps better suited to a non speaking role such as barista, he has never smiled or been friendly and as the person who takes your money, you expect a bit more friendliness.

Used to be one of my go to's cafe in Lorne street before I started expanding my horizon. Still a cute little place. Highly recommend to check it out :D

Pretty and unique atmosphere, food was nicely presented and fast despite it being busy! Friendly staff too. Not super affordable for what you get but not too bad and would go back~

Went there saturday morning, great service.<br/>didnt wait long for foid to arrive, love their hot chocolate, looked so fancy! Had a big break fadt and egg benefict.

I've been here twice, first was for my waffle breakfast then lunch on the second visit. Great atmosphere and clever multipurpose decoration of shelves. I was sick the second time i went here but they didn't fail to disappoint my appetite

The cafe had good reviews so I decided to check it out. It's quite hidden and I have never noticed it before. It looks cozy inside and we felt comfortable. We sat down at a table and waited for a while until we realised it was counter service (a friendly hint from the staff would have been nice). I had eggs benedict with bacon and spinach. It was alright but definitely not great. The bagel was so dry that I couldn't even cut it. They added a few spinach leaves, more for decoration then anything else. <br/>We also had some sweet squares from the cabinet. They looked nice however, the base was so dry that it was impossible to eat it with a fork. It just seemed the items were sitting in the cabinet for quite some days. <br/>I was very disappointed with the service. Although there was staff going forth and back, bringing food and drinks, they didn't seem to keen on cleaning tables. We were sitting next to our dirty plates for ages until I asked someone to clean it. Also other tables where customers had already left didn't get cleared and it didn't look nice to sit next to a messy table which attracts even more birds coming in.<br/>Coffee and tea was nice and the way things were presented was nice too. But the overall experience was so average that I won't go back.

Food is ok at the shelf, but service very average to bad! Had shocking experience from one guy behind counter with tattoos! So rude and not helpful at all! Everything was just to hard for him, rather be on his phone! Wouldn't go back again because if this experience.

Awesome place to go to, great service and, great food. This place has never disappointed me and is always clean. Loves it, would defs go again.

The Shelf is an absolutely adorable cafe that'll make any gloomy day that much more brighter! It has a cute aesthetic that's perfect for solo study seshes as well as group hang outs ❤ their sodas are gorgeous, as are their coffees and I've been impressed by the food everytime! Jack's Favourite Sandwich comes with potato chips (not fries) which I thought was super cute and quite clever. The waffles and the Quinoa Salad are also amazing (the salad is very satisfying, perfect if you're eating healthy). Great stuff, team!

Fav brunch spot in Auckland! The food was amazing and hencustomer service was also great. They have a lot to choose from so it was great for a picky eater like myself!

Love how fast service this place is especially when you are on a fast lunch break. Amazing food and service. Nice little shop, did take us awhile to find.

Have been to Shelf for breakfast quite often. Usually my go-to place for Eggs Benedict or their Special Breakie.<br/>The service is fine, what you would expect from your average cafe. <br/>The food is really nice, most of their stuff is cooked just how I want it, and is a pleasure to eat. However at times the food can feel like it's a little bit cold, nothing is ever piping hot. <br/>The entourage is quite pleasant, you get a different table style depending if you sit closer to the front or deeper inside.<br/><br/>Would recommend to go here at least once if you get the chance, a really pleasant eatery.

Came with friends a while back - it may look tiny on the outside but don't let that deceive you - there are plenty of seats inside! Had the eggs benedict which was served quite fast - yummy but nothing special that I can recall about it. Lovely to pop in for a quick lunch if you're in the area but plenty to check out nearby!

I really enjoyed my breakfast this morning. Nicely tucked away down the back of the cafe I had loads of time and space to sit and research without interruptions. I don't drink coffee often but they are good so for anyone that enjoys a good espresso I'd highly recommend The Shelf. The interior of the building is beautifully laid out and my waffles and fruit juice was Devine. Keep up the good work 😋

Usually go here for business meetings. They make a great hot chocolate that has a stick of Whitakers chocolate in it. Love the teapots that the tea come in! They make the best savoury muffins I've had yet!

There was a small plastic lid that had fallen in my food during its preparation, and I almost swallowed it.<br/>This was extremely unhygienic and extremely worrying in respect to the standard of food prep here, not to mention I could have choked.<br/><br/>I pointed this out to a member of staff who came past the table, who reached onto my plate, picked it up, and mumbled 'sorry', before going off back to the kitchen. No other apology or compensation offered, I was pretty dumbfounded... I'm still pretty horrified by their reaction. Obviously its just a mistake, but I would expect this to be handled a lot differently, and certainly not reaching onto my plate with his fingers, and then expecting me to continue eating.<br/><br/>So on that fact alone, Im not even going to review anything else...

The original cool cafe on High St. It used to have Auckland's best barista, who last time I saw him was down on Shortland St, however I can still confirm the coffee here is exceptional and is right up there with the best coffee houses in Auckland. All the food and drinks here are presented beautifully and it is worth coming here just for this.... Sports a funky interior fit out and makes for a relax cafe vibe.

This place is so awesome! So much creativity and fun decor. I got the French toast and a mocha and my friend got a flat white. Love the food and coffee! Thanks guys :))

I like their food& coffee!<br/>I've been here couple of times and never got disappointed. Plus, their nice plating of food always pleasant my eyes first, and then surprise me with the good taste.<br/>But.. don't sit at the booth, not as cosy as they look like. A bit too narrow and could feel every movement of people who sit with you back to back...

It was peak hour when we came at around 11:30. <br/>I ordered the Moroccan Lamb Salad, and my friend got the Belgian Waffles with extra of ice cream, seasonal fruit and bacon. <br/><br/>The Moroccan lamb was cooked to perfection! Never had Lamb that good anywhere else before, it took me by surprise! The mustard seed and avocado purée sauce worked heavenly with a bite of the roast vegetables as well! The pita bread was crispy on the outside and fluffy inside--can't fault it. <br/><br/>The waffles were nice and crispy on the outside and fluffy inside, the syrup was generous and the vanilla bean ice cream was of high quality, unlike some where it's just low quality ice cream. If there's one thing to fault, it would be that the bacon was a bit too tough to cut through, it was almost like jerky, but hey I like chewing so it was fine for me. <br/><br/>Price can be a bit expensive though but worth it!<br/>Price: 8/10<br/>Food: 10/10<br/>Service: 9/10 <br/>Ambience: 9/10

we got the chicken fettuccine, when we first had it it was great but it felt a little too creamy and thick...would've been better if we had a drink but they confiscated our drink bought from somewhere else 😳 food was very filling and place was nice though

Very friendly and courteous staff, ki quon especially. One of our favorite places for breakfast, only place that can actually poach a creamy egg properly. <br/><br/>Also their ice chocolate is amazing.

One of the best cafe in the Auckland CBD . I have been walking on high st at so many times but I didn't notice there is a cafe until today.<br/><br/>I order a special shelf brunch with sausage, mashroom, tomato, French toast n poached eggs.<br/><br/>Everything taste just amazing.

Wow what a cafe! Been here for breakfast a few times already, and their food is amazing.Not only is it well plated (so pretty!! Instagram heaven!), the food tastes amazing. <br/><br/>So far, I've had their Waffles, French Toast with extra bacon and was really surprised by how happy the dishes made me. Just goes to show how much presentation makes a difference to the dining experience. <br/><br/>The waffles were a smidgen undercooked (which is why I didn't give this place a full 5), but the bacon (which I requested for it to be extra crispy) was perfect! <br/><br/>I also ordered a mocha which was served as a coffee with a whitakkers chocolate bar + a small potter of chocolate syrup that you could pour in to your liking. I didn't like the coffee, even though I thought the concept was really neat. I might've poured too much chocolate syrup as my drink was way too sweet for me (I only poured half btw). I might give their coffee another go next time, but without any chocolate syrups etc. <br/><br/>Also, their cabinet food looks amazing! So many options, and they all look so pretty. I'll definitely come back often. <br/><br/>

My wife loves it here. Asian fused Cafe. <br/><br/>I'm a black coffee guy. So not into the fancy stuff when it comes to coffee. The environment is relatively nice. I enjoyed the muffin too.<br/><br/>Staff are busy, but at the same time friendly and organized. <br/><br/>Environment: 4/5<br/>Food Quality: 4.5/5<br/>Food Quantity: 4/5<br/>Service: 4/5<br/>Price: $20pp<br/><br/>

First impressions last forever. The small things make big impressions.<br/>This cozy little cafe will not disappoint.<br/>I'm a self proclaimed coffee addict and this cafe made my flat white on point. I hate it when cafes don't know the difference between a latte and a flat white!<br/>The food was good but nothing amazing (probably because I ordered a generic big breakfast), but the presentation was great and definitely made the experience better.<br/>They play classical music in the background!<br/><br/>Go for a relaxing breakfast or brunch!

Horrible. Who makes their customers sit in the store area? Are you dumb or something? We left. Your cafe sucks and your staff are unfriendly.Boo to you! Worse than Coffee Club by heaps.

Cute platter and water bottle, right? I had Italian salami and amond stuffed olives sandwich. The water bottle is complimentary, because I didn't order any coffee. I already drink too much coffee/tea at work. . Surely one of the requirements of a good workplace is having many good eating places close by. My workplace definitely is not too bad in this aspect. Always a sucker for newly opened cafes, I had to try the narrow but long cafe that has recently opened on High Street, Auckland: the Shelf.

I've had my first Salmon Bagel in this cozy cafe. It has that vibrant and young appeal to customers. Food cabinet/shelf is always looking fresh and delicious. Always busy and service is always prompt. Looking forward to more visits in this place. 👀

Absolutely loved it. Though the space is small but they have made the best use of it. Perfect ambience for a coffee house. And the place has tempting coffee and relish bites.

First time experience was great. I was very excited and had always been looking forward to their cool creations. Left feeling very satisfied. Good service, good taste. It is a must!

Got the B.L.T and Belgian waffles. It was pretty tasty and the atmosphere was cool! I didn't get a chance to try the shakes but they looked really good<br/>

My favourite cafe in Auckland CBD<br/><br/>Every time I have visited Auckland I have always always always stopped at The shelf for a bite. This is one of the most creative cafes I have been to and the food is always above average! (Including the drinks).<br/><br/>The service is great and the presentation of the food will never fail to surprise me!

The shelf is probably one of the most interesting cafe i've been to lately. I absolutely love the quirky decor, the scientific contraption for their cold brew was definitely an eye catcher, and the cabinet food display is definitely impressive. <br/><br/>We were there to celebrate our last day of work, the staff seated us promptly, however since none of us had been there before we didn't know that we must order at the counter and none of the staff actually said anything until we asked. <br/><br/>The food was on the pricier side, I think $21 for a steak sandwich was quite expensive, even for high street. The food was pretty good though so im not going to complain too much about it 😁. One of the girl in our group ordered a plate of waffles, for some reason that dish took forever to arrive. <br/><br/>Overall we had a good time, and I think everyone enjoyed their food. I'm keen to go back to try their cabinet foods and coffee.

Coffee: Bit on the bland side, especially the flat white. The milk froth on top was the perfect texture though. Didn't get to see which coffee bean they use. <br/><br/>Environment: Lovely cute environment with "shelves"<br/><br/>Staff: Friendly, but almost had too many staff that they kept coming up multiple times within short periods to try take our cups away (cafe wasn't full ,nor close to closing time, nor did we stay long)

My friend took me here for the first time. A very comfy cafe and the hot chocolate was amazing, you don't get to find an extra chocolate stick in your beverage these days. The cafe is just a bit hard to notice for people passing by.

Loved the decor and ambience of this place. There is cafe tables, bar stools/tables, picnic tables and cubicles for private/work, to suit all types of customers. Had a great selection of food and drinks & cabinet food, and the staff boys were just lovely with great service. Had coffee and breaky here. Food & drinks were super ace too.

Came here today for some lunch with my mum. Immediately the staff were really welcoming! Both my mum and I ordered the poached eggs on toast, and we both thoroughly enjoyed them - they were cooked perfectly and just the right portion size. Mum also got a hot chocolate, which was served really uniquely and she couldn't get enough of it! I had a banana smoothie, and whilst it was nice, there wasn't much of a banana flavour to it, so I wouldn't get that again. Interior decor was sweet and our meals were served less than 10 minutes from when we ordered them. Will definitely come again and totally recommend for a brunch or lunch!

The Shelf's hype is gone but their food is still good. I usually order the pancakes or the BLT. The prices are pretty good and portions are enough. Coffee is average, the Ines that you make yourself are exciting but still average. The interior is cool although once you get to the back end it is too tight for everyone to fit in.

Went to the Shelf for brunch and ordered the homemade waffles whilst my friend had ordered a toasted bagel. I felt that the waffles were really filling and had the perfect amount. It was fluffy, light and decadent and the ambience of the cafe was comforting. Would love to come here again.

Went here for brunch. The service was very friendly & welcoming. Ordered a flat white & eggs benedict with salmon. The flat white was too watery for my liking. The eggs benedict was very tasty, the. only fault was the hollandaise was very watery. I'll be back, as the rest of the menu & cabinet food looks divine.

Today it was my second visit for lunch and both meal were great. The food was delicious and it was well presented. I'd definitely like to come again and try out other dishes as well.

Such an interesting place to dine. Very unique and the food tastes fresh. One of my favourite places to stop by for brunch. Their waffles are amazing! Highly recommend!

The design of place is different and interesting. The seating at the back is a bit weird though and I found that the staff kind of forgets about you cause your squashed at the back. I ordered the eggs bene which was okay and a iced chocolate and it was served very cool but didn't taste that amazing. Wouldn't bother going back, have been and found better places around the CBD area.

" Elegant " is the word I would say...was a little difficult for us to locate the place as not being a local... But the struggle was worth it... The avocado chicken sandwich & the shelf's special breakfast was worth a try ..... mocha and the spicy chai was really good... to be honest... It's a wonderful place to start your day..... 10 on 10 for the serving staff as well as the decor ....A perfect breakfast joint . Kudos to you all keep it up ... Would love to visit again .

Great little coffee place with divine mushroom and bread brunch. Mocha comes out as a spectator drink with chocolate stick that melts as you drink. Will come again

This place is a treat for my husband and I when we're craving good coffee and something sweet. It's located on High Street in Auckland CBD at the base of the Metropolis building. <br/>We love to come for brunch on the weekends. The staff are super friendly and attentive. The atmosphere is nice and homey, the music is always good and the decor is sooo cute!  <br/>The deconstructed iced mocha is creatively presented to you with the chocolate, espresso, milk, etc. in separate cups for you to prepare yourself. It is absolutely delicious! <br/>I also love the affogato as you can never go wrong with coffee and ice cream. It's delightful every time. :) The waffles are my absolute favorite. They are thin and perfectly crispy with just the right amount of maple syrup, chocolate and powdered sugar. Yum!!!

A very beautiful cafe located in narrow lane called high street. food is on point - we ordered: <br/>- the regular homemade waffles, homemade waffles w seasonal fruits: came with maple syrup and cream. loved it as it wasn't hard and dry compared to other cafes. <br/>- B.L.T: serving was big, very filling.<br/>- Plum meringue<br/>- Carbonara: very tasty creamy, lots of crispy bacon and mushrooms.<br/>- Homemade Peach Iced tea: i totally recommend this drink as it is very refreshing. <br/>However, with the narrow space of the cafe it is highly unlikely that it'll be able to accomodate big groups. But Overall, I recommend you try this place yourself.

This is the perfect place to have a coffee catch-up if you are ever around this area. I ordered a waffle and a mocha this time round. I'm am always impressed with the presentation and what you get for each serving. Each mocha is accompanied with a stick of dark chocolate and if you need an added sugar boost, there is a small shot of chocolate sauce. The waffle was perfectly made with a good spread of chocolate sauce, a generous serving of whipped cream and maple syrup. It was amazing! <br/><br/>Whilst there are ample seats around, it won't necessarily fit a large group. Most of the seatings are suited for 2 adults. <br/><br/>Highly recommended!

Simply one of the best cafe in town!!Food is always consistently great, and nothing ever gone wrong with the coffee. The place itself is comfortable, and as a cafe, the service was also really good.<br/>Though the portion of their Creamy Mushroom is kinda small for $15, but it was so delicious. I added some bacon with it, and it was amazing!<br/>Would love to try some other food and maybe cabinet food next time.

At first I was going to rate 5 stars, because this place serves the best coffee I've ever had in Auckland. I ordered a soy flat white and it was creamy, full bodied and bold all at the same time. Also, it was an actual, proper, real deal flat white (ie: no fluffy foam, just crema on top) which is something I really yearn for as a former barista. <br/><br/>I've started coming here regularly on my morning tea break - often opting for my soy flat white and slice of the dark chocolate tart which is to die for. When opting for takeaway I am always given a wooden knife, which I much prefer to plastic alternatives, and then dining in they serve your food on cute round boards with adorable animal utensils that really suit the playful atmosphere. The interior decor is like a modern playhouse, very energetic and bright while managing to still come across as stylish. I love it! In addition to all of this, the staff are vibrant and incredibly friendly - be sure to pay them a visit.

Order latte and quoina salad. It's really fresh and good!!!!!!! The environment is cute and sweet. Hiding in the narrow lane, it's a surprise !!!!! It's my first brunch in Aucland! It totally refreshes me:)

If you want somewhere where you know you will get good food the shelf is the go too!! I remember coming here when they first open and they've defiantly boomed in the busyness area - we waited about 25 minutes for our food :) but the food is a treat! Thanks team

Eggs Benedict is pretty good, open chicken sandwich is decent. <br/>The carbonara is not real, traditional carbonara and it suffers as a result. The dish was served extremely hot which would destroy a legitimate attempt. It's some weird bastardisation; there was no evidence of Parmigiano-Reggiano, made with linguine instead of spaghetti and worst of all it was swimming in oil. I ended up feeling quite ill a few hours later.One other gripe I have is that they are completely incapable of serving the table's dishes all at the same time or even within a few minutes of each other so at least one poor sod has to sit there watching everyone else eat.

Good food & good service!!! Such a cute and chill environment to catch up with friends! The presentation of their food is amazing, will always come back for their waffles💛

I've always wanted to visit this place because I've heard heaps from it and I finally had a chance to. The decor and ambience was great, the music suited the style of this place. I tried the eggs benedict and it was delicious. Also my sister had chicken and mushroom pasta. It was a delicious flavour but in the end of our meal we found a short black hair at the bottom of the plate. We both had long hair with blonde ends.

Man... so disappointed by this place as I've been wanting to go in every time I walked by the store, as I was attracted by its visual atmosphere seen from outside. I ordered a drink and a slice of cake, the presentation of which is pretty good. BUT the service is TERRIBLE, neither friendly nor warm - no service at all in the beginning until later asked for it and got sort of an attitude from the girl, which makes me wonder if the staff enjoy working there at all. Certainly not gonna go back again, not even when I don't have a choice. That's how bad the experience is.

Not a great photo and only had a coffee with my mother. Exceeds expectations coffee was lovely with the extra effort of chocolate sauce and a whole chocolate bar in my coffee. Neat setting and lovely staff 😊😊😊

A beautiful cafe with great ambience! The perfect place to do work or catch up with friends. <br/><br/>The cakes and other food are generally delicious and visually tantalising! <br/><br/>They have excellent customer service to boot!

Went here because of the hype, it was okay for a quick dessert but didn't see what the hype was all about. <br/><br/>The food was okay & so was the beverage. <br/><br/>Although I did like their setting & the boards they serve on

Everything was well presented and the place was very tidy and clean. Little on the expensive side, but that's expected in town. Food tasted good, could have used a little more avocado though on the salmon and avocado bagel.

My friends and I were in the city for brekkie and The Shelf was our top choice. I heard good things and this place had great online reviews. The place is super cool, awesome decor, and I loved the paintings on the walls. The staff were really friendly and helpful. I settled on eggs bene with bacon and mushroom, and a deconstructed hot chocolate. Our drinks came nice and quick. Really cool idea and soo yummy, my milk could have been hotter but very minor complaint. Our food came out not much later and looked great on the plate. My eggs very perfectly poached and had plenty of bacon. A touch more hollondaise would have been nice.<br/>Great first experience at The Shelf, will definitely be back. The good looking waiter was definitely appreciated too!

The staff are super friendly and the food is so creatively displayed. Everything tastes amazing. This is definitely one of my favourite places to get breakfast

Had the steak open sandwich here one time. The food was nice but the sandwich kept falling apart which owes the lack of careful preparation by the staff. The prices are too high for what you're getting. It should be about half to three-quarters of the price to be reasonable. <br/><br/>The staff were relatively nice and the environment is pretty good. However, the seats don't feel that great since you're paying about $20 for a lunch here. The tend to rattle and squeak as other people sit down.

Came here last week and the ambiance is unique... I ordered their iced white chocolate and it was a superb... Love the taste not too sweet.. I want to try their unique do it yourself iced chocolate or mocha but I already ordered one... Waffles with seasonal fruit was really yummy, topped with kiwi, orange, and grape fruits... Highly recommended and definitely coming back...

The Shelf is a nice place in city central to hang out with friends, to have some snacks or drinks. Their food are not impressive but I love the atmosphere here 😊 Not a big fan of the deco because I like a more minimalistic theme, but the place is still nicer than a lot of cafes in city.<br/><br/>When it first opened, I came for brunch, I ordered the egg benedict and iced chocolate. I remembered because I hated both. The bread of the egg benedict was thick and hard to eat, and there was too much sauce which made everything soggy. The iced chocolate was quite bitter and bland. In a nutshell, not a good first impression. The second time I came here and ordered their waffles, plus a mango smoothie I think. The waffles was decent, though far from the best I've had. But the smoothie was dense and too sweet. I felt a bit disappointed.<br/><br/>Recently I visited this place again and tried their tea. I was surprised because it was perfect and beautifully presented. My friend ordered creamy chicken pasta but it didn't look appealing to me. However she seemed to enjoy it. Anyway like I said before, the ambience of the place is great and the customer service is always excellent. Also now I have another place in town for a nice cup of tea while hanging out with my friends. So, do check out The Shelf for yourself 😉

Quiet and vibrant little spot on High Street. Coming in, I must admit it did feel a little cramped however the service was attentive.<br/><br/>I ordered a iced chai latte, which was presented wonderfully and really satisfied my thirst.<br/><br/>The layout is fresh and clean. I would gladly come back for a coffee, although the prices are on the higher side.<br/><br/>Showstopper: Good job on presentation. It seems like they really care about the aesthetics.<br/><br/>Overall Grade: B. I look forward to my return.

The best coffee shop I'd been to for these days!My friends and I enjoy the Mocha with chocolate relish and smooth blueberry cheesecake !Wonderful!! The environment is also amazing, this is a Korean shop and there are many flowers decorations, I believe the owner of the shop should be the one who loves life.✨☕️💟

1. Open Chicken Sandwich (however, minus the bread). I also asked to add an additional 2 poached eggs on the side with hollandaise sauce. Poached eggs were done really well, firm outside & running on the inside. The cranberry compote complimented the brie cheese on the chicken. Hollandaise was a bit of a disappointment to me. Not so flavourful to my likings. <br/>2. My friend had the Salmon Benedict, and it was made with Fresh Salmon which was a bonus! Most cafes would have use smoked Salmon. There drink menu is very unique! Display & presentation is a thumbs up 👍🏻 from my observation. Good vibe, to sum it up, I think it is a unique cafe & worth a visit even if its not for the food.

■ Good presentation<br/>■ Good location<br/>■ Huge variety<br/><br/>■ On the pricey end<br/>■ Limited seating<br/>■ Quite busy<br/><br/>One of the more stylish looking eateries in the CBD. The interior decor definitely adds to its lighthearted and playful atmosphere! It's mostly the small details that set them apart from a lot of the other cafes Ive been to - like the way they present their cups & teapots or the little sand timers they add with your Peppermint tea so you know it's ready.  Cute!! You can tell they put a lotta love and effort to give you a nice experience. I gotta give away most of my rating for presentation alone :D<br/><br/>Their DIY drinks are quite popular and Ive enjoyed the idea of putting together my own iced chocolate or mocha. Cabinet food is standard and I havent tried their brunch menu but I recommend their Chicken Fettuccine and Carbonara - although it's pricey, you get what you pay for portion and flavourwise. Vibrant and friendly staff too. Definitely worth dropping in to try their specialty drinks and smoothies!

Amazing coffee, lovely service and the food is so consistently perfect. The price is very reasonable especially for the quality of the food

Husband and I came for breakfast, love the decor and vibe of the place!<br/><br/>We came around 9am, perhaps it was still too early in the morning, the cabinet was more than half empty so we had to order from the menu :( Wanted to order their 'oreo monster' but were also informed they don't do it anymore :(<br/><br/>The waffles were very well made - crisply on the outside, soft and pillowy on the inside, super tasty served with berry compot and whipped cream. The concept of the iced chai latte and chocolate were very interesting, though taste wise it was just okay.<br/><br/>All in all the food was average, pricing is on the higher side, though the service was super friendly and the cafe is really quirky, so still a suitable place for hanging out with friends :(

Has to be one of the best cafés in town. Beautiful decor and always quite busy. The mocha is incredibly indulgent and the cabinet is full of delicious treats.

My visit to this cute little cafe was amazing, I was catching up with my friends and this places allows you stay for as long as you want. Very interestingly decorated drinks and very flavorsome hot chocolate were my favorite part of the experience.

The decor and the vibe in the cafe is really good. The cubicles are a nice space though if you are sitting in the chairs area, you might be too close to the other table. The seasonal fruit juice and the other items in the counter are all really good. However portion sizes for the meals on the menu are quite small for the price.

One of my greatest little discoveries. Cosy, simple but interesting ambience. Super tasty food served in a picture perfect way. I'm a french toast maniac and didn't leave disappointed either. Always happy to revisit!

Great coffee and service. Very cute little place on high street. <br/>I had the French Toast with fruits which was very nice. Would definitely visit again

First of all, foods here are way too expensive when comparing to its quality.<br/>The eggs Benedict came out with two sets of bread with SOME spinach and mushroom which was a half size of the bread.<br/>The overall quality of the benedict was so bad that I did not finish.<br/>Also,I tried here because it looked pretty and nice, but the hygiene did not look good.<br/>I saw a staff making some drink and she used her fingers to pick up fruits from container and put it in the jar.<br/>PLUS she was talking to a guy across the counter speaking in their language while making that drink.<br/>You never know whether her spits have gone into that drink or not.<br/>Staffs there were very nice and kindly but the way they talk in their language while receiving order also bothered me.<br/>I don't know whether I was just being too sensitive or not but the overall experience here were too bad for me.<br/>Such a disappointment... I wouldn't recommend this place to the people around me.

I went to the shelf with a friend and my baby. The staff were super helpful, giving us the end table so we could park the pram and it not be in the way. We had smoothies and they were amazing. The staff were super friendly and gave us really good service. I will defiantly making a return there.

I went to shelf today lunch time and one of the waitress was so rude. She was telling me off that there is no table and gave me a rude look. She didnt even ask me whether im going to order or not. I know that you guys were busy but i dont think its appropriate attitude to have to customer.

This place is one of the new trendies located right on the top of High Street.<br/><br/>We had eggs benedicts with mushrooms, toasts with salmon, ice tea and a long black.<br/><br/>Food was quite good and staff were really nice as well.<br/><br/>Pros:<br/>+ Nice vibe<br/>+ Free internet<br/>+ Good food<br/>+ Good services (friendly people)<br/>+ Nice environment<br/>+ Variety of options on the menu<br/><br/>Cons:<br/>- Very small<br/>- Very busy

Trying to find breakfast in the city is one of my biggest battles and this little joint was one a couple of friends and I tried out. <br/><br/>I'm fairly sure we all ordered the eggs benedict and to be fair it wasn't too bad, pretty standard for a cafe eggs benny. The hot chocolates were deconstructed which is a personal pet peeve of mine as it always cools down in the process of making it yourself but if that's your thing then this is the place to go. <br/><br/>Staff were friendly enough however there was quite a heavy language barrier which proved a little difficult when I was significantly overcharged and had to be refunded. <br/><br/>Nice interior, quite a few different design ideas going on but it's a nice vibe all the same.

I ordered a snowhite hot choc i think? My white hot choc a bit too sweet i can not even habdle it but it tastes soo nice💓💓💓 bte never drink this while losing weight🙄🙄

First time in the shelf today. 😊 one of my friends recommended me to try their deconstructed drinks so I had this iced chocolate. It was a pretty unique experience having to make the drink on your own, I also liked how they used dark chocolate, the serving was quite large for me but i'd rather have a big serving than a small one haha<br/><br/>My friend had the detox juice which she found was quite small for $6. My other friend had the raspberry and rosehip ade with mint, it was soooo light and refreshing! I shall try that next time 😊 Will probably come back again to try their food menu cos the presentation looked pretty sweet, everything seemed to be presented on chopping boards

Great atmosphere and friendly, attentive staff but the food and beverages are mediocre and don't live up to the hype. I ordered an organic berry smoothie which was horrible. It tasted like they had mixed vanilla ice cream, blueberries and full cream milk that had gone off, together. My friend had eggs on toasts; overcooked egg and semi blackened toast. The shelf has great staff but the food leaves ALOT to be desired.

Shelf has really nice food for lunch and I recommend going, the design of the food is really cool. I recommend the open chicken sandwich and the French toast, their "ades" are also not to be missed! The cafe is a little cramped and is not large so can often be full, orders are not taken from your table you have to go up to the counter (make sure you don't loose your seat) and is a bit on the pricey side for lunch. Overall a nice little cafe.

Such a gem on High Street, a great little cafe with friendly, bubbly service, food is very delicious, maybe add more options for people who are gluten free but overall best place for a coffee, had the White Mocha and was to die for! Highly recommend

What a smoothy and pretty flat white! Only $ 4.20! Don't need to waster money for buying any coffee at star**cks any more. Interior is very warm and fresh. Will visit here with more and more friends.

Use to go here all the time on uni breaks for their organic berry smoothie or for waffles. Have been for brunch for the eggs bene and love the pasta. Menu is reasonable. Everything on the menu is good. I have not been disappointed by them!! Love the cute little set up of when ordering ice coffee or hot chocolate. Its so unique.

Exceptional! Best coffee and breakfast in Auckland, and all in the same place. Didnt wait more than 5 minutes for food and drinks and was busy at the time. Not too noisy even when busy. Fantastic customer service and staff very attentive.

I've heard many good things about this place and I'm glad to say I was very impressed. The atmosphere was very pleasant. The interior design was lovely. And the staff were all very friendly.<br/>We ordered an Open Steak Sandwich, Eggs Benefict, and The Shelf's Iced Mocha (a very creative and unique idea - see photo). The food arrived quickly and tasted great. Really looking forward to visiting again and trying out all their other dishes.

Funky spot. We went there for breakfast whilst in Auckland last. I had the full breakfast which was nicely presented and I enjoyed the touch of things being served on wooden chopping boards. The food tasted good, and it was a good quantity for the price. The coffee was nice too. Will be coming back again. The music was cool (totes hipster), the staff were friendly, and the decor was modern and nicely done up. Nice work team! Oh and there was nice fast free wifi, which is a big plus for me on business trips!!

The Shelf is a cute little cafe tucked away on High Street. I love the waffles ($10) which come with cream and jam. I also like the idea of the do it yourself concept when it comes to the drinks but the iced chocolate was really really average, definitely wouldn't recommend it.

Tucked on Auckland City’s High St, The Shelf is a chic & trendy cafe serving specialty coffees, delicious desserts, and an all-day breakfast menu. Until now, my only experience at The Shelf was a quick mocha to go; one that left a lasting impression when they surprised me with a sweet little Whittaker’s milk chocolate with my coffee. How cute!<br/><br/>I finally had the chance to enjoy lunch at The Shelf today (one that was made even more enjoyable by the incredibly perfect, sunny weather). Entering The Shelf, I absolutely loved every bit of its unique decor – wooden shelves, dangling lights, and pops of colour all give the cafe a lively yet welcoming, cosy vibe. Even the water, in large self-service glass jars, is subtly flavoured with fresh fruit!<br/><br/>I started with an Iced Mocha, one that was served as a deconstructed coffee. The DIY coffee concept is cute and quirky, and surprisingly fun to put together, though I enjoyed the iced mocha as much as any iced mocha. I did particularly love the chocolate sauce. It was presented beautifully, too – I especially loved the adorable mini milk jug.<br/><br/>My lunch was the Special Breakfast – “your favourite style of two free range eggs with free range bacon, mushrooms, grilled tomato, chorizo, hash brown on your choice of toast”. It was hearty and wholesome. I especially enjoyed my poached eggs, mushrooms and hash brown, while the bacon seemed a little dry, like it could’ve tasted more fresh. But overall, it was a combination that made for a delicious brunch.<br/><br/>My dessert was the Strawberry Cheesecake. The cheesecake was very sweet, maybe even excessively so. Nonetheless, it was very well made, with a soft, smooth and creamy texture. It helps that strawberries are in season, as they were so fresh and luscious!<br/><br/>I was treating myself to my first meal of the day after a few hours at work, while my friend, who’d eaten prior, ordered an Oreo Milkshake. It looked so scrumptious – a mouthwatering mix of chocolate milk, oreo cookies, and marshmellows – all topped with chocolate sauce & cream!<br/><br/>Overall, I enjoyed my first lunch at The Shelf and was very satisfied with the friendly & prompt service, relaxing atmosphere, and quality food & drink. A highly recommended choice, especially if you love coffee and all-day breakfast – they do healthy juices, smoothies & salads too!<br/><br/>Iced Mocha $8<br/><br/>Special Breakfast $21 <br/><br/>Strawberry Cheesecake $8

I am very impressed with this café! Great food, service and coffee. Café décor is very beautiful and I love their DIY drink settings. It is a relaxing place to visit if you are looking for a place to chat with friends and enjoy sweet waffles as well.

Been here a few times for their infamous beverages (The Shelf's Iced Mocha/Iced Choc). Each time, I leave completely satisfied! Not only is their drinks amazing, but i have heard little complaints about their food! The beautiful interior aesthetics matches the lovely staff too! ;)

Fab find on High Street great for breakfast and even open on the weekend! Recommend the Red Raw juice and BLT was pretty tasty and although no table service they were quick and effective. Need to try the coffee to be sure but will be back to this place! <br/>

Favorite place to hang out with friends, I like the cozy environment there! I always order cake slice with drink. And all taste good, the tiramisu cake + hot chocolate is the best combination!!!

Love this cute cafe. The food taste really nice and the service is quick which is really good. Definitely gonna go back to this place. 😀😀😀

Excellent coffee. A lot of pretty girls like to come over to this place to have a cup of coffee and chill. So do me and my girlfriend.  We are satisfied with the overall quality of this cafe but my girlfriend's only concern is that I keep on checking out the girls while enjoying the fantastic cup of coffee

The first time I visited the Shelf I was impressed with the decor and how they set the whole place up! I love the little touches they put in making the place different to other cafes. Such a cute place to have a coffee<br/><br/>I personally think the food was a little dull and lacked any real flavour but presentation was very good. The last time I visited I had the french toast w bacon ($17) and wasn’t any different to what someone could make at home. <br/><br/>The DIY drinks on the other hand are quite fun to make. <br/>

A cute and busy little shop. The interior is clean and well decorated. However, the reason for the low(ish) rating is because of the food. I ordered a Caesar salad it was $19 but it wasn't the best salad I had, but it was still filling and I had a good time listening to music. One good thing is that the food comes quite fast.

The oreo cheesecake was pretty good; I liked it because it wasn't so rich (personal taste). The iced latte is pretty cool presentation wise and taste was good too. It is a little pricey, but you do get value out of it.

Love the waffles we got. So yum and very well made! Everything you order is beautifully presented and follows with their shop's feel and decor. Their d.i.y drinks are fun and quite nice but I prefer pre-made. Most of the staff were very polite, albeit one staff member who was a tad snarky but he still did what he was supposed to :p<br/>Great place to relax and unwind with friends. Lovely atmosphere in the store~

If you're getting coffee, I suggest you get the barista made ones instead of the DIY. It tastes way better! I'm not a huge fan of their savoury dishes but the shelf food and their waffles are pretty good. It's a really nice cafe with cute interior and furniture. It's a good place for catch ups, probably not for study since the seats aren't that comfortable for long term seating ZomatoStudents

Oh coffee on pint and a cheese cake was amazing. Such a friendly customer service. <br/>It's a best place for date.<br/>The way they disign and set the place up its beautiful and enjoyable to have coffee there. Gratis job to the owner. Well done. <br/>Must recommend

Pretty decent attempt at a cooked brekky, cold toast and only 2 mushrooms was a bit disappointing. Loved the eggs though and tasty bacon, banana smoothie was pretty good too. <br/><br/>A nice option in Auckland, not something to rave about def "all good". Staff are a bit effy about swapping out etc and the service was just ok. Wouldn't say no if someone wanted to go back tho!

Such a cute cafe! I stumbled upon it by accident--blink and you'll miss it, but definitely worth finding. The interior is really well decorated and set up (a bit quirky), service is great and they also have nice cabinet food if you're in a hurry. Nice place to take your laptop or book and enjoy a leisurely breakfast and a few cups of coffee.<br/>Sarah Forsyth #g4

I came here a few weeks ago for brunch with a friend. I had heard many mixed reviews about this place from my friends so I was interested to have try. <br/><br/>My first impressions of the decor were very positive. I really like the modern look of the place and everything looked really well placed and thought of. It's really refreshing especially from walking off the street. <br/><br/>I ordered the mocha with the Whitakkers stick of chocolate and the Homemade waffle with whipped cream and berry. I thought the food was decent, but not great. The coffee is difficult to drink because you have to drink all of it right after putting the whitakkers in. I left mine in for a few minutes and it just became undrinkable. <br/><br/>I thought the was waffles looked better than they tasted really. the whipped cream was very foamy and my waffles were slightly burnt on the edges which made them difficult to eat. Service on the other hand was excellent. <br/><br/>Its a great place to go if you just want to go for the decor and mood however I feel as though there are better cafes in the area that have better food.

Great relaxing spot with amazing coffee and a lovely interior.<br/><br/>Super friendly staff and fast service.<br/><br/>The drinks at this place are the best part!!<br/><br/>My friend had ordered the waffles with the seasonal fruit, and I ordered the eggs benedict with salmon. Drinks: Snow white hot chocolate and Mocha<br/><br/>We enjoyed what we have ordered.<br/><br/>Would definitely go back again!!<br/><br/><br/><br/>

This place is uber cute! The set up in here is something out of a dream. Little vases on each table, cute decorations and fresh fruit infused water ready to go. The cabinet foods are delicate looking but also quite expensive ($8 for a small slice of cheesecake - but really really good cheesecake I must say). The in house meals are actually very well priced and they have a range of breakfast and lunch items which will be able to please a range of people's tastes. The drinks at this place are the best part - a lot of 'DIY' options such as the iced coffee and the 'snow white' hot chocolate. Try the waffles or the eggs on toast if you come!

I was impressed with management and the set up, this was a great alternative place to catch up with friends. This cafe has a very DIY feeling where you put your own food/drink together how you like it. I had the go juice (beetroot flavour) and also ordered the open vegetarian sandwich with portobello mushroom. For the price I paid, I was expecting a little more but filled a gap and overall was a nice experience

I've been to the shelf quite a few times and every time has been a great experience! Staff is super friendly and quick. I love their deconstructed ice coffees and chocolates. They were the first place that was doing it before it became a big trend.<br/><br/>I had the toasted bagel the first time I went which was really yum! Can't really go wrong with that one though. I had the homemade pancakes the best time which was like a really thin crepe. I loved the squeezed lemon juice with a tiny bit of sugar, such a classic combination. Would definitely come again :)

As we walked into The Shelf, the first thing we noticed was the cute decor! The modern decor was so pretty and I liked the little trinkets everywhere. It was interesting looking around the cafe :)<br/><br/>The food was slightly over-hyped for me. I ordered the waffles with the seasonal fruit, and my friend ordered the eggs benedict with bacon. We both got smoothies as well! I wasn't a fan of my smoothie, it tasted slightly watered down and artificial. Next time I think I'll opt for an iced mocha instead! My waffles weren't too bad, but I did notice that the orange was slightly bitter. I enjoyed the rest of my meal though. The eggs benedict was apparently quite good though! <br/><br/>Service wasn't bad! The staff were friendly and greeted us as we walked in.

Had such a great time at the shelf. The prices are super reasonable and the seating is super cute. The food came within 10 minutes of ordering, tasted amazing and was also presented amazingly. The staff were lovely and polite. Definatley will be going back soon.

I've been to The Shelf a few times, each time with different people. The food my friends have ordered all tasted nice and I really enjoy my little toastie for $7.<br/><br/>The atmosphere is really cute here and the staff are usually quite friendly. It's a great place to go on a date or just for some food with friends/colleagues.<br/><br/>I know some friends who dont really like The Shelf but also some who love it. I definitely do like this place but would more likely to come as a last resort if I can't think of anything/anywhere else I want to eat.

Really cute little place in the city! The wait is good considering how busy it was when I went, staff were nice too! I ordered the pasta which was really good but a overpriced in my opinion. Definitely be back some time to try something else😁

Came here with a friend for a catch up. Its a lovely cosy place with a calming ambience. I had the waffle which was crispy and delicious much like its presentation. The coffee was pretty average though. Overall, not bad but I've been to better places.

This place is awesome if you like to assemble your own hot chocolate or icy drinks like I do. Excellent touch having a stick of Whittakers chocolate, chocolate sauce, espresso shot, and milk to concoct as you wish. Nice touch having espresso ice to go with the iced Americano version which was served with sugar syrup to sweeten as you wish. Great quirky venue. The cabinet food looked great but was not sampled on the day.

Food was good. Tried the waffle with seasonal fruit. Presentation was on point. However, customer service was lacking a bit. They only told us that we have to get our own water until we asked and not mentioning it before.

Been hearing lots about this little place so decided to give it a go. Came in for late lunch yesterday afternoon and loved the atmosphere n staff. My friend and I both ordered pasta because we didn't feel like having bread. I also ordered their lemon n ginger tea and it was served in a very nice little jug with a timer by the side. The tea was really good. My friend had the fresh squeezed orange. It was average thou , can't expect too much from oranges. The pasta then arrived at our table. The look of the pasta didn't look as good as I thought. It was over creamy I reckon. Wayy too heavy and the sauce was just too much. Didn't really enjoi the pasta. However, the taste wasn't bad. Just too much sauce and just lost appetite after a few bites.

Just had a quick soy capp and almond crossiant. Cute cafe interior and the presentation was lovely. Just felt that the coffee and food items in general were a bit overpriced here.

Have been to the Shelf twice. Had the eggs Benedict and the BLT (with very underripe avocado). Always good, apart from aforementioned avo, and great coffee every time.

Being the cold-beverage loving Gentlepig I am, I headed into The Shelf to sample their much-appraised iced chocolate. What I found was a genuinely delightful café - I would come here if I was alone, and just drink slowly while watching the world revolve. However, where I feel The Shelf stops short is the quality of said beverages. They're a tad lacklustre - flavour is for the most part lacking. With chocolate I generally go into it's texture and flavour but I've got nothing with this one. The coffee and other special beverages are a bit better (Iced Mocha being my pick). I haven't tried the food, but from what I've heard perhaps that's what The Shelf's high rating is based on.

Friendly energetic staff in such a cozy cafe.<br/>Fabulous cake even they charge +20% more than the coffee club.<br/>Not to mention that strong taste real flat white.<br/>WORTH IT!<br/>

Best cafe to go to when wanting some time to yourself or having catch up with mates. The setting is quite minimalistic with little trinkets on the wall shelf and mini flowers on each table. Music echoes throughout the cafe the whole giving it a lively vibe. The staff are really friendly and they acknowledge you as you walk in. The food and drinks are great and I highly recommend their carbonara and eggs benedict. Their freshly squeezed orange is amazing and so is their hot chocolate which you have to assemble yourself. Overall, definitely would keep coming back to this cafe and highly recommend it to everyone.

Modern and esthetic Coffe place!👍<br/>The Shelf is one of my favourite coffees in the 💜 of the City.<br/>Highlight: Coffee and desserts<br/>Staff : Always clean, well presented, friendly and professional.<br/>Ambience: Cool and relax feeling.<br/>I think they set the coffee inspired in the Korean Modern Coffees.<br/>Decoration is beautiful and they present everything in a very esthetic way.<br/>Try : Vegetarian Breakfast and all type of Coffee or teas. Also The Hot Chocolate!<br/>Mommy friendly: kind of ... you can park the trolly in the front part. Pop in for a coffee is Ok with babies or kids. Not changing room available.<br/>

The Shelf is a hidden gem in the city where you can relax, and grab a bit with friends and family. <br/><br/>The interior décor is bright and modern. Good selection on the menu with competitive prices. <br/><br/>Ate there a few times and they never dissapoint me. Very generous portion and the beverage was always presented so nicely. Food was quite tasty too.<br/><br/>Would come back again.

Decent coffee, not the best but not bad. Nice little store with a quaint decor, feels like the Imperial Lane of High Street. Came for their iced coffee's, a novel idea but trying it once is probably enough. Friendly staff, would come back again.

I was looking forward to breakfast here, based on the substantial number of votes and its rating - I was completely disappointed. On arrival the staff were far too busy chatting to explain that we should help ourselves to a menu. Menus are clunky. Despite repeating my partner's order back to him, the lady serving missed putting through the coffee order and we had to chase it. I watched our 'plates' sitting out with the toast on it for far too long whilst the rest of the meal was prepared. Needless to say this arrived at the table cold, as was the hash browns, bacon and tomato. The $3 side of avocado was an absolute rip off for the portion size. The sausages were of the cheap supermarket variety and have been repeating on me all day. The 'plates' are ridiculous and don't fit the table size. The pineapple juice, albeit fresh, was foam for more than half of the jar, so another rip off item. This place tries too hard... and fails!

Great service and best ice coffee in the city. A very quirky little cafe and any one who loves a bit of creativity would enjoy this place :)

Been here a few times and always very impressed by the food and drinks!<br/><br/>The drinks are served in the most innovative way and there are many things that you can't get anywhere else! The iced Americano is to die for, who would've have thought to freeze coffee into icecubes and serving it like that!<br/><br/>The stand out food choice would be the french toast! The brioche toast they use just makes it so special and delicious! Their big breakfast is also amazing!<br/><br/>The only thing I can pick on is the comfort factor when it comes to their seats. Though the food distracts me from it most of the time, but I can never stay too long because the seats just don't seem to agree with my body.

Been here on several occasions (repeatedly for their Tiramisu slice) , and I'm satisfied by the standard of food every time. Definitely a gem that I'll keep returning to 😊

Such a nice little place to go eat <br/>Food is amazing <br/>Ice chocolate wasn't the best still tasted more like milk but I will totally go back again and recommend it 😃

A popular cafe off of High Street. The decor is so modern yet whimsy. I love the atmosphere at The Shelf, its so lively yet inviting. I always come here to grab a coffee or bite with friends. We ordered a Caramel Slice, Blueberry Cheesecake, Hot Chocolate. Their food is so delicious and really good if you have a sweet tooth because their desserts tend to be too sweet and are pricey.

Very cute cafe, the decor was one of the reasons we popped in for breakfast. I had the big breakfast around 9.30am, it's now 14:46 and I am still full. Loved the salsa sauce that came with our breakfast. Coffee was AMAZING 👌🏿one of the best I've had.

Nice place, good for a date. Tasty food but lack of options. Unfortunately we sat back near to kitchen and bathroom and was noisier just like queen's street.<br/>Staff didn't give much attention to us, were really focus on making it work and forgot a bit of care.

Cute cafe. Loved the make your own iced coffee concept where you can pour out milk/sugar syrup onto coffee ice cubes to your liking. Would like to go back to try some of the other items on the menu. Would be a perfect cafe for a date.

The Shelf is a popular meet up place with my friends. We enjoy the ambiance and the decor in the cafe. We can always expect high quality food and drinks.

A fantastic place for catching up with work colleagues or with friends. Has a cozy ambience and the food is very nice. Will keep going in future.

Had Affogato here with a friend, loved the atmosphere and lighting. The place was really cosy and the warm lighting reinforced the ambience. The affogato was served fairly quickly and looked very neat :)

I am on holiday with my friends and find some cafe for brunch. I love the decoration. The food was nice #eggbenedict and coffee is unique #theshelfsicedlatte @

One of my favourite cafes in Auckland, really cool decor and a bit quirky! Quite a discreet entrance so one of those places you can almost walk past without noticing. Went in on impulse and had a fantastic coffee and slice here, would highly recommend.

Came here for brunch in the late morning with a friend. The weather has been chilly outside but the cafe was nice and warm inside. It felt like a high class cafe with a pristine modern design. I was quite comfortable in the slightly busy atmosphere. Received good service from the staff. I ordered a hot chocolate and one homemade waffle. Once we sat down, a staff member placed decorative place mats on the table. It didn’t take too long for the food to arrive. Since it was my first time here I was surprised by the presentation and design. <br/><br/>Hot Chocolate: They let you choose the amount of chocolate you want to add to your drink. I think this is a great idea as each person like those kind of ingredients in different quantities in their drink. My hot chocolate tasted just right when I first put in the chocolate and it also had a Kit Kat in it which melted away in the drink. When I left it for a while, I noticed later that the taste was much stronger.<br/><br/>Homemade Waffles: With the homemade waffles you can also choose to add maple syrup or whipped cream with a berry compote. The homemade waffles tasted great and the maple syrup made it taste very sweet. It was slightly crunchy on the outside and golden-like in colour. I was full once I finished it.<br/><br/>Overall both the drink and food were very sweet and quite filling. It would be nice to come again to try the other menu options.

Was surprised by the food! Had eggs benedict with spinach which was yum! Well cooked eggs and a well sized portion of the other components of the plate. Fairly fast service and super yum special house made sodas and ice tea flavours!

I've wanted to come to the shelf for so long!! And I'm so glad I did!! The vibe was amazing and so were the staff!! I was going to order both the waffles and the pasta (trying to drown my sorrows in food) but thankfully the person who served me recommended just getting the waffles with fruit because ordering both would be too much, which it definitely would have been! The presentation d the tea and the waffles were amazing, and I really appreciated that!! The waffles were so yum, it ticked all the things you needed in a waffle! I'm most definitely coming back soon, that pasta is calling my name as I type this!!

First Time going to the shelf and was surprised by their magnificent food and drinks. First up had the deconstructed iced chocolate. The drink was full of chocolate and was so heavenly. Must say better than whittakers chocolate milk haha. My friend had iced mocha. My lunch was Eggs Benedict and the presentation of the food was so cute. The eggs were cooked perfectly. The hollendaise sauce was very creamy. Such a delight! Would recommend to all

Great presentation of food and drinks! Had an iced coffee which was an experience in itself. Had the Caesar salad for lunch and left happy:-)

Popped in early to see how they prepare for the day and was impressed by the perkiness of everyone here considering it was before 7.30am on a Monday.<br/><br/>Decided against ordering any food but took in the sheer enthusiasm of The Shelf patrons who were actively taking photos of the store whilst drinking a Coffee Lab Flat White (see pic below).<br/><br/>The Shelf has a good reputation for waffles so I will be back to test out that theory in the coming weeks. An independent player that adds some variety to High Street.<br/>Will definitely be back.

Best waffle place ever! Will always be my fave. <br/>The staff are so friendly, the presentation is the cutest, and the food is to die for. Always take my friends there.

Pretty decent breakfast. Tried the eggs Benedict with bacon, the soup of the day (Tomato Soup) and a Flat White. The eggs Benedict was good but I felt it could use a bit more hollandaise sauce, however can't complain about it. The soup was pretty good especially as it was a cold morning. However the coffee was average. The Shelf is very stylish and the service is great, just would like to see better coffee hete

One of my favourite places to go! It is on the pricey side but the presentation is very cute! I really enjoy the chicken filos here and the smoothies! Popular teen spot!

Amazing food and coffee presentation. Great service. Food was very good.<br/>I will most definitely be back.<br/>Cool decor and choice of cutlery and serving plates.

Wow! It was a great visit to the Shelf!<br/>Never expect such good beverages and yummy waffle with fresh fruit on it! I love this place and the food so much! And if you can wish everyone working there "an-yong-ha-se-O", they will be very happy~

Presentation wise, it's perfect. It's such a unique experience but not quite sure if I'll be coming back. The food is nice but average. I seem to be paying more for the presentation than the taste of the food. It just seems a little bit over hyped and didn't quite reach the standard that people made it out to be.  But, I still enjoyed my experience thus giving it a 3.

The presentation of the food and the decorations of the cafe are perfect. I thought the ice coffee is quite a unique experience but it tasted alright. The blueberry cheesecake was also average and tastes quite blend. Overall, I find the food over price for the amount you get and the fact that the food were acceptable. The service was also pretty average. I don't think I will visit it again.

Loved this place! Every thing was so cute down to the toilet paper holder in the bathrooms! The menus are all on a big block of wood and so nicely presented. You don't served at your table which I liked because I'm usually quite indecisive so I like taking my time going through menus before ordering. The water was filled with fresh fruit. I got an americano and my boyfriend got a couple scoops of ice cream with a shot of espresso on the side so it was kind of a DIY thing which was fun. I ordered the Shelfs Healthy breakfast which came with two slices of grain bread, poached eggs and grilled vegetables and YUM. The vegetables were delicious and it was the perfect amount. Presentation was once again fabulous. It all came out on a large circular wooden pizza plate. Overall I loved the experience I will 100% be going back in the near future and ordering the waffles because I saw the couple next to me order them and they looked AMAZING!!!!

The presentation of th food is very pretty, especially all th coffees adding the extra shots of syrup you add in yourself.. <br/>Been here numerous times, although the seating arrangement is a little bit squishy. The menu is similar to those that you find at most other cafes. But it is a very popular spot because of th design of th shop itself, I would not say that th food is th main reason people would go, overall I am satisfied

I came here with a group of friends from uni. <br/><br/>It was a very cute layout and food/drink presentation but I think it was a bit too pricey for the actually taste of the food and drinks.

Cutest little cafe in the CBD! Such friendly staff matched by the cute décor ☺️<br/><br/> Food and drink are equally as good, my meal was a typical big breakfast with what ever style of egg you'd like (poached for me), sausages, bacon, mushrooms, and tomato with tomato chutney on mixed grain bread.<br/><br/> The entire menu is delicious and I will always recommend this cafe! Breakfast food all day everyday haha

Wondering down high street and this little quaint place caught my eye. I love all the wooden shelf filled with little nik naks and the contrasting black paint. <br/><br/>I only popped for a coffee and it was delicious not to strong but creamy and smooth. Place it was served on a little wooden placeholder with the neatest little spoon!<br/>

These guys have such a beautiful decor, it's so nice. A bit of everything seats, sofas, everything. You walk in and admire all their decor it's great.<br/><br/>Been here a few times, very nice food, service was great. The drinks is where it all stops though whether it be their smoothies, white or hot chocolate or coffee. Just didn't hit it for me. Was really disappointed with their white hit chocolate - came out looking amazing but I felt like I was having some milk before bed time . Pretty much was warm sugary milk with a whittaker's white chocolate bar and whipped cream.  A bit too sweet, tasted like milk and yea that's all. Have some cake and all but don't get too excited about the beverages.

The Shelf is a lovely quirky place to eat, however I do think it is a little over priced for what it is. I had the Portobello Mushroom Open Sandwich, which was nice but not worth the amount it cost. Still nice, I would go back for a coffee though.

The shelf has a character on its own. Quirky and cute, it has a constant flow of people coming in and out, settling in for some java. Free wifi and coffee presentation style is a plus here at the shelf. The coffee (been here 4 times, tried the basic latte and mocha) needs catching up on as there is heavy competition between the cafés down the street and around the block.

It's such a cute cafe, their coffee was allright, the service was great. However their toilet is really smelly. The first time i ve been there i thought it was just that day, we only had two drink, the smelling make me felt a bit sick.<br/><br/>But the week after I went to The Shelf again It's still smelly I can smell it as I walk in the cafe. Finally we quickly ran away without ordering anything, I kind of questioning their hygiene standard. Because one of my friend who is working in culinary industry said, if you wanna know how clean the restaurant is just go check their toilet. Cleaning toilet is much easier than kitchen.<br/><br/>If  the someone from THE SHELF read this, please, go clean your toilet!!!!!!

I've been here several time already for brunch and every time the service and food are consistent and top quality. The food is always well presented and yummy. The smoothy was amazing and quite frankly it was all in large portions. I will highly recommend this place to all my friends and family ??????

Great coffee majority of the time. Decor is pretty cool and makes for catching up with friends an alright place. Have never ordered food from here so can't rate on that.

Wonderful atmosphere and food that does not disappoint! You pay for what you get! This cute little cafe is absolutely wonderful and I will no doubt return!

Heard from friends a lot about the compliment of the shelf, I always wanna have a try. Fortunately I went there yesterday .<br/>It was about 11 and the store was almost full. I grabbed a homemade waffle with cream. It wasn't long for me to wait. I took a few time looking around as the decorations in the shelf were so sweet that you could always see people taking photos. <br/>As soon as the waffle was ready, I couldn't help myself from tasting a bite of cream. It wasn't too sweet, but really nice. The waffle was incredible with the chocolate jam and cream. One of the best waffles I have had! Just say, it was beyond description!<br/>It was a cute and comfortable lunch. Can't wait to come along again some day!!

What a cute little cafe had abit of a hangover one day so decided to come here. Very cute set up great coffee love the whittakers slab with the mocha food was great next time I'm in town will totally come here

Ambience is superb! <br/>Trendy décor <br/>Food is amazing --- love the presentation! <br/>Menu is well put together<br/>Wide variety of drinks --- Chai latte is love! <br/>Price is on point <br/>Worth the wait --- the place is really busy you might have to wait a while to get a table<br/>Fast and friendly service <br/><br/><br/><br/>

Came here for brunch on opening week. The staff were lovely, unfortunately the meal timings & service was all wrong but I would happily go back a second time.

Cute cafe with a bit of Asian/IKEA-style flair. Substantial meals where a friend got a big lasagne and I, a thai beef salad. Quite yum. Unique way of presenting iced chocolate but a lot of ice that melted and made it quite watery. Comfy cushions on seats and cosy, casual ambiance.

Unique mocha and hot chocolate style which I love - they use little jugs of chocolate syrup. The muffins are awesome, especially the blueberry! Food is always fresh and tasty, and the people working there are always friendly and prompt. Nice little cafe decorated cutely.UPDATE: Just had the organic eggs (scrambled) on mixed grain toast with homemade jam and it was delicious :)

Great cappuccino and free wifi. Didn't try the hot brekky but the savoury muffin was delicious. Definitely will take my friends here when they come to visit.

Food is great but sometime the staff can be a bit delayed but I always come here defiantly a great go to place :) the atmosphere was great :)

<br/>This is one of the nicest cafe around to meet people for a catch-up. The place has lots of areas created for the enjoyment of your eyes and their decor is just so cute and cosy. The staff are also very friendly and welcoming.<br/><br/>I fell in love with their Organic Banana Smoothie ($6) as all you can taste is basically banana and milk - natural without those fake syrups and banana flavoured powders that most cafes use for their own convenience. Because I personally like my waffles thick and chewy, I find their Homemade Waffle ($10) OK.<br/><br/>I've been here few times now with different groups of friends and I haven't heard any complaints from them regarding the food, drink or the service.<br/><br/>If you want to have a good cup of coffee or tea in a nice, unique cafe - this is the place! The place being totally instagrammable is a plus ;)<br/>

Small, little cafe tucked away on High Street. It has such a beautiful interior and is filled with little knick knacks! Such a lovely atmosphere inside and the staff were so friendly. I love their Iced Mocha and I love being able to mix it myself. All in all, a great cafe!

Cute decor, nice and spacious tables/seating. We ordered a drink and slice of cake each and they were both average at best, although presentation was really good.

Went here for the first time today! I was confused since there wasn't a menu displayed anywhere. However, I ordered a mocha and waffles and, wow was it deliciois. The thing I love about The Shelf is that it has a cool and fun vibe where everyone can relax and chill. I accidentally put too much choxolate sauce in....which made me feel sick! Hahahaha, would come back here next time! :)

First visit! Ordered my favourite creamy mushroom with avocado on side and English breakfast tea ^~^ Great food + good service ! Warm and cozy 。(the weather is even worse today. So cold so windy outside)

Recently took my mum here for her birthday and she doesn't usually like sweet stuff so we had the waffles with fruit salad and it was amazing!

As much as I was unwilling to go here, I did end up here. I had seen so many photos on instagram and was reluctant to go even with all the great reviews. So I finally went and actually was quite pleased. The cafe is absolutely lovely, with cute decor and friendly staff. Everything is real quirky and has it's own unique touches which I like. <br/><br/>I ordered a chicken filo (from the cabinet) and my friend ordered the vege open sandwich. She loved her sandwich which was packed full of goodies such as mushrooms and onions and avo. My chicken filo was very filling with onions mushrooms chicken and cheese. After a while I found that it got quite sickening to eat and was quite bland. They did serve it with some aioli on the side, but I suggest maybe a relish may have been a better accompaniment. We shared a deconstructed ice chocolate which was nice, but more for the experience than taste. <br/><br/>Overall a nice cafe with great service.

Photos of the amazing iced coffee at the Shelf has been frequently popping up on my Instagram feed, so I finally ventured out to High Street (where parking is often difficult) with my friends for Saturday brunch. It was a fairly busy cafe, more obvious because foot traffic on High Street has been on a decline and the group of us managed to secure the last big table inside. <br/><br/>The decor is very impressive and thoughtful. Small details such as flowers, giant pegs that act as table numbers, and the colourful placemats which the staff kindly lay out for you before they serve the food makes this little cafe very special. <br/><br/>I adore quirky and out-of-the-norm presentation of coffee, especially if I could tailor the perfect cup of coffee to my preference. So I welcomed their deconstructed iced beverages with open arms. I like being able to control the strength and sweetness of my beverage as well as the amount of milk as I prefer less milk to avoid a milky aftertaste. <br/><br/>The food menu is a standard cafe menu with plenty of delicious sweet and savoury options from the cabinet. My waffles could have done with a longer cooking time to give it that delicate crispy exterior but the flavours were good. It was rather odd seeing slices of oranges with my waffles, so that’s a first for me!

My friend and i went to store on last sunday. We stood in front of counter for almost 5 minutes, NObody greeted us AT ALL. One of your staff passed us several times, he didnt say any words. The other one was making coffee all the time, are we invisible to you guys? I understood you guys are busy, but at least you could say like "we will be with you later?" We are very reasonable, but your service REALLY DISAPPOINTED ME.

Would be my 4th visit. Just love the food here, great for Vegetarians. I've had the Vegetarian pasta twice (red sauce x2) (white sauce x1), some lovely hot chocolate. Creativity to be unique is amazing. This is the place to go :)

My recent brioche obsession brought me to The Shelf, a relatively new cafe on High St. Given that they are closed on Sundays, it wasn’t easy to find time for a brunch visit, but I’m certainly glad I managed. For starters, the decor was impressive – once you get past the large, very bright neon sign on the outside, that is. Modern furniture, lovely little boxes with ornaments lining the walls, small alcoves near the back for people (mostly couples) to sit in. Most tables have little glasses of flowers on them, and when you are seated they bring your cutlery on a knit yarn mat – a nice touch.<br/><br/>Their specialty is apparently the ‘DIY’ deconstructed beverages, which are served in separate cups for you to mix the components yourself – milk in one cup, espresso in another, etc. While an interesting concept, it seemed slightly overpriced to me for what would essentially be a standard beverage ($7 for iced latte), so I have not tried those. I freely confess that one day curiosity might get the better of me, though.<br/><br/>Instead, I had the brioche french toast with maple syrup, grilled banana, and berry compote. It was delicious, and amazing value for money at $12. The portions were generous, the brioche was fluffy on the inside and crispy on the outside, and the icing sugar and mint leaf was a nice touch. There was a wide, tempting variety of desserts at the counter as well, from parfaits to banoffee cake. A veritable heaven for the sweet-toothed among us.<br/><br/>The service was efficient, but not particularly friendly, as my food was dropped off without a word. I would still return for their french toast (and maybe a dessert or two!) though. Now if only they opened on Sundays…

I visited one of my favourite Auckland CBD cafes the other day with some friends. I initially was only going to order a drink, but the banoffee pie looked so good and it's my favourite, so I decided to get that instead. It is definitely a must try!! The perfect size and not overly sweet, but definitely enough to satisfy your sweet tooth. So good. Their fruity drinks are amazing as well; so refreshing and perfect for hot summer days.<br/><br/>The Shelf always has lovely costumer service & the decor is super cute. Will always be a go-to cafe for me!

This place is by far my best brunch place in Auckland CBD. I really love their french toast and mocha. They serve their mocha with whitakers chocolate, which is impressive. Their eggs benedict is quite good as well. I also like how the dishes are served in a really presentable manner, and also the ambience is good as well.

The Shelf had been on my wish-list for a long time before going! I ended up visiting on a beautiful day with my friends where we walked down from Uni. Walking in initially I was already impressed with the interior design and how the space was used, a mixture of tables and benches underneath colourful wall-arts and shelves filled with various cute knick-knacks. <br/><br/>We ended up ordering one Eggs Benedict with bacon and spinach, and one 'Shelf's Special Breakfast'. The meal arrived with great plating presentation and tasted delicious - much better than what you would get at most neighbouring establishments. <br/><br/>The Shelf provides a great atmosphere for chatting amongst friends and grabbing a good brunch/lunch before heading back to classes. I will definitely be returning sometime soon to try out the waffles and DIY drinks, I am in love with this place!

This place was on my wishlist for ages and i was excited to go their for the first time. I ordered the waffles and they were amazing, my friend ordered the bagel and mocha and it looked good too. The service was really quick and i loved the way it was presented on wooden platers. It was was completely worth the money and i would defiantly go there again.

It is a lovely cafe. Food is healthy and nice. Recommend the Thai beef salad! It was beautiful! Only the bad part is the coffee. Too less and not enough. Disappointed!

This place was in the wish list since a long time.. Finally managed to get myself here on a Saturday morning for a lazy brunch with a couple of friends.. Ordered the eggs benedict with smoked salmon and i can easily say it was the best bene I ever had... I had... Employees are energetic and are really up for it....The service is also good.. Highly recommended..

It's a cute cafe on high street. It's cuter if you're able to sit down for coffee. A mocha or hot chocolate, you can mix your own chocolate or coffee in. Haven't tried the food there though.

As first timers, we found the service appalling. We've heard good things so deciding to try. We understand it's a busy Saturday but when we arrived to get a table for 10, the girl said yes if we wait because we didn't make a booking. We then got told by another guy that if we didn't order we can't get a table and wanted us to leave. He was rude and kept trying to get us to leave. We have never had a place that would ask the customers to order before they gave a table. Have we had to wait for everyone to arrive then got given a table? Yes. How can we order if we don't know if there's a table to sit at? Two of our group left. All we want is some politeness and would have been happy to wait until a table was free.<br/><br/>On the plus, the cafe has got good decor, food is nice.<br/>Coffee is average.

Great place. The iced mocha is amazing. And so are the banana and bacon pancakes.

Weekend ahead, I was overly aware of that and I started it with nothing but superb sweets with my bestfriend. I first came to this place when I met up Yatchi to talk about my opinions about Zomato since I am one of the newest reviewers, we just both had coffee and that was it so I told myself I'm gonna come back for a real dine in experience and it happened today on a crazy, windy and showery winter weather of Auckland (we all know it).<br/><br/>We visited the place around 3 ish in the afternoon and it was so packed but I guess it's our lucky day we had a seat exactly for two of us. I am overwhelmed by the wall decors, table set ups and those little displays in each corner of the store.<br/><br/>My bestfriend has always been so good in compromising with me in eating sweet food (she's not a fan of it) and accompanying me whenever and wherever I feel like going or doing. She wanted the oreo cheesecake at first but then ended up having the blueberry cheesecake (I convinced her by saying oreo is too common) and I had a bite of it, it was yummy of course but I'm not fuzzy about it. I really had to try the banoffee cake for I had a love at first sight with it, it was totally a thumbs up. Bananas stuffed in the cake complimented the sweetness of it. For the drink, I had their own version of iced cappucino. It actually tasted average like the ones I've already tried in other coffee houses but what made it cooler and more exciting was the way it was served.<br/><br/>There is no reason why I should stop going to this place at the moment. I see endless food choices whether it's for breakfast, lunch, snack or even an early dinner if I want to because honestly, the first time I took a glance at the menu, I wanted to order almost everything on what's written there. Now I know what the buzz is all about and another amazing dine in experience (sweet tooth) to share with.

Had a snack at The Shelf on the weekend. Firstly, groovy decor! They really maximised the tight elongated space they had to work with. We really enjoyed the little touches to make the place special. The twine on the mason glass with 'the shelf' label and the placemats before eating. <br/><br/>The best thing about this place is the coffee, it was smooth, aromatic and well balanced. I loved the dense crust it formed and I finished it in no time. <br/><br/>Food was... Alright. We got the creamy mushrooms with added hash brown. I actually thought it was a bit overpriced for what it is. The mushroom wasn't particularly tasteful and just ... Buttery?! Also, the hash is very much straight from a packet. My savoury muffin was delicious but there wasn't much of it.<br/><br/>The prices we paid for the standard of food we got was a bit of a let down. But for the coffee, I would definitely come back again and give The Shelf another go.

I went to The Shelf for a midweek brunch. I tried to go on Sunday but they are closed, d'oh! You think Sunday would be one of the busier days for a place with a great brunch menu? Tucked away on High St you could almost miss it. It has a fun interior and I loved their plates and cutlery. They have nailed the cute and quirky vibe. <br/><br/>We had the homemade waffles with maple syrup, berry compote and whipped cream ($10) and french toast (brioche with maple syrup, grilled banana and berry compote) ($12). Both dishes were beautifully presented, delicious and good value for money. I couldn't fault the waffles, they were great. The egg mixture hadn't soaked through to the middle of the french toast because it was such a thick slice of brioche so it was dry in the middle. The coffees were excellent. <br/><br/>I will definitely be going back to The Shelf to try more of their menu and their tasty looking cabinet food. I just wish they had longer opening hours and were open on Sundays :)

The atmosphere is great, cool little touches to the tables and walls etc. Service wasn't bad but it wasn't great either. The food was really good, well presented and tasty.

Today I met with Yatchi from Zomato and we headed to The Shelf for afternoon tea. It was my first time coming here so I did not know what to expect. The interior is very cute and has a very cool/"hip" vibe haha. I ordered the smoked salmon eggs benedict and an iced latte. Both of these came out quickly and was well presented. $17.50 for the eggs benedict seemed a bit steep but once I saw the plate I was like OMG.....! Let's just say you get your money's worth lol :). It was interesting that the iced latte was deconstructed and served as serparate components. Definitely a unique experience! I think this would be a great place for dates and catch-ups with friends!

First Experience: I found the service extremely average, I think we came after a rush since I had to ask them to clean the only remaining table inside. Also we had no indication of how they were operating so we didn't know if we sit down and order but you actually have to order up front which was alright. The hot chocolate wasn't that great and wasn't hot enough sooo I wasn't very impressed, I've seen the iced mochas etc and I guess those are more fun to really create but maybe I just had been hyped too much about 'The Shelf'. The prices of the normal food was quite high but I guess typical of your typical cafe but definitely at the higher end I think I remember something like pasta or just something simple being like $26 which, don't quote me on, seemed cray. I guess I'm use to spending quite a bit on professional chef for around the same price BUT don't get me wrong I loved the atmosphere and the food was still yummy and I would go back and more prepared for what to expect!<br/>From then: I find the service good, the staff members are always really smiley and helpful. I absolutely love the chicken filo, which has mushroom and spinach inside it which is a perfect combination in my opinion. I tried the salmon bagel recently as well which was nice but just really hard to eat lol, perhaps not a good choice for a first date since I had to eat it with my hands - the knife would not cut through it. <br/><br/>Their juices are too pricey in my opinion and just seemed like lemonade mixed with some fruit juice. It did taste nice though! <br/><br/>The only thing that probably irks me is that the coffee/mocha that I get every time is always at a lukewarm temp and I like my coffee just a bit off boiling, so if you're like me definitely ask for it extra hot. Also, they give you a Whittakers chocolate to melt into it which is nice but whenever I get to the end of my coffee it's all glugy and really chocolatey even though I think I stir it enough but probably not so definitely be sure to stir! <br/><br/>I still think the prices are a bit high just because it seems more "young" due to the atmosphere and expected lower prices and being a student and all. However, for people with full time jobs this would probably be the perfect fit for lunch and dates.

The shelf is a favourite amongst my classmates at uni and they would always talk about it and tell me to go. But because I am stubborn and like to resist hype for some reason, I never did. I think I thought that it would be really pretentious or something.<br/><br/>But I was proved wrong! It is seriously seriously cute. The decor has a lot of effort and style put into it and I really appreciate it.<br/><br/>It wasn't pretentious at all!<br/><br/>I had a mocha and could drizzle chocolate syrup into it so I did since I am a sweet beverage fiend. The coffee was good!<br/><br/>I think I'm going to come back and order food the next time! The Shelf has a good store personality and is good for taking friends!

I live in the city, so I pretty much walk everywhere, this place used to be Esquires, so I was interested what it would become. When I saw the interior being added to this place, I was instantly attracted to it, so simple yet so welcoming. When The Shelf opened, found myself being drawn to it. Once inside, the lighting was dimmed matching the wooden decor, giving a warm ambiance to the place. Heaps of seating, from entry to the back, the staff are always smiling, even when they are busy making beverages.<br/><br/>The meals are tasty, something for everyone I guess. The drinks on the other hand, has an interesting concept - deconstructed and awesome ( not all beverages are like this). I had ordered a hot iced chocolate and was given a jar of milk with a stick of chocolate, a cup with ice filled and another little jar with melted chocolate, so confused at first. The experience was fun though, pouring the right amount to suit my taste The way The Shelf presented everything is so adorable. The wooden theme from the interior continued on to they way food was served, where meals were on wooden board, plates and saucers. <br/><br/>In the CBD of Auckland, affordable, tasty, great place to have drinks with friends, would recommend :)

Link the setting in this cafe, so cute.. Very Asian style of cafe.. :-) The beverages are served in a very interesting way - like my mocha.. It came with everything separate, a cup of espresso coffee with a chocolate stick dip in it, and a side of milk jar.. Very cute another shot for my intragam lol <br/>But when it cms to the taste.. I think it way too sweet, they chocolate stick they use is not the idea for hot drinks may b, it doesn't melt and turn into something like butter in cold water (I don't know the word to describe it) it breaks in small pieces but not melting in the drink. So all the chocolate dropped to the bottom of the cup, with last part was super sweet >< may b they should change the chocolate... To the meltable one=P <br/>The blue berry cheese cake was yum, I ate very slow cuz didn't wanna finish it lol been there once cuz my sis recommended.. She said ice mocha is nice, so next time I should try ^^

Love the atmosphere at The Shelf! Warm & inviting with probably the best coffee in town and it's consistently good! I'm not too keen on the stool seatings as they aren't the most comfortable, but they sure add to the decor. The Shelf pays a lot of attention to detail from the decorations on their shelves to how intricate their coffees are. Would most definitely recommend this place for their coffees and a relaxing afternoon! Woof!

Very Cute Coffee shop with stylish cups of coffee! My taiwanese friend recommend this place to me and ever since then I go there almost twice a week, their latte was average, but what attracts me is their blueberry cheese cake, so sensational ! <br/><br/>The only reason I don't give them 5 out of 5 is because, I once go there about 20 mins before their closing time but the staff told me that they already closed, it was pretty disappointing as i walked there. other than that! Everythin was alright ! Good place for chilling for sure

I visited this place and was immediately attracted to the interior design of this place. It has a warm, wood theme going on and the shelves on the wall are filled with cute glassware and trinkets. This place was very busy (which is usually a good sign) but service was still quick, friendly, and efficient. I ordered the Organic Mango Yoghurt Smoothie made with water $8) which is rather expensive for a smoothie but this was served in a large glass jar which is about double the size of normal smoothies from other cafes. It tasted healthy and fresh like it was made with natural sugars from the fruit and not overtly sweet and artificial. The way they serve their drinks here are very cute where you get to assemble your own coffees and teas. I like the fact that they give you ice made with espresso if you order an iced coffee so that your drink will not become diluted and watery. A bit more expensive than usual cafes but I recommend it- the drinks are delicious. <br/><br/>For more reviews, please visit my blog at http://www.heartshrooms.wordpress.com

Is this cafe in the top 50 cafe in Auckland yet? because their dutch coffee, food, bakery, ice tea and ice ade are truly amazing. Interior is lovely and cute. All girls in Auckland will love this place.