Review Hello Friends + Allies - Auckland Central

Great place for families and catch up with friends. As always staff are awesome and service never disappoints. Food is so good and tasty everytime. Cozy interior with a nice outside view.

Very happy with the cafe and the food. I’ve never ventured into Epsom and this place was a very pleasant surprise. It looks quite small from the street but there’s heaps of seating at the rear. Parking is on the road which is a little bit of a pain but I scored a good park close by. Lots of vegetarian and vegan options. I went with the French toast, one nice thick chunk of white toast with lots of sweet syrup but not soggy. Particularly liked the tamarilo that came with it.

Service was a little slow on a busy Sunday (about a 40 min wait) so I wouldn't recommend going if you are on a strict timeline, but perfect for a lazy Sunday lunch with friends. The food was delicious.

Never been here before, I was a long way from home. The food was amazing and very good coffee and reasonably priced too. Definitely recommended to all.

This cafe is so beautiful and nice, me and my family and my friends have become regulars here, I really enjoy the coffees here and the food is amazing and the pricing is fair 😁. The location is also very convenient.

Delicious brunch had here with my kids. The atmosphere is really funky, super fun and artsy decor. The food and drinks were all great. Beautifully presented, wonderful flavours, and impressed all of us. My youngest is quite fussy but she loved her breakfast. Mine was soo good!

Such a cute Cafe with incredible food! Lovely, warm atmosphere and great service

Very busy for a Sunday Friendly staff A nice little place for a Sunday breakfast

Incredible. I had my doubts coming in with all the hype I’d heard about this place for years. They proved me dead wrong. The burger was perfectly balanced with crunchy greens, homemade patty, and an amazing in house chipotle sauce. Some of the best fries I’ve encountered in any restaurant in NZ, full stop. I could come back here just to get a side of them. Ideal width, crispy, perfect. My wife’s velvet hotcakes were a spectacle to behold. She likes to get items that she can’t easily make at home, and boy did she find a winner here. Each flavor complimented the other. If you have an active sweet tooth, this will be quite the treat. The coffees were also sublime. You won’t be disappointed with a flat white or long black with cream, that’s for sure.

Great service and friendly staff. This cafe is my everyday visit, best coffee in town! They offer a wide range of delectable dishes, from hearty breakfast options to mouthwatering sandwiches and salads for lunch. The ingredients are fresh, and the presentation is impeccable. Their signature dishes are a must-try. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a memorable culinary experience in a cozy and welcoming atmosphere. Whether you’re meeting friends, working remotely, or having a kids play date, this café is a true hidden gem that deserves all the praise it receives.

Beautiful decorations, decent coffee and very nice food. The first thing I noticed was that the cafe was buzzing with activity. With 90% of the tables being larger than most establishments, Hello Friends + Allies is perfect for groups. It’s not overly styled but is balanced between floral accents and industrial lines. Menu items: Potato Rosti Eggs Benedict $18.50 - Add Bacon $5 - Add Salmon $5.50 Such a good choice. The rosti was crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside - definitely in my personal top 5. Extra points for being able to see what it looked like first (just scan the QR code on the bottom of the menu). I thoroughly enjoyed the coffee, and not just because I was desperate for caffeine. I genuinely liked the flavours and it was smooth, as a latte should be. Best parking is located on Dunkerron Avenue. There are two toilets for customers located near the back. There’s also a lovely area with extra seating away from the hustle and bustle. Server shoutout: Shannon. She was so kid and made us feel welcome the entire time. Would I recommend it? Yes! Food: 10/10 Coffee: 10/10 Atmosphere and Service: 9/10

Had a great time with a lovely meal here :) The staff were nice and the cafe was really busy. Tried their avocado smash. Their sourdough was hard, but their avocados were soft and subtle. The interior had a cool design of pictures, 3D displays which were eye catching. Lots of desserts and savory to choose from. Close to Remuera Station for good transport.

Visited Hello Friends + Allies for the first time yesterday. Food and service was great! Staff were really friendly. The atmosphere was comfortable and the decor was super cute! Definitely would come here again and would also recommend!

It has always been busy when I tried to come by on a weekend but managed to come by during a weekday and was able to get a table without a wait. The place is fairly large as it seems to back quite a bit, but we just grabbed a table by the window. After getting seated we were given menus and water. The menu was interesting, plenty of really nice sounding foods. I ended up going for the gnocchi with chorizo, although the red velvet pancakes was a really close second. The gnocchi was incredibly light, almost like eating airy mashed potatoes. The creamy sauce with the mushrooms and chorizo was really nice. I also had the hot chocolate but found it needed a bit more sweetness. A friend ordered the fenugreek potatoes with the sausage and that is the reason I'm not giving this place 5 stars. I found the potatoes a bit on the hard side but the flavour was nice. The problem was the sausage. There was a single sausage and it tasted a bit weird. Wasn't sure if it had gone off, but we did get a bit sick afterward. It is a nice cafe and the food is quite nice. A bit disappointed in one of the dishes but the other food items were great.

Been there twice already. Looove their desserts! The plating is so beautiful and creative. The portions are huuuuuuge. The cafe is pretty. The staff are friendly. No complaints! Perfect place for snapping some INS photos!

Such a groovy and funky place, and much larger than i expected! It's got a real colourful, hippy, cosy sort of vibe and it's brilliant. The food was divine! My red velvet hot cakes were sooo fluffy, and nice combo of flavours, also got a white choc mocha which was very light and sweet, perfect for me.

Such friendly staff, fresh food suitable for different requirements and cute environment! Would definitely come again!

Seems to be a very popular cafe as it was packed, though this created a very loud atmosphere. Dishes were overpriced for the portion you get. Seems like they focus on making it look good rather than the ingredients itself.

So I’d heard good things about this place but was disappointed. <br/>My long black was an Americano - too much water added before I got it and not great flavour either. No sugar on the table, not that I normally add sugar but this cuppa needed something!<br/>The first dish I ordered was not available due to seasonality - little hint here, take it off the menu. No surprise that asparagus are out in June so why is this still on your menu?<br/>The avo smash was really disappointing. Burnt, hard bread with a little bit of chopped avo on top. No flavour except burnt toast. Beetroot purée was just that, beetroot. Nothing else. A small smattering of feta and some carrot wheels as garnish. Not great at all. <br/>Admittedly they did redo the toast and used ciabatta which was marginally better, but the damage was done. <br/>Sorry, won’t be rushing back which is a shame cos there are no other cafes on this strip of grt sth rd....<br/>

Great service here and nice staff, just let down by the food. Had the spicy noodles and were very bland. No flavour, little spice, barely any tofu/veggies on the plate. Also they forgot my drink. Wouldn't return.

Staff very friendly and attentive. Who knew hot cakes could look so appealing! Place is very bright and airy, lots of greenery which I love! Food is Devine. Came here for my birthday brunch and must say everything that we ordered was delicious.

When I have the pup with me I tend to call ahead to see if the place is dog friendly. Hello Friends & Allies never mentioned to me on the phone that if we came with the pup we would be taken to a tiny table out the very back of the cafe (literally not even in the building). We would have come another time if we had known this, as sitting out the back waiting for the staff to remember you're there isn't ideal.<br/><br/>Never the less, the food was amazing but gosh so beyond expensive for cafe food. Maybe the mushrooms are magic? I don't know. <br/><br/>Loved the decore of the cafe but the waitress was super timid and made the ordering process awkward. I had the Free range eggs bene (like a basic b*tch and added mushrooms for #healthychoices) and the bf had literal dessert for breakfast, the Red velvet Hotcake is a dream if you're a sweet tooth, but for us no good. <br/><br/>Have ticked this off the list, but probably won't be going back anytime soon.

Went here with someone else around 11:00 and it was very busy! Place is clearly very popular and so I wasn't surprised when it look maybe 10 minutes for servers to come give us menus after we sat down. <br/><br/>The food came out after maybe 20 minutes. I ordered a big breakfast and the other person ordered a smashed avo. <br/><br/>The big breakfast portion size was good. And the food was good but I do wish the dish included something to contrast the salty and heavy flavours. There was this white sauce around the plate that did not add much to the dish because the dish is already really salty, and the sauce was even saltier. Also there was only one small slice of bread, would be nice if there was a bit more!<br/><br/>The other person ordered the smashed avo which was delicious as expected (avocado hello haha) but the bread's crust was very hard! Other than that it was good. <br/><br/>I would come here again to try other things because there are a variety of different options and they are all very aesthetic.

Really amazing food, Service is fast and friendly. I was take visitors here as I know the food will always impress! Recommend to everyone! Coffee is really good

Absolutely YUMMMM food. The staff were really friendly and helpful. They did ask us to move tables halfway through eating our meal which was a bit rude but I could see how busy they were to fit everyone in. The presentation of the food is probably the best I’ve had in years at a cafe. <br/>May I add their cream donuts are THE BEST xx highly recommend this place.

Brunched in this bright and bubbly cafe located in the Greenlane suburb.<br/><br/>The cafe is spacious with 3 seating compartments. However I wasn’t too pleased with its environment, the place is extremely loud due to its non-sound proof design. There were also a few flies loafing around so I had to defend my food while yelling for a conversation.<br/><br/>The food were well presented and came in big portions. We ordered the Tuna Noodle Bowl and the Angus Beef Burger (both only available after 10 am).<br/><br/>The Tuna Noodle Bowl is a Japanese styled dish, based on soba noodles with seared tuna, fried egg and raw vegetables. Unfortunately the taste of this dish wasn’t as aesthetic as the presentation. The flavours didn’t blend well together and was overall flavoring a little bland.<br/><br/>The Angus Beef Burger was slightly better. Despite the flavorful sauces, the beef patty had a slight mutton smell. The burger buns were fluffy which I would thought were better suited for sweet pastries. The hand-cut fries were fresh and crispy.<br/><br/>Their staff were very friendly and energetic. Our dishes were served within a reasonable time even at its peak hour.<br/><br/>Food were priced at the medium range.<br/><br/>It’s good to see the Suburb cafe growing popular, but I would probably not visit this one again unless they make some improvements to the taste or environment.<br/><br/>Food: 6.5/10<br/>Food presentation: 8.5/10<br/>Service: 8.5/10<br/>Ambience: 6/10<br/>Value for money: 7/10<br/><br/>Price $25 per person

I had two long blacks and the coffee was excellent!!!! It was very busy but we didn’t have to wait for a table, this was a Saturday afternoon. <br/>The only downside was the staff were so busy it took quite a long time for anyone to take our order and the tables were a bit dirty. I would probably visit again on a weekday when it isn’t as busy.

The decor is unique, staff were attentive and whole vibe in the cafe was very so-cal especially on a lazy Sunday. I ordered a cacao smoothie with a salmon bowl.. i had to drench soy sauce all over my veges and cover them with pepper. Although the meal looked pretty it was bland. My husband ordered a tuna bowl, he was actually enjoying his food until he found a piece of bacon in his noodles. We are pescatarians, i dont know if this is worse or finding hair in your food. Sorry we will not be coming back!

.<br/> 📍 Hello Friends and Allies<br/>☕ Cappucino + Latte<br/>🍴 Orange Cake<br/>-----------------------------------------------<br/>Bright and airy cafe with an odd name displayed in bratty pink and black with polka dots. With a decent selection of cabinet sweets and savouries to go beside your coffee, it's a cafe worth visiting.<br/>.<br/>Orange cake was so soft and just sweet enough to enjoy with coffee!

A cute cafe in epsom, the interior is really cool and green , lots of spaces inside! Their mermaid yoghurt bowl is really huge and def scrumptious! the potato rosti is a bit in the smaller size but still yummy nonetheless - will be back and try other food.

Ended up here unexpectedly but overall a solid 4.5/5. Iced latte was great, cake was great, good atmosphere. A little red stain on my glass cup (lipstick stain?) hence the 4.5 but overall a great cafe.

It is an internet famous cafe with new owner.The food was getting worse compare with before. When they delivered the food to me, I did not have any feeling to eat. If you see plate art like this and you still want to eat, you can try this kind of odd food. The taste was not good as well, the egg benny was too dry . I will never come back, it already lost the original quality.

came here for the 4.3 stars<br/>arrived early ordered coffee and scone<br/>scone bit under cooked, coffee not up to standard.<br/>the breakfast came after after long wait and after that of people that ordered after us<br/>big breakfast was average sausage hard and burnt<br/>oily potatoes , small piece of toast no butter<br/>1 egg<br/>this is not the big breakfast we are use to<br/>must be change of owners from when we first came here ,<br/>maybe that how it goes here<br/>one good thing lots of parking outside<br/>and heaps free tables inside

:) Tried the most popular dishes in this cafe. The tasted was good, but not many surprises . Service was friendly and the whole environment was great .

I love the colors in this dish

Service was good but food was a bit underwhelming. The French toast appeared to have been designed to look beautiful but the flavours were quite bland. The big breakfast was good (and liked the whipped feta) but the sausage was quite tough and chewy. My date had a mocha which didn’t really have much of a chocolate taste despite only getting a single shot. Would have given 3.5 if that was an option, it was good just not great!

Got Mermaid Yoghurt Bowl and didn’t expect it to be this big 😮 loved the raspberry yoghurt and the granola! <br/>Omelette Okonomiyaki is obviously a Japanese fusion dish. Okonomiyaki is usually a wheat-flour based savoury pancake but they transformed this to an omelette and added salmon. 👏🏻so👏🏻freaking👏🏻rich👏🏻in👏🏻flavours👏🏻(and great source of protein!) <br/>My friend couldn’t finish it so it ended up being in my tummy also haha<br/>The food and cakes in the cabinet looked so amazing so I will come back to try them👍🏻

Had the mermaid bowl here was quite large but absolutely scrumptious want to come back and try the other things on the menu

Wow! Hello Friends and Allies really impressed our party of three earlier this week. The interior is super cute and the cabinet food looked extremely inviting. We also loved the fact that aside from the delicious standard breakfast and lunch fare there are some different choices such as red velvet pancakes and seared tuna with noodles. The chicken burger was delicious and the fries a tasty, crunchy treat. The salads were flavourful, generous and came with moreish sauces. Personally, I appreciated the fact that the chai latte had an excellent level of spiciness and wasn't too sweet. Great job team, will definitely be back to try some other items on the menu & grab a cake or two to take away.

Cute little atmosphere and I'm obsessed with their mermaid bowel. Its so simple but delicious. presentation is also nice. I am yet to try their cabinet food

Amazing food and good vibe. Highly recommend!

Definitely the Remuera mum’s go-to place after dropping their kids off with her white Mercedes SUV, before going to hot Pilates. <br/><br/>Is it just me or is Asian fusion a thing now ? I mean, all of the cafes that do very well have Japanese, Chinese, and Korean dishes on the menu. This place had a lot of Japanese flavors in their menu. Their all-day breakfast menu was mostly European/white people food, but their lunch menu (available after 10am) was mostly Asian fusion.<br/><br/>The interior was my favorite. The cafe itself was so spacious and there were two sections; one in front of the counter and one at the back. The front had more of a minimalist and hip look with green plants, where the back was decorated with big vases of flowers and wall painting. One side of the wall was completely smothered with flowers.<br/><br/><br/>We had a long wait time although none of our food should’ve taken that long. And food is food; it always tastes good unless something bad happened to the chef. But the difference is whether it is gramable or not. And these food were definitely gramable haha

Looooved the red velvet pancakes here! I loved the lemon curd on the side. My dad wanted to try something different from what he usually orders and went for the spicy noodles with tofu. He enjoyed his meal just as much! <br/><br/>We were lucky enough to come after the lunch hour rush as we were expecting it to be busy due to it being Fathers day. The food didn’t take to long- probably a 15 minute wait. <br/><br/>The menu has so many options, can’t wait to come back and try something else!

I loved the big breakfast, potatoes and mushrooms were some of the best I have had. Would have like some butter for the bread. I was not a fan of the red velvet pancakes, it was not a 🥞 but a dry cake. Pity because the lemon curd and raspberry sauce with fresh fruit was delicious. Can I suggest they use a different chia tea as it was the worse one I have ever had.

Great coffee and delicious scrambled eggs! Side of haloumi yum too. Love the location and interior decor. Service was quite quick even though it was busy which was great!

Sweet cafe in Epsom, heard great reviews about Hello Friends + Allies so had to give this place a try. I got the green smoothie with honey and coconut, was a little too sweet for my liking but still tasteful. We then ordered the Eggs Bene with Bacon, Asian Chicken Salad and Hello Greens which came with a nice bed of kale, spinach,<br/>beans, brocolli, halloumi, chickpea falafal, a poached egg and red pepper sauce. A nice dish overall however I did find it on the dry side, would be nice if the sauce had more of a dressing consistency as opposed to a think sauce and the sauce itself needs a bit of a lift to really tie the dish together. I have to say though that I loved the presentation of each dish.Staff were efficient and friendly. Downside was parking, most of the cloest offstreet parking had a 30min limit so we had to move<br/>our cars further. Dont let parking put you off though.

It has always been busy when I tried to come by on a weekend but managed to come by during a weekday and was able to get a table without a wait.<br/><br/>The place is fairly large as it seems to back quite a bit, but we just grabbed a table by the window.<br/><br/>After getting seated we were given menus and water. The menu was interesting, plenty of really nice sounding foods. I ended up going for the gnocchi with chorizo, although the red velvet pancakes was a really close second. The gnocchi was incredibly light, almost like eating airy mashed potatoes. The creamy sauce with the mushrooms and chorizo was really nice. I also had the hot chocolate but found it needed a bit more sweetness. A friend ordered the fenugreek potatoes with the sausage and that is the reason I&#039;m not giving this place 5 stars. I found the potatoes a bit on the hard side but the flavour was nice. The problem was the sausage. There was a single sausage and it tasted a bit weird. Wasn&#039;t sure if it had gone off, but we did get a bit sick afterward. <br/><br/>It is a nice cafe and the food is quite nice. A bit disappointed in one of the dishes but the other food items were great.

Awesome Asian-Fusion brunch spot located in Epsom. An excellent brunch location for those that have friends that are spilt across Auckland, great ‘place in the middle’. Surprisingly spacious with a huge room out back for bigger groups and tables. <br/><br/>I got myself the Smashed Avocados, good amount if avocado and overall met my expectation. A little pricey for my liking at 19.50 but the meals all came out mouth-watering. What I would recommend from seeing my friends meals would be the French toast and the Tuna Soda noodles. The tuna was fatty and creamy, while the French toast had an assortment of fruit and bacon. <br/>Big fan of this place, could be a little difficult with parking but a solid Asian-fusion brunch spots.<br/><br/>Showstopper: Tuna Soda noodles and French toast.<br/>Overall Grade: B+

Popped in here before a meeting and was surprised at how pretty this cafe was!! I had heard good things about it previously and was nice to properly have a sit down and order some of their cabinet food. I ordered tea and some passionfruit tart/slice that was so light and tasty! The interior was open, with plenty of light and sun coming through and had beanbags and art on the walls. Will be back when I’m in the area!!

Been here many times to buy coffee Always strong and creamy. They use supreme coffee beans. I tried the French toast and damm it was beautiful and tasty. Will definitely come back and try out their other dishes.

Have heard people complain about the prices, but I very much disagree. Yes it’s more pricer than your regular cafe but the portions balance out. You don’t have much of an option on cheaper eats but you get huge filling and sometimes too much portions. All delicious and well thought out! And the coffee is always the same and dependable!

Located not to far from Newmarket Central is this beautiful cafe. I came in for brunch and tried the chilli scrambled which tasted very delicious, it had quite a lot of fresh chilli which is a plus. Service was friendly and the food wait time wasn't long. Definitely one of the best cafe in Auckland!

Great place for coffee. I ordered the French toast which wasn't just pretty on the plate but also really delicious and refreshing. My friend ordered the omelette with salmon which had a Japanese twist on it. It was also quite nice but a little heavy on the mayo.

Came here for a late lunch with a friend this afternoon, heard quite a few good comments about the cafe and was so pleased with everything. The cafe looked cute and colourful, the menu had quite a variety of meals I struggled to pick from, which was a bit of a surprise for me as at most places I cant even find one thing to eat off the menu. The service was pleasing and the prices weren’t even that expensive. The only thing that stopped me from giving ‘ Hello Friends + Allies ‘ was that they took quite a while to make our meals, like we waited about 15 minutes to get our french toast and pancakes which filled the both of us up, and we then ordered a bowl of fries which we asked for about half way through our meals hoping that by the time we finished they would’ve arrived, but no we had to wait about an extra 10 minutes. Would definitely one back here as it’s not too far and really easy to get to as well.

Came in for brunch with my bestie in the weekend as we have been meaning to try it for a while and we were SO impressed. The only thing that was a down for me was where we sat because we had a view of a corridor and it was like out back so were in like a driveway which was odd. The food was so good though so it made up for it. I had the 'mermaid yogurt bowl' and my friend had the 'raspberry granola' and both taste so good. The orange juice said it was fresh squeezed but it tasted exactly like the one you get from the supermarket. The presentation was so pretty as-well & is perfect for photos. Def will be back and hopefully can sit upfront this time :))

Hello Friends + Allies is damn delish sis. Came here for the first time with ma main girl and we were very impressed. When we walked in it took the staff sometime to find an available table, they ended up putting us in the back room at a shared table with these other 3 girls which had there stuff all over the table so there was no room at all for us grrrr how rude of them like do you not know how to share a table you selfish chicka's. Some people who were sitting way out the back left so we went and moved to that table because I'm not sharing a table no thank you geez and inside it was also super loud like I couldn't even hear my girl talking to me. Anyway we ordered our food, I got the Raspberry Granola and it was 10/10 so lovely and fresh and was just perfect. My friend got the Mermaid Yoghurt Bowl and she also was obsessed with it! Our food was also super quick to come but I guess because nothing needs to be cooked so it's faster to prepare. Our overall experience was like a 9/10 just because we didn't like where we were sitting because it was way out the back and the public kept driving in the carpark and staring was kinda weird to be honest. But food and service was 10/10 so fricken good. Will mostly likely be back soon. x

One of those good places for brunch. The place was a bit noisy, but the food was awesome. We did get surcharged due to holiday, which I dislike a lot, but anyway. Good spot.

loved the atmosphere, decorations and plenty of seats( more inside). the plating of the foods were very pretty. for the taste its average, more focused on the plating . can't go wrong with the eggs benedict and hamburger, hamburger was tasty and best chips. gnocchi sauce was delicious but too creamy when finished but the gnocchi it self was not good.. it was tooooo mushy that there were nothing to chew on. tuna salad taste was good but the cabbage look old dry and brown. the cabinet food looked much better and dessert looked very delicious, might go there again to try them.

Come here a few times and it's a pretty cool atmosphere for brunch.<br/><br/>I've had the chilli scrambled eggs and gnocchi and both were delicious. chilli scrambled eggs were my personal fav, something a little diffeeent from the usual!

Foods are a little pricey, especially drinks. However, the quality is still pretty good. Love the potato Eggs Benedict, and the salmon bowl was okay too (the sauce was a bit too oily). The environment is what I love the most, very pretty with those flowers!

Came here for the first time and was quite impressed. I got a yoghurt bowel and wasn’t expecting much but it was delicious.<br/><br/>Pancakes are also pretty good!<br/><br/>Nice area out the back too.

Food: 5:5<br/>Service: 5/5 <br/>Ambience: 5/5<br/>Cost: 4.5/5 <br/><br/>Been here many times for weekend brunch, this cafe never disappoints. It’s always buzzing during weekends, but their food and customer service is never compromised and always consistent :) Keep up the amazing service, team 🙌<br/><br/>Highly, highly recommend.

I walked in and found a table nestled at the very back of the cafe. It was nice and quiet in this area and had toys for my friend's little one to play with.<br/><br/>I helped myself to water, napkins and cutlery as I wasn't sure if there would be a person serving us but the lady turned up not long after I had set my table up.<br/><br/>Food was very good. I had the potato rosti egg benedict and would definitely go back again just for that.

Went here for brunch and had the potato Rosti eggs Benedict and their avocado and rice paper wraps- both dishes were 10/10 so delicious and fresh! I got a juice but I should have read the menu better as it was bottled juice not fresh. Would have been amazing fresh. My husband had a flat white and he said that was great. Great service too and the counter desserts are so pretty!! Hard to resist! Gonna be back again!

Love this place! Been here twice now and haven’t been disappointed. They have a mermaid smoothie bowl (I think thats what it was called) which I found was yummier than the Jaffa cake! Service is good and they have a little space out back too which is nice to have a brunch with friends!

Had a great time with a lovely meal here :)<br/>The staff were nice and the cafe was really busy. Tried their avocado smash. Their sourdough was hard, but their avocados were soft and subtle. The interior had a cool design of pictures, 3D displays which were eye catching. Lots of desserts and savory to choose from. Close to Remuera Station for good transport.

Loved this place! Located on the busy Great South Road in Epsom, the first thing I noticed was the artwork & floral decor. The service is exceptional, lovely open plan dining area & the food - really great value for money, the "Big Breakfast" definitely lives up to its name, doesn't cut corners on either quantity OR quality for that matter & is presented gorgeously. An impressive experience to say the least

Love the food, customer service was awesome... and quick response to my booking thank you for an awesome experience will definitely come back 😍😍✌️🤗

Amazing food! Lovely service! Anything to eat from a naughty little treat to a super healthy meal. Reasonably priced and the wait wasn’t too long despite the crowd

A beautiful place to catch up with friends or family. We ordered their hello friends beef and tandoori chicken burger and Eggs Benedict. I had the Eggs Benedict and it was so creamy and yum! The portion size is well worth the price too... Overall, a good brunch and will come again :) <br/>

Lovely spot!! The decor, food are both delish! The coffee is average, and the service needs a little work. A great spot to take family and friends!

Prettiest cafe in epsom. Full of flowers and arts. Presentation good,too. But always too much people waiting there. Especially weekend. Sometimes have flies, that's a little bit annoying.

Quite disappointing to be honest... Nothing lived up to the reputation, or maybe I expected too much? There isn’t much service, food was disappointing, and the water glasses was dirty. Seriously?<br/><br/>Food 6/10 Service 5.5/10 Ambience 8/10<br/><br/>Raspberry Granola 5/10<br/>The portion size is very interesting. I don’t eat much but I’m still hungry after finishing the whole plate. Granola on my plate were not granola, they’re more like grounded oats.... like a plate of granola powder if you know what I mean. It did look very pretty and nice but it stopped there, sadly...<br/>Red Velvet Hotcake 6/10<br/>I’m pretty sure it’s precooked. Maybe the staff over heated it or something, the hotcakes are way too soft (not in a good way soft) and the taste was quite plain and simple. It tasted cheap, feels like a heated muffin to be honest.

Such a nice cafe, I have only really ordered cabinet food and coffee however the coffee is delicious!! Staff are always very friendly and proactive!

YUM. YUM. YUM. My absolute favourite Eggs Benedict out there. The hollandaise, the brioche, the bacon, THE BRIOCHE!!! Hello Friends + Allies has it going on and ticks all of the right boxes (most importantly the the Eggs Benny box). The cafe itself is the definition of brunchtime aesthetic and offers itself up as the perfect backdrop to any photos you take whilst there. The food speaks to both the eyes and stomach, with beauty that matches the flavour. I would definitely call Hello Friends + Allies my go to brunch spot and don’t see that changing anytime soon (or hopefully ever for that matter).

Very cute and lovely little place and often very busy. Sometimes a bit wary of all the flies in the space, the reception lady didn’t looked too concerned... the French toast was a delight but the poached pears is not what I may have expected. Cured salmon bowl was an easy win, and while I am not personally a fan of the potato’s being a bit underwhelming I wouldn’t be able to say so for everyone.

One word. AMAZING.<br/>Possibly one of the best cafes I have ever been to. The food was absolutely amazing, you get what you pay for in terms of serving size. It was HUGE. It was so good I had to finish every bite. <br/>We ordered the red velvet hotcakes and the french toast, both were eye-rollingly good.<br/>Service was great and friendly. It does get pretty busy but the wait wasn't too bad.

Had a family lunch here yesterday<br/>Large premises with lots of seating<br/>Nice ambiance and light<br/>Very noisy at times with screamers in the house<br/>Amazing food options with the colours  spectacular<br/>The food was all very good<br/>The Big Breakfast massive and high quality<br/>The Fenugreek Potatoes with sausage and poached egg excellent<br/>Tuna Bowl amazing<br/>And Eggs Benedict also excellent<br/>Drinks options were very good also<br/>Not cheap but well worth the cost<br/>A downer was the service<br/>it was quite busy but while they tried most of the staff seemed out of their depth<br/>Will probably go back which is the ultimate

Very nice place and atmosphere. The service was a little slow but staff is friendly and attentive after the food is being serve.<br/><br/>Food is beautiful presented on the plate. I had Eggs Benedict with Salmon... (maybe its just me) but the Bun/bread just doesnt complement the overall taste especially when is was served at room temperature. 🤔<br/><br/>Pleanty of seats, good for large groups.<br/><br/>

Great place for a weekend (weekday, whenever) catch up. Very nice environment inside, spacious and has a really nice flow to it.<br/><br/>Food portions are really really good here for what you pay, they also use Supreme Coffee :) my fav, and it tastes great!<br/><br/>From personal experience, I find the some of the food items here are a bit of a hit and miss, but in general I'd say it is pretty good.<br/><br/>A lot of the food here has an asian twist to it, if you like that kind of stuff then this will be a good place to check out.<br/><br/>Check my Instagram on what I thought about my most recent experience in more detail.

I ordered an iced coffee and the ‘Hello Burger”.........<br/>I have walked away disappointed.<br/><br/>Iced coffee - it didn’t taste that great. It had pieces of cookies on the top with two chocolate coated bread type sticks. A weird combination of miss mash that didn’t work.<br/><br/>The ‘Hello Burger’ didn’t hit the spot either. <br/><br/>The shoe string fries tasted like McDonalds fries. The burger came with two homemade beef patties, cooked medium to well.....a little too pink in the middle. I’m not a fan of undercooked burger patty meat. The Smoked cheddar cheese was good, it had a small amount of lettuce, a couple of small gherkin slices, Japanese style pickled onion with a chipotle sauce on a toasted sesame bun. <br/><br/>For $22, you expect a pretty great burger. I didn’t get that. I got average.<br/><br/>If I knew what the burger was going to taste like, I would have ordered the Asian salad instead.<br/><br/>I want to give them a 2, but my better half had the Chefs special........which was pretty good. Check out the photos!

Disappointing, food took over an hour to come out, and when it did it turned out that the waitress had put through our order wrong and we were served meals we didn’t order. We then had to wait another 20 minutes for our actual meals to come out. The food was alright, however not worth the bad service

I need to try everything on the menu! Although it gets noisy at times, this cafe is amazing! Instaworthy for sure! I had the French toast and mum the eggs bene. Each meal is crafted to perfection and done with love and care. I loved the decor as well. In terms of parking, there are spots near it but if you don’t want a time restriction, park in a side street ie Dunkeron or Mt St John.

Wow this cafe can be my new best friend

Hello Friends + Allies was really good, I thought it was really cool to have fries inside the burger. Really yummy food, 5/5 but only thing is it’s a bit expensive. But apart from that would totally recommend it!! Great insta background at the back too

French toast FULL ON! One of the best presented dishes I have come across but a bit too sweet for me that early in the morning. Eggs benedict decent, pea mash smear was a nice touch and works well with the dish.

Came to Hello Friends + Allied today for lunch and it was pretty good! The saffron in my panda cotta was a bit too strong, and the marscapone on the passionfruit slice and banana cake was a bit pointless as it was flavourless. Other than that my breakfast was fresh and tangy - not too sweet! And the passionfruit slice rich and tart. My friends had the eggs Benedict which they both enjoyed also. Cute little cafe and decent food. Very enjoyable!

Pretty cafe:) i had french toast and avocado smash. Here is better than i expected. More space inside with pretty deco. Kind staff:) i found lovely brunch spot.

I’m not one to complain but I have been coming to this cafe for a while now and it has gone downhill. The staff used to be friendly and helpful, the food was great and coffee even better. Every time I come in now I feel the woman at the till is rude every single day and never smiles! The food is the same yet it tastes differently than it used too which is disappointing. I used to be a regular now I tend to avoid this cafe. I once witnessed the owner telling off her staff in front of me which was highly unprofessional and made me feel rather uncomfortable.

Nice little spot for a Sunday brunch -  staff were attentive and food came out relatively fast.  We ordered the fenugreek potatoes / gnocci / french toast and Asian chicken salad.  No needles in the strawberries however there was a rather large piece of egg shell found in the fenugreek potato dish. Gnocci dish was more of a soup (which was difficult to eat as no spoons provided), and the asian chicken salad didn't have any dressing on it. Not sure if that was how it was meant to be served.  Got a take away donut and it was pretty good. Would return again but would probably try something different.

Cute spot to meet for a snack or have a coffee. I decided to have lunch here one day, had the Asian chicken salad. Flavours were ok, I found the sesame oil dressing very over powering. It was not balanced needed more sweet or salty flavours

Cute little cafe to have brunch! I ordered the okonomiyaki omelette while my boyfriend ordered the granola bowl. I should have ordered what he had because it looked so good! Mine was okay, maybe it would have nicer if there was more sauce, but other than that it wasn't too bad. I'll definitely come here again to try the pork fennel sausages, those sounded good

Nice ambience, friendly staff and humble service.<br/>Also, good food and decent coffee. The place was peaceful and calm. You can definitely choose this place if you wanna have a light weekend brunch or if you’re planning to catch up on a long time no see friend.

I had this place on my list of cafes to try for a long time, and last Sunday, we finally made it there. I can say it was well worth the wait. I had the Brûlée French Toast and it was sensational. It was beautifully presented and it tasted divine! Oh, and I can’t forget to mention the white chocolate mocha, which was to die for! We will definitely be going back to this cafe.

I think I found my new favourite cafe!<br/><br/>Hello Friends + Allies is a lovely cafe sitting in the middle of Epsom, a little further away from the other famous cafes in the city. They provide unique food options with excellent service, no wonder it’s so popular.<br/><br/>Service: 10/10<br/>We were immediately welcomed and seated upon arrival.<br/>All the waitresses were absolutely lovely and provided excellent service. They were very attentive and came to our service whenever we needed anything.<br/>The food was served slightly slower than desired but it was very popular and crowded, so this is justified.<br/><br/>Food: 10/10<br/>We ordered a flat white, an iced chocolate, the New York cheesecake from the cabinet, the eggs Benedict with salmon and the famous red velvet hotcakes.<br/>The red velvet hotcakes were the highlight of the day! The presentation was stunning with the vivacious colours of the toppings. They were crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. The delicious contrasting flavours of the lemony syrup and the sweet toppings were sweet tooth heaven!<br/>I loved that the iced chocolate was an actual refreshing, creamy chocolate drink, and not just chocolate milk with crushed ice. The toppings made the presentation gorgeous and added a crunchy texture.<br/>The cheesecake had a divine cheesy flavour and a sugary sweet crumb. The baked top and crust were crunchy and crisp. The filling was creamy and velvety.<br/><br/>Ambiance: 10/10<br/>The alluring, bright neon lights easily attract any passerby’s attention. The potted plants and artwork all around the cafe create a hipster atmosphere.<br/>The combination of quality service and tasty food brings a smile to all the customers’ faces, and makes a delightful brunch environment.<br/>Appetising aromas escape from the kitchen, filling the dining area with heavenly smells.<br/>They also provide magazines for you when you’re waiting.<br/>The attractive selection of cabinet goods was a difficult obstacle for an indecisive person like me. Everything looked so good!<br/><br/>This cafe is a little far from where I live but it was definitely worth the drive down here.<br/>Hello Friends + Allies is on the top of my list of favourite brunch places, I will be back soon.<br/>

funky arty style, the lady that took us to our seat very happy and bubbly. Waitress for ordering not so great, very ‘didn’t want to be there attitude’ wasn’t helpful at all, menu only offered 2 gluten free options and asked if any of the others could be gluten free, was told said ‘no’ (not even I will ask the chef) many cafes now are very good st accomodating for allergies so bit disappointed. <br/><br/>I ended up going with poached eggs on gluten free toast which was very plain and quite flavourless, I have had this option in many cafes and not sure how they do it but is normally always really nice, they have spinach or something with it. My son had hot cakes and said they were yum and they looked amazing,but he thought he could taste a slight chlorine taste? Not sure what happened there?<br/><br/>I love my coffee and have a machine at home so when I go out I expect great coffee my coffee wasn’t great? <br/><br/>I feel when I am paying for it I expect it to be better than I can do at home, and I certainly could of done better at home today.<br/>It may have been a one off bad experience and willing to give it another try but this cafe is quite expensive so needs to be excellent . My eggs were $15 (I normally pay $12) and sons $14.50 which is expensive for kids it shouldn’t be more than $10.<br/>+ had high chair <br/>+ has toy section (good for little ones)<br/>+ cool art work nice space<br/>- expensive<br/>- more gluten free options needed<br/>- quality of food average <br/>- service average <br/>Will take my husband next time and see what he thinks but need to work on that service. Thanks <br/>

Good flat white and espresso.  The flaky pastry tart with feta, mushroom and poached egg was tasty.  I loved the sprigs of herbs.  A bit over-priced.

I want to eat it everyday! But too faraway from me. Every time drove from Albany to Epsom for their food! Love it love the mermaid yoghurt bowl. Never take it off from your menu please!!

after previous bad experiences, decided to give it another shot! and thank gosh i did because the food was amazing!!! ordered the green bowl + my friend got the eggs bennie! after looking at reviews, i saw that wait time was a problem but our food came out quick as so that was a plus, especially considering it was a saturday morning!!! really enjoyed my meal, yay!!!!

Absolutely delicious food! We got the mushrooms, mermaid bowl and green bowl which all tasted amazing :) definitely recommend the mushrooms !! Would’ve been 5/5 but the wait was around 45 mins :( at least the food was awesome though :) cant wait to go back and try something else and EVERYTHING looked super

I'm not sure why or when takeaway coffees get priority. I am suggesting you review this practice as after watching all the takeaway coffees ordered and delivered way after my order was made my coffee still wasn't made and still in a queue. I couldn't wait any longer....I went elsewhere. I wont be going back till you get the basics about customer service right.

Awesome place, great food, clean and nice restrooms . Staff a bit forgetful but very friendly. Love it. Cozy and warm. Crowl away coz can’t stop eating)

Great food and atmosphere. I especially love the flowers decorated on the walls in the back room. Food is pretty expensive here, it is worth it though because the food is always top notch.

Came here yesterday after reading so many good reviews but turned out to be quite disappointing! I'm not sure if it's what we order or what, but we both just seemed to not enjoy it. I ordered the Gnocchi which was really dense not fluffy at all and quite bland/lacking a lot of flavour. My boyfriend ordered the big breakfast but he didn't enjoy that either, said the bacon was way too salty it over powered everything and after that he couldn't enjoy it. I also ordered the passion fruit cheesecake from the cabinet to takeaway and when it arrived I opened it to have a taste and found a hair in it. I told the lady about it and she offered to get me a replacement but soon after came back and let me know they only had a broken one left and if I would like that and that she will charge me haft price so I agreed. The cheesecake was the only thing I enjoyed. It was actually really good. Service was good thou but I think this place is a tad over rated but that's just my opinion.

Extensive menu full of breakfast foods. Very unique dishes and smart presentation. Good quality good and decent portions. Only downfall is we waited quite a while for these dishes.

Overall a very decent feed. The mains were really tasty and not too heavy, leaving room for a great dessert. I loved the range of desserts available - it felt like the perfect place to come for both a breakfast and something sweeter for an afternoon feed.

Very popular place and I can see why! Such a cute cafe and everything looked so good on the menu. Although it was busy the food came out quick and the staff were nice and friendly. We had the smashed avo with salmon and bacon eggs bene (no sauce due to dietary requirements). The food and hot drinks were absolutely delicious.

Eggs on sourdough, Hello Greens and Wild Mushrooms Medley.<br/>I loved the wild mushrooms dish. The greens in the Hello Greens were quite undercooked, a couple more minutes would have made it just right. This is a very popular cafe and we felt that the staff 'just' had it under control. Overall I would come back again and try some other dishes.

Great place to pop in and hang out. Coffee is pretty good and so is the selection of food with their interesting and fancy designs! Weekend mornings are a busy time...pays to book or get in early, unless you are happy to wait.

Very friendly and efficient service. Coffee good ...the place is always packed which is a good sign. Only negative is that parking is difficult at busy times. Other than that, highly recommended for good coffee experience. <br/>

I live just around the block from this pretty cafe.<br/>But to be honest, its just another normal 'hip' cafe with their health concious ingredients with quite high prices. A casual brunch at the place costs nearly as much as a pretty decent dinner out.<br/><br/>Wasnt particularly happy with the smoothie which had coconut milk instead of normal milk lol food was like any other good cafes, good but overpriced.

I had heard great things about this place and let me confirm that there is no exaggeration. The food is delicious, filling and good quality. If you’re after a hearty breakfast the big breakfast is definitely recommended. My friend order the salad and she enjoyed it saying it was crisp & fresh. There’s more seating at the back. The service is efficient, the staff are so professional and have their “eye on the ball”. Absolutely recommend this place for friends and family.

I go to this place often as its located in my neighbourhhood. Everything is great except for the lady at the counter. Never smiles and can be quite rude sometimes. She takes away two of my stars. Food, coffee, presentation and the atmosphere here is amazing!

Big portion but not tasty. Over cooked omelette it’s really dense. We also ordered big breakfast and the bacon taste like the fridge. Don’t think they use fresh ingredients. Coffee was great but the food is bad. Bit surprise that got such a high rating. A

Food was good but didn't blow me away. I had the fenugreek potatoes and everything was seasoned well, tasty and was enjoyable. Those hot cakes were kind of confusing however, as they resembled giant crispy cookies instead. Taste wise, I was told they were very sweet. Lots of potential though, so I will be back to try other items from the menu.

I have been wanting to try this cafe for awhile now, but the past two times I visited they did not have seats! We were overjoyed when there was a table for four available this time during Sunday lunch hour.<br/><br/>This cafe is as cute as it could possibly be, with quirky arts, decor, and even a flower wall. Makes for amazing opportunities!<br/><br/>Every item on the menu will make your mouth water. I had the red velvet hot cakes, and the presentation was super pretty. The hot cakes had a nice crunch on the outside, and super soft and moist on the inside. The chocolate flavours really came through. Tasted like a chocolate brownie! The fruit and the mascarpone served as a nice refresher. <br/>My friend had the spicy noodle, and said it packed a real kick.<br/>One of my friend did not enjoy her food as much - as the cheese on her avocado sour dough was bland and the texture was a bit grainy. The serving size was decent though.<br/><br/>Food took awhile to arrive, but they were rather busy. As we were paying, I realized that the cabinet food looked gorgeous too! All in all, Hello Friends & Allies is like a dream, and we would love to visit again :)

Love this place, the food is awesome! Always a favourite and service is very friendly. Always a good choice for your local and reliable Sunday brunch

Great place for breakfast or brunch. They are very busy in the weekends though so there might be a wait for a table and food.<br/>I had the fenugreek potatoes- great flavour and a really big serving. Their most awesome dish though is the red velvet hotcakes. <br/>Good ambience and friendly staff. <br/>Lots of tasty treats in the cabinet too so definitely look in there!

Was blown away by the chilli scrambled eggs here on the weekend! So flavoursome and delicious, can’t wait to come back again and try the rest of the delicious menu especially the bowls!

TL;DR: Flies in cabinet, long wait time, mistakes happen. Enter at your own risk - you have been warned.<br/><br/>Disappoiment is an understatement. I really, really wanted to like this place since the menu sounds incredibly appetising. Unfortunately, my visit today gives me pretty much nothing good to say.<br/><br/>Service: We arrive at around 12:45 and were seated fairly promptly, with our order taken in about 5 minutes. So far so good, but it only goes downhill from here. I've read other reviews highlighting wait times and order issues (e.g. order never getting put through), but I thought those issues would've been easily fixed and I wouldn't be so unlucky. Boy was I wrong.  Thus began the waiting games. 20 minutes, 45 minutes, 1 hour go by. I gave them the benefit of the doubt since I knew "Insta-worthy" cafes usually take a while when it comes to food. After an hour, I flag down a waitress to check on my order. Turns out it wasn't put through. We were offered one meal for free, and was told I only had to pay for the two drinks and one meal. That didn't work out either, since I was charged for everything anyway. I was then offered a cake from the cabinet, which I reluctantly took since a refund didn't look possible at this point. I don't think offering a "free" cake is any appropriate substitute for a comped meal though. Continuing...<br/><br/>Food: Honestly, I didn't want to take the "free" cake when I saw the state of the cabinet. There were HEAPS of flies buzzing around and enjoying free bites of cake - I'm talking small to big flies just happily landing on the cake and the waitress not seemingly caring much. Not very hygienic at all eh? After 2 whole hours of waiting, our food finally arrives (red velvet pancakes and French toast) and at this point I didn't even know that my disappointment could be amplified like that. The french toast was soggy and the fruit accompanying it was laughable at best as they didn't seem to fit the dish at all. The red velvet pancakes fared no better - I suppose they're meant to be "moist" but it certainly didn't feel that way. The only good thing on the plate was the mascarpone. Maybe the long wait time of 1hr and 30minutes and all the other issues made my expectations unrealistically high?<br/><br/>Like I said, disappointment is an understatement. Maybe we should've just paid for the drinks and left. Whatever the case, I'm certain I won't be back, and Hello Friends + Allies probably won't make my recommended cafe list.<br/>Note to management: Consider investing in a cabinet with a door - maybe that'll help with the flies on cake problem.

Redemption! <br/><br/>Came here and had the red velvet pancakes. Both came out perfectly on time. Delicious food, amazing coffee, highly recommended to anyone

First time I've ever actually eaten in Epsom. It was nice to be in a different suburb for once.<br/>Traffic was desirable to look at and parking was appreciated apart from the time limit - 30mins. We took a risk anyway. 😊<br/>If you're a big eater like myself, then this is not the spot for you, especially if you do not want to pay<br/>$$ for one plate.<br/>However I will say this, the food that you can see, sleeping in glass cabinets - were incredibly fresh. They weren't from yesterday and their donuts looked heavenly thick and juicy.😋😋😋😋<br/>I had the Eggs Benedict's, and it was really lovely and light. Healthy in other words.<br/>The fruit salad was polite on the palette (not sour or too sweet. The yoghurt tasted lovely, very home made and the bits of meringue blended beautifully together.<br/><br/>The red velvet hotcakes were a first for me. They tasted very much like a chocolate cake. I definitely wouldn't consider it a pancake. Very heavy to eat, especially in the morning. But it too, had some amazing flavours that married together well. It was served with masacapone and lemon curd.<br/>overall, I was impressed by the mixtures of flavours, the healthy meals they also serve and the menus were a beautiful touch to the cafe. Well done guys.<br/><br/>

Come in a lot for breakfast, lunch, and tea. Doughnut was so good! Filling was creamy and smelt like heaven. Tarts was also delicious and perfect to have with a cup of mochaccino. Red velvet hotcakes are the best on the menu. You have not lived until you have tried them. French toast tasted different to the normal cafe ones and wasn't really for me though. Slices from cabinet tasted nice as well. Cookies were moist and huge, perfect for a snack. Salmon eggs benedict was served with a potato rosti. Potato was super buttery and fell apart right away in my mouth. Loved the generous portion of smoked salmon. Specialty coffees like matcha latte didn't have much green tea flavour to it. Chai latte tasted average but it looked very nice. Only some of the cabinet food was good. Passionfruit slice was delicious. The kit kat red velvet cupcake tasted kind of dry. banoffee cheesecake was really nice. It wasn't too dense and the banana flavour was still there. Spinach apple and banana smoothie was one of the best smoothies they had there. Preferred it over the berry mix smoothie.

What a neat cafe with its friendly staff, delicious food and great atmosphere!<br/>Ordered the braai salt prawns for breakfast and it was amazing ! The lemon kumura was to die for 🙌🏼 I’ve never had anything like it before and I could have eaten a pot of it. The eggs were also cooked to perfection 👌🏼<br/>The cabinet food is want I’m coming back for next visit! Love this place.

Great cafe, coffee is pretty good. Plenty of space, very lively and good ambience. Last went in January, a bit of a problem with some flies flying about. Portion of everything is just great. Red velvet pancake was absolutely delightful, the floss came out very cute I couldn't stop laughing when I saw it. It was too heavy with the sweet on sweet though.<br/>French toast is one of the better ones I've tasted in Auckland, add the bacon it's worth it, gives that extra dimension of flavour. The eggs benedict is just of superb taste, served with the most incredible homemade brioche, along a bed of very refreshing pea puree.<br/>One major disappointment: one of my eggs was overcooked, yolk was moist but not runny at all.

Staff are rude and inhospitable, food isn't anything special and the baking is hit or miss. Tried this place a few times now and don't think I'll bother again.

Definitely instaworthy but I'm not on Instagram. The wild mushroom dish a bit too salty couldn't finish it. Red velvet hotcake is good but if you don't have a very sweet tooth it can get quite sickening. Coffee was okay but not very hot. It's worth a try after all.

The food in this restaurant is beautiful. They're closed at 4pm，too early. I've already recommended it to my friends. It would be nice to open later in the evening.

Really good food! Food size is good for what you pay for! Loved our drinks! Really creative dishes! Would different go again! Would definitely recommend!

Good coffee and friendly service. Food menu reads well but my meal lacked a lot of flavour (Chicken burger). Great choice of cabinet food. Everything looked great

I’ve been here a few times with friends, and the food, both cabinet and menu, has always been superb, as has the service from a lady I presume to be the manager. The cabinet food is fresh, appealing and immensely well presented - makes me feel very appetised! Though I’ve had good experiences every time I’ve been here, one of the FOH waitresses got my order wrong last week and was really rude about it when I tried asking her if I could have my original order instead.

Could have more vegan options in the cabinet. Was better the first time I went. But nice decor. Pretty standard food menu with some fusion flavours.

Place was lovely, presentation was beautiful but the food was bland. They need to put a little more effort towards taste rather than how it looks. I had the mixed mushroom dish and it was just so much creamy textures and nothing to refresh the palette. Maybe swap the seed bread for a sourdough to cut through the creaminess.

I had the French toast with blueberry mascarpone. Totally recommend it. And coffee, well two cups. It was so good. What a lovely place to go to eat, so much choice in their cabinet, but I decided to stick with the menu. Didn’t regret it at all. I am definitely going back to try everything else.. parking is the most difficult part, but if you get that sorted, it is well worth trying.

Good service, ambience and food. Was really busy and is a popular place on weekends but we still received our food quickly. Highly recommend the French toast - beautifully presented too!

Nice cafe to go to....... ...Like the food but was waited a little bit long......... People are friendly here...... Will go back and try more food........

Taste: 🌕🌕🌕🌑🌑<br/>Interior Deco: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗🌑<br/>Customer service: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕<br/>Recommend: 🌕🌕🌕🌑🌑<br/>Busy cafe which many flowery decorations in the store! The staffs were really friendly, I asked if they could serve it up on a pink plate and they did!! Interesting combination of the sweet toast and salty bacon! Lychee and pomegranate drink's got really interesting indescribable taste!

After all the hype, we finally decided to try it out- and it was a satisfying experience. The waitress was really helpful and the price was reasonable considering the food and presentation.<br/><br/>We got the red velvet cake from the cabinet, eggs benedict, house cured salmon bowl, and the spicy chicken noodles. The eggs benedict here is very different to other cafes as it’s served between toasted buns. The buns itself had a sweet, buttery, and a tiny avocado flavor. The color underneath was green, matching the avocado purée on the side. The hollandaise was also very good as it wasn’t very strong and creamy, but still delivered the sour buttery flavor. <br/><br/>The spicy noodles was also a hit as the chicken was cooked perfectly (soft and tender), and had the spiciness from the Szechuan pepper when fried. The noodles however, was a little bit soft due to over cooking, but the flavor was still nicely delivered as it wasn’t that spicy so everyone could handle it. <br/><br/>Apparently the salmon bowl was very delicious as the vegetables delivered a refreshing taste along with the salmon. Also the red velvet cake from the cabinet (the famous cabinet), was apparently also on point because it wasn’t very sweet or creamy, it was just right.<br/><br/>You don’t have to worry about the portion size here because they couldn’t even finish the chicken noodles and we were stuffed after the salmon bowl and eggs benedict. Presentation wise, they lived up to the hype of being insta worthy.<br/><br/>Taste - 9/10<br/>Size - 10/10<br/>Service - 8/10<br/>Price - 8/10<br/>Ambience - 9/10

Yes! Fantastic lunch here after my last exam. What a treat! We had to share one sweet and one savoury dish for lunch because we could not pass up the red velvet hotcakes. Beautiful! The veggie brunch was also super yum! Will be back to try one of the yummy looking cakes in the cabinet and a delish smoothie! Plenty of options on the menu to please everyone, and the coffee is good too. Lots of seating and pretty quick service considering it's a big place and it was busy! Great cafe!

Came here on a Saturday for breakfast and it was so busy at 10am already! I had the chilli eggs and my boyfriend had the fenugreek potatoes. Really enjoyed mine! the egg was beautifully cooked; slightly runny on the inside, soft, and not dry at all. The fenugreek potatoes were real good too, though but a little bit salty for my boyfriend's liking. We also had their green smoothie and coffee, both were average. Would definitely come back here for food again!

So good to have finally visited one of the top cafes in Auckland! <br/><br/>The cafe itself is cutesy ‘hipster’, yet chic and classy; with abstract cubist artworks displayed around the walls complementing their name sign. <br/>We got the House Cured Salmon Bowl, the Spicy Noodles and Eggs Benedict. I also got a red velvet cabinet cake. <br/><br/>The salmon bowl was huge! It is a generous array of shredded carrots, half avocado covered in sesame and dollop of mayo, cucumbers, prawn crackers, purple cabbage and of course, smoked salmon. The light and crunchiness of all the vegetables was a delight to eat; the avocado was so good, the sesame and mayo worked really well together. The salmon itself was to die for, strong smokey salted flavours, which the vegetables balances out. <br/>The spicy noodles was a really generous portion too, and apparently quite spicy, so don’t underestimate the spice level! My friends couldn’t finish theirs, but apparently the chicken is really good! <br/>The red velvet cake was a delight; fluffy but dense without being dry, and the cream was rich and smooth without being sweet. A good end to the meal. <br/><br/>Presentations of all the dishes were beautiful! Staff are friendly too. The bill for everything including drinks came to $109, which between 4 people I think is really reasonable! <br/><br/>Food: 9/10<br/>Price: 9/10<br/>Ambience: 9/10<br/>Service: 9/10

Went to Hello Friends+Allies for afternoon cake in Saturday afternoon. Nyum, great selection of cakes in the cabinet, always feel like we want to order everything, this time we ended up with their raspberry cream Cheese cake which was nice. <br/><br/>We have been here a few times for cake and always happy with their food. Service was good. I thought the atmosphere inside was quite interesting (in a good way), even though the restaurant was busy, we still feel very comfortable to have conversation and sit for a while in our table.<br/><br/>We was quite excited when we read their full lunch menu but was too full to order at the time. Will definitely be back for next time.

The best omelette in the whole wide world. Hello Friends + Allies does everything exceptionally well. Their Matcha latte, pastries and all their food are some of the best in all the land. Do check them out.

beautifully presented and delicious food ! had the french toast and beef cheeks with potatoes ! I like how the french toast wasn't too sweet and came with maple syrup on the side~ will definitely return again !

Been here many times and is one of my go to's! Customer service is pretty good most of the time and their menu changes seasonally. My all time favourite dish is definately their French toast (the blueberry mascarpone is so good), paired with a homemade soda. The setting is nice and usually pretty packed in the weekend, so definately recommend going on a weekday.

After all the hype on the internet, I finally decided to try it out, and what can I say, except that this experience was perfect! After comming back several times after the first I remained to be in love with everything about this place. In total, I have ordered the sichuan chicken burger, tandoori chicken burger, and ofcourse their most hyped redvelvet hotcakes topped with candy floss. The chicken in both burgers were tender and juicy, packed with flavour, and the sichuan burger chicken was also crispy on the inside. The hotcakes were fluffy and moist in the outside and slightly crunchy on the outside. Candy floss melted on my mouth and really complimented the hotcakes. Not too sweet as you may expect, which made it easier to finish the entire meal. I do find pairing this dish with their homemade sodas to work better though. Definately reccomend!

I thoroughly enjoyed this place. I love the artsy decor, the vibe and feel of the crowd and the staff were really good.<br/><br/>My friend had eggs + toast (with a side of fenugreek potatoes) and i has the Fenugreek potato dish - both were really good! The addition of the curry leaf in this dish was really smart!<br/><br/>By far the most photogenic dishes i've seen come out of a cafe. Love this place, would come back again.<br/>

The food and service are always great! Hello Friends & Allies looks small from the road front but have a huge amount of seating at the back - so great for team lunches during the week! I have tried both breakfast and lunches there, everything always tastes great!. While there try their smoothies (delicious).

Awesome service, beautiful presentation. I ordered the French toast, it was delicious. However I wish they had larger portions, as I left the store still hungry. They could improve on wait time, however the cafe was full when we came. A little on the pricier side. However it is located in central auckland. I would defs come here for a nice Instagram photo, but not on the regular.

Amazing. Can't fault it. Great service, good menu choice, great coffee. The tuna noodle bowl has so much variety and many flavours, it's one of the best dishes I've had in Auckland. Highly recommend this place!

Cafe food with flair. Hello Friends does great coffee and has an interesting menu and the food is always delicious. Good options for gluten-free/vegan etc. Can be a bit noisy and echo-ey when it's busy. Check out the cabinet food as well as what's on the menu.

We had the fenugreek potatoes and the big breakfast. Both were amazing and huge portions. The cake counter is full of temptations.....had one to go

Lovely atmosphere, well thought out food and truly great service makes this a go to place. <br/>Very nice for brunch or breakfast. <br/>Iced water would make it 100%

Spacious and pram friendly. Great service in particular to responsiveness. Menu had a variety of unique choices and tasted excellent. Would recommend.

The cafe atmosphere is really cool and friendly. The staff is really friendly here too. I don't remember exactly what we ordered but all the photos are attached. I do remember that everything was delicious though especially the drink :)

Decent portion sizes and great ingredients. Nice presentation of food. It was quite interesting to have the roti in place of bread for a big breakfast. <br/><br/>The roti allows you to roll up the food into a breakfast burrito which is pretty neat.

Such an awesome experience at this place. Friendly service, having table service goes a long way. Food was delicious, the red velvet hotcakes were definitely as good as they look, not too overpowering or too sweet - just perfect! Coffee was strong and hot. Cute atmosphere and staff were great. Will 100% be back!

Visited this place for brunch with my friends on a Sunday. Love the ambience and deco. Service was super nice and staff was chatty in a friendly helpful way. We ordered Black Sticky rice, Egg benedicts and Fenugreek Potatoes and some drinks. For presentation, they are far from the prettiest dishes I've seen in Auckland. Taste-wise, strictly average. The sticky rice needs more coconut milk and something sweeter to balance the sour taste. Two things that works for me would be the potatoes, super tasty and unique, and my Macha latte, fragrant and not overly sweet. Overall, i don't see this place becoming my new fav anytime soon.

Went there today, on a busy Saturday afternoon for late breakfast, ordered chilli scrambled eggs, and undoubtedly this was the best breakfast I've had so far this year. Sourdough + whipped feta + scrambled eggs cooked to perfection + chaat masala on a plate with bharta, it all blended so well and complimented each other. I can't forget the fragrance of chaat masala the moment it was served on the table, just amazing! Nice location, ambience, staff, quick service. Keep up!

Came here with a friend on Sunday. Was lucky to be allocated a table pretty much straight away despite the number of people waiting. Found the service quite attentive and really appreciated the fact that our waitress gave us a heads up about the wait time.<br/><br/>Chose the beef cheek and it was tender and delicious. Sauce was creamy and had just the right amount of flavour, not to clash with or overpower the meat. However, I was very disappointed to discover that I was given only three very tiny bits of beef. The dish was 22 bucks, so I was expecting alittle more than the potato and egg being the actual focal point of the dish. Company was great, but friend found it hard to hear me talk. The noise level did turn out to be quite high.<br/><br/>Next time I go back, I might try the burger instead-that actually looked SO tantalising!

Overrated brunch place. <br/>Service was slow, food was average. I tried the eggs benedict with bacon and my friend had feenugreek potatoes. I wouldn't take the trip back to this place again unfortunately. <br/>

Cuteness overloaded for the food decoration. Staffs are very friendly. The healthy options as sugar free matcha latte or green sourdough just made me very excited. The potato plate with sausage is very nice as well. The only drawback for this place is the noise. It's quite loud that we had to scream to hear each other.

Great place for brunch. Busy but for a good reason. Food is a piece of art. The entire place is super arty , great ambience and customer service!

Came here on Sunday afternoon , it was quite busy but luckily we managed to get a table of 2 straight away. We ordered the red velvet hot cake and fried chicken bagel from their cabinet.<br/>And i'd say hands down the best hot cake i've ever tasted in Auckland! 😍 would come back for more!! <br/>However, the fried chicken bagel was quite a let down. It was cold and super tough bagel which put me off a little bit 😶 and i didn't take a picture of it since it wasn't look appetizing 😂<br/>I'd recommend their menu instead of choosing from their cabinet 👍<br/>

We Came here for Mother's Day and really enjoyed it! The food was great, so was the coffee /drinks and friendly service 😊 the red velvet hot cakes were 👌

Visited Hello Friends + Allies for the first time for lunch today quite disappointing! Had a lamb salad which was both cold & contained far too many carrots and not much else! Service was very average too!

Alright find this place just on my way to epsom.<br/>Funky setup really like it<br/>Attentive service<br/>good coffee <br/>i had lemon curd &coconut  cake was nice too <br/>Will go back soon to try there full offering.

Visited this cafe for brunch last weekend with a group of friends. Service was a little slow, we ordered coffees whilst waiting for the rest of our group to arrive, coffees arrived promptly. I had ordered a large coffee yet got a small. We then didn't see a waiter again for close to 30 minutes and only got our orders taken as we had to wave one down. We then waited approximately 45 minutes before our meals came out. We thought perhaps it was because we were a 'large' group of 8, but there were other large groups that arrived after us, yet didn't wait as long for their food? Not sure why. Our food finally arrived and I guess you could say it was worth the wait. I ordered the Egss Bene with bacon, swapped out the brioche for sourdough, delicious! One of the group ordered the red velvet pancakes...looked amazing and I'll be ordering these next time. Scrambled eggs on toast for another two of the group, very large portion and looked tasty, another ordered the vegetarian breakfast, didn't look appetising to me (probably because of the word vegetarian) but I was told it was delicious. I would rate this place 5 if it were not for the very long wait for service and food to arrive. I will definitely go here again and hope the service improves by then

Excellent little place just on great south road! One of my favourite cafes so far!! <br/>Ambiance of this cafe is amazing, they have very nice deco inside and the cafe feels very homely. <br/><br/>I have tried a few dishes including the eggs benedict and omelette. Others have said it is very bland, but I think that it is just right for me. <br/><br/>Definitely will visit ongoing and coffee is great! I recommend cold brew coffee~ superb. <br/>

My husband and I came here for breakfast, I ordered the red velvet pancake and mocha, he had the Fenugreek potatoes. Honestly, they both tasted mediocre...The red velvet pancake looked nice, but single taste, only sweet but nothing else, and the Fenugreek potatoes not worth that money. The mocha even not hot enough, so sad! However, the ambiance was nice and warm!

Had lunch over here today with a few friends. The food was decent, nothing amazing. The chicken burger was quite nice, the chips that came with it were amazing ! The only thing that wasn't great was it took the waiters a while to take our order. The Brocollini salad was just broccoli, beetroot and feta with pistachio which didn't really work for me. Quite over priced for what it is.

This Cafe is much favoured by the locals. You will see people come in, wave hands, send out hugs to the one they are familiar with.  It is a great  touch of warmness speaking of a nice Cafe serving a great spot for the local.<br/><br/>Name as it is,  homey, cozy and relaxed. Even though a bit crowded during peak hours, however, we would not mind sitting in the long sharing table, catching up with friends. <br/><br/>Always get inspired by the food from cabinet, orange poppy seed cake, cream donuts, chocolate cheery cake, many beautiful Danish pastry, proper croissant, and one of my favourite seasonal salad.<br/><br/>For this autumn season, you will have pumpkin, pumpkin seeds, walnuts and spinach leaf as a hearty healthy bowl for simple lunch, pairing a heated up croissant, accompany proper latte or flat white. The barista Robert knows how to deal with coffee and sometimes he will treat  you with a latte with unique picture on top. Nice try. Btw, never miss the white chocolate mocha, it is such a favour.<br/><br/>For the lunch menu and all-day breakfast, to my surprise, I find sticky rice balls which is a popular flavour for Chinese people with the sesame fillings inside. The red velvet hotcake is such  a temptation. They do serve Asian twist dishes such as Asian chicken salad, tandoori chicken burger as well as Tuna noodle bowl. Definitely for the variety of local people's appetite.<br/><br/>Great vibe, good service. Hello Friends and Allies, you are welcome here any time.

Nice little cafe, staff was friendly, food was ok... presentation was spectacular...<br/><br/>There were flies on the pastry by the counter. Which was disappointing for getting close to winter... the flowers were nicely decorated and something different. <br/><br/>Food looks good but tastes mediocre, their big breakfast has pastrami like meat from countdown, and the brûlée like dessert was muesli stuff instead which was quite sad...<br/><br/>Service: 5/5<br/>Food Quality: 2/5<br/>Food Quantity: 3/5<br/>Environment: 4/5<br/>Presentation: 5/5<br/>Price: $20-25

I have enjoyed several lunches at Friends and Allies before, so a very disappointing purchase of a cheese scone this morning that was very obviously yesterdays fare!!  Not what you would expect from this establishment.

Our favorite place to brunch right now as it's probably the only cafe we've found which serves a tray of assorted sweet and savory for breakfast that fits the bill for my other half. I tired the hot cakes with floss - beautiful flavors. Could've done with more syrup as it felt a little dry. But I couldn't finish it due to the sheer size and sugar overload. The interior decor is very cute. Sits in the heart of Epsom, easy to miss due to the busy intersection.

My partner and I visited here for brunch in the weekend and it was packed! The café is divided into two separate spaces so it’s hard to tell how many tables are available, but there is a decent amount of seating. The café has a nice look and feel to it – loved the textured counter, large lamps and bold lightboxes. The cabinet food is hard to miss and one of the best I’ve seen…cream doughnuts and blueberry friands seemed like a pretty good brunch alternative to me! The mesh fly nets didn’t’ do the treats justice though - glass domes would look much better if they can get their hands on some. They also have a good range of salads, wraps and sandwiches ready for those on go. <br/><br/>The menu features all the classics – eggs bene, mushrooms on toast, big breakfast plus some interesting dishes like the Red Velvet hotcakes and a breakfast burrito to spark things up a little. We went with sweet and savoury - French Brulee toast and the Eggs benedict with mushrooms. Both dishes were well presented and very appealing. The bene was good! The eggs were cooked perfectly and the hollandaise sauce was just right. We requested a side of avo but unfortunately they had run out of them. The French toast was pretty! And it didn’t fail on taste either. The toast was cooked well and the poached pear to perfection. There was a lot of elements and textures to the dish but they worked together well – thumbs up from me to the blueberry mascarpone and pistachio crumb. <br/><br/>The service was good considering how busy they were and wait times were minimal. Our waitress seemed a little distracted when taking our orders but the young Asian man (who may be the manager) did a great job of checking up on us and was really friendly. Overall we were pretty impressed with what Hello Friends & Allies had to offer and we look forward to trying the Red velvet hotcakes and some of those cabinet goodies!

Been here a few times and love it! Overall good food, average/good service and lively environment.<br/><br/>Be aware that at peak times (Sat/Sun Brunch times) it is really full and can be very difficult to get a table. Would highly recommend booking if you are going as a group. <br/><br/>My favorite dish is the Tuna Spaghetti, its Japanese fusion with an eggs and avocado. Very refreshing and tastes good if you are looking for balanced meal in the morning. The place does great coffees and donuts too!

Great brunch spot.. <br/>I have come here a couple of times and been very pleased. <br/>The food is excellent. I have tried the breakfast board which had breakfast burrito, smoked salmon, avo, tomatoes and yoghurt with fruit. Interesting combo delicious but was still a little confused how it fit altogether. <br/>I have also tried the bacon and egg roll from the cabinet which is amazing! <br/>Coffee is great and it's easy to find parking

The food looked pretty but tasted very bland. Coffee was non existent. Waiters didnt understand too much english. Basically just instaworthy... thats it. Realised they also owned winona and decided not to try from this experience

Wow! I've heard good things but expected abit of a hype! The cabinet food looks and tastes delicious plus the staff are super friendly! I haven't tried anything of the menu as it was just to busy to find a seat but definitely want to go back so i can try more!

Order the red velvet pancake + bacon! It is one of the best meals you can order at this cafe. Might be a tad sweet but with the saltiness of bacon and the candy floss combined makes it perfect. Also ordered the plum and pomegranate soda which was surprisingly good! <br/><br/>They are a bit busy and had to wait for our meals but no sweat for the pancake was worth the wait. <br/><br/>This place is quite big so definitely a place to bring all of your friends.

Market Road shops has been lacking in a decent cafe for a while now. Therefore it should be grateful that Friends + Allies has graced it's footpath. <br/><br/>It's sliding doors at the front make it an easy choice when driving past in the morning commute. I find myself parking the car and heading in nearly every time I drive past. <br/><br/>It's open plan layout is a bit confusing at times with the cafe lacking in natural flow but that being said once you've found your spot it's most enjoyable. <br/><br/>That being said, the coffee is definitely a hit or miss. Their long blacks are often under extracted which results in a distasteful bitterness. <br/><br/>There's nothing about this establishment that personally stands out for me but it provides the local area with a decent meeting spot that it hasn't had in a long time.

Good location and bustling vibes. Ordered the red velvet hot cakes which were pretty good. Some might say it's too sweet though but I found it ok. Beautifully presented with candy floss on top. The salmon bagel was also pretty good though it was probably toasted for a bit longer than necessary as it was kind of burnt on the underside. Would come back to try other things on the menu and the cabinet food and the donuts.

The "Golden Latte" you have been searching for, is right here...at Hello Friend + Allies! Three cheers for that!!!<br/><br/>“Golden Latte”, it’s obvious with the ocher colour the spice holds, turns plain white milk into this beautiful spin of golden indulgence. Flavour notes- peppercorn, ginger, cinnamon, slightly spicy and earthy. Definitely a go-to drink when you are feeling crook or want to stay young as it holds all the antioxidants properties we are looking for. And now you know where you can find it! Three cheers again!!<br/><br/>Looking over the menu, my eyes went straight to the meal that had “mushrooms” in it’s title. I’m a fanatic for this fungus, in any form and shape. I went for the no brainer option -the Wild Mushrooms Medley which came with a poached egg, freedom load and goats curd. Yum Yum Yum! The egg was poached to perfection- cutting through and having that yellow sunshine of yolk ooze out and work as a creamy sauce for the porcini soil. The goats curd, the best I’ve had so far- creamy, tangy, smooth and heavenly…brings it all together in a solid harmony. I couldn’t fault anything. A perfect breakfast with the perfect egg fix.<br/><br/>My friend went for the lunch option- Tandoori Chicken Burger with Masala Fries. He knew what he wanted as soon as we sat down. He was excited like a kid in the candy store because he knew they were offering tandoori chicken in a burger!<br/>The tandoori chicken in this burger had it’s unique twist marinated in tomatillo labneh. And did it work? Of course it did! My friend rated it 10/10 due to the well coated moist chicken strips perfectly grilled to hold the title of “tandoori”. And the masala fries- my oh my! Exactly like the masala fries you will find in an Indian household. We love our spice and this hot and sour coating on some double cooked fries make you go VA VA Voom!! And crunch crunch crunch I want some more munch!<br/><br/>To finish off on a sweet note, we had a blueberry and sour cream cake.All the gluten-free geeks would love the fact that this sweetness is gluten-free. Beautifully presented, deliciously moist, sweet with a nice sharp tart from the goodness of berries. A guaranteed satisfaction.<br/><br/>High rating due to the exceptional Golden Latte. My first experience drinking this is definitely not the last and I would be going here on a cold chilly day to enjoy the perfect warmth.

Greeted by smiling faces and cheerful greetings, ushered to a beautiful table with epic art on the walls and fresh flowers on the table. Unique menu, which was so beautifully displayed and SO delicious! Great coffee. An amazing cafe everyone should experience.

I had great memories of a delicious breakfast when this place first opened, so I looked forward to returning when my family was visiting. We went here for Saturday morning breakfast and had a horrible experience. It's was so noisy we could hardly hear each other speak. We started by ordering coffees and a fluffy for our 19 month son. The coffee arrived after 20 mins with no sign of the fluffy. Unfortunately this meant that my son had a melt down. After 2 reminders the fluffy arrived about 15 mins later. And after an hour so did breakfast. The food was quite nice but the service and ambiance was less than desirable. Hopefully they can return to their earlier reputation.

Unexpectedly beautiful food! We came for a late lunch at 2.15pm. One of the waiters was nice enough to come up to us and say that the kitchen was closing and he would come back for our order in 5 mins as it would be their last. Thank goodness he did because they were so amazing to look at. I had the mushrooms and the man had the red velvet pancakes. Mushrooms were delicious but the pancakes was the star of the show. Very pink. Will definitely come out here again to try the rest of the menu!

My friend and I came here for brunch this morning and ordered the mushrooms as well as an iced chocolate and the eggs benedict. All the food was great and we were served fairly quickly considering the busy crowd there, however, the girl behind the counter overcharged for the mushroom medley. While by only a small amount, this was slightly dishonest of the waitress and disappointing.

Food here definitely hits the spot! We ordered the Asian salad and vegetarian breakfast. I was very impressed with my vege breakfast- a wonderful balance of flavours in what I thought would be a simple dish!

My friend and I went here for brunch today and was really good. The place was packed but the atmosphere was good. Staff were very quick to get our orders and the food arrived soon after. I had the red velvet pancakes which was so good! Never tasted anything like that before so defiantly recommend!

I went there at a Saturday morning and it was crowded. Lots of people was queuing in front of the gate for coffee. The coffee there was really nice.

as a 1st time visitor, was really impressed with the service and quality of the food. It was busy on Sunday brunch-time, and the staff were working overtime with serving everyone...with aplomb!! AND...they were short of staff on that day, so that's testament to a very well-run business. Will certainly go again; parking is available, but maybe not right outside; you just gotta walk a few metres....it's worth the walk!

Loved this place! The red velvet hot cakes were amazing! The place is very open and loved the large tables out back, the wall murals were really cool too.

I had only been here for coffee previously and was told the food is worth trying hence I came back. Was it worth it?? I came back for brunch on a Saturday. First impression of the menu was that it is quite unique and not your typical brunch menu so I was excited! I picked the sweet dosa crisp and my friend picked the field mushrooms. The verdict? Great food and coffee! However, the experience was really let down by the service...it was quite chaotic and disorderly which was quite disappointing. Maybe try this place on a less busier day/time. <br/>

Dined here for lunch, easy to find and the place wasn't too busy. Parking can sometimes be hard but plenty on the side (if you get lucky). Ambiance is great, staff were also great friendly and accommodating. Their menu is different from the one on Zomato. I ordered pulled lamb burger and mean green drink total $31 (a little pricey, but then again it's in Epsom). I was a little disappointed with my burger the lamb was pretty much all fat (very little meat) and the buns were dry and sauce was average ($23) for a burger hmmm. I did however enjoyed their fries (nice, crispy and chunky). Mean green drink ($8) was average too (they added some citrus skin peel and it tasted bitter). Overall pretty "average" (slightly over priced for the quality you pay), presentation of food is very "pretty" and modern and waiting time for food to arrive wasn't too bad. I would go back to try some cakes..

This place is the bomb! It's a step above any local cafe in the surrounding areas and was a much needed refreshing change from the normal local offerings. More like a Grey Lynn/ponsonby cafe. Great menu, great food, food is beautifully presented, staff are super efficient and attentive even when it's really busy. The only thing and not their fault at all is sometimes hard to hear your conversation when busy but I really can't fault it so keep up the good work!

We frequently come to hello friends and allied for brunch in the weekend. The food is delish. If youre hungry the breakfast board will not disapoint.<br/>My absolute favorite would be the red velvet hotcakes. UTTERLY DEVINE. We are big fans of this cafe and are so happy it's one of our locals.

We came here for brunch just before Christmas and got in just before the rush. I had the Fenugreek potatoes (without the egg) - it was a huge portion (of potatoes) and quite delicious. My partner ordered the chilli scrambled eggs which are marked as DF. They turned up with whipped feta on the toast and had to be sent back. When we bought this up at the counter we were told that the printers had gotten it wrong but it would be fixed soon. The cabinet also looks fantastic but if your menu lists allergy items then it should be accurate or any discrepancies raised by staff at the time of ordering (especially if someone is also getting a soy coffee).

Cabinet food always looks amazing, as does the plated offerings.   I am constantly surprised at the friendliness and caring attitude of staff - ready to supply water (without being asked) even though I often only have a quick coffee after attending "Handworks" up the road.  Premises are always clean (as are the toilets).... Have recommended to several friends as well as work colleagues .  Good on you HF&A  - a great business model, when cafes are continually popping up all around. Good on YOU!

Quite hard to find parking around this place but so worth it<br/>Beautiful interior decor and cute homey vibes<br/>Their cabinet sweets looked incredible<br/>Ordered just their cabinet fried chicken sandwich + quinoa raw brocolli salad + matcha cake<br/>All delicious! Apart from fried chicken was too soggy<br/>Would definitely come back to try more!<br/>Excellent service

My bus goes past this cafe every morning on my daily commute to Uni. After hearing so many good things about this place and the mass amount of instagram photos that have popped up on my feed, I knew I had to check it out. My group of friends and I decided to come here after the place we originally agreed to meet at was closed. When we walked in, we were promptly greeted by staff and seated. This place is actually a lot bigger than it appears, with another room at the back with tables for larger groups.

Decided to have breakfast here and enjoyed our meal!<br/><br/> The service is a tad slow, we ordered our food and was waiting a while for it to come, we ended up having to take the food away due to the wait and it the waiter said he'll bring the takeaway box but after waiting for 5 minutes we decided to just grab it ourselves at the counter. <br/> Seems like they were understaffed or the staff were quite new as they kept checking through the orders of coffees with each other. <br/><br/> Back to the food, we ordered the bacon eggs bene and the fenugreek potatoes along with a orange, lime and cucumber drink with a iced mocha. Really enjoyed the food and drinks here! Despite not eating it at the restaurant taking it away the food was still good! Potatoes were season really well, sausage was rather plain in my opinion. Eggs bene was good,crispy bacon and gooey egg yolk! Interesting that the bread was green and the crispy kale was a very nice touch! Orange lime and cucumber drink was very refreshing, well balanced as well. Iced mocha was good too!<br/><br/> I'll definitely be back, hopefully the service speeds up next time but the food and drinks are well worth it!

Came on a sunny Sunday morning and it was busy but still not over-crowded at 11am. The green breakfast featured in the photo was surprisingly very filling and had me feeling very healthy and proud of myself for resisting the delectable looking cabinet stuff. Service was pretty good, drink orders were taken quickly and food came out within about 15 minutes of ordering.

Went there this morning and was slightly disappointed. Pancakes were flowery and dry and breakfast board was average. Coffee was really good. Too much emphasis on making food photogenic and pretty to look at

I grab cabinet food a lot from hello friends on my walks from the bus stop to my study, and its sooooo yummy in the tummy it feels like a treat form me to me! great service for brunch and such a lovely atmosphere, feels very homey :) the meals are a lil diffrent to which is pretty rad

Have only been 3x at this stage.  I cannot fault the service.  Each time has been during the lunch rush.<br/>Customers everywhere.   4 people in our group all wanting completely different food and drinks.<br/>Service AMAZING - QUICK - Presented VERY well.  Coffee hot and a good size and strong.<br/>Staff SO friendly.  All knowing and seemed to love their job.  WELL DONE<br/>Manager/Server - Name of "Lucky"..   AMAZING and with the biggest smile.

We went to the café yesterday and we really liked it. We entered and straight away everyone of the staff members was friendly and helpful and had a smile for us. We drank an awesome coffee and the cakes were just amazing - i will definitely come back to that place.

A lovely place in the neighbourhood. The cakes in the cabinet are so delish, i have tried several cakes and none of them let me down. Staff are friendly as well. The green tea and chocolate cake is a must try. Will definetely keep going back and try the other cakes.

Really good service，very friendly staff. Impressed with the breakfast options and gourmet presentation. Ingredients were very fresh. We liked the set up of the cafe. Spacious and creative. Overall，we had a great time! Definitely a cafe to check out in auckland

I have a real 50/50 feel for this place.. Some bad experiences and some good. I practically live next door so this is my go-to for a nearby treat right from their opening day! My first few visits were just a Saturday morning coffee to go, and I've had multiple occasions when I'm left un-greeted at the counter for at least 5 mins while 3 or so staff talk and seem extremely unorganised about orders. With not so much as a "one moment please" or "sorry for the wait" the first time I blew it off, I understand! But for this to happen again and again is pretty slack. The main thing that really sticks out is that the staff need to learn to SMILE!!!!! It would make all the difference! Being served by a team of boring people who look/act like they don't want to be there brings the place down. As for the noise, don't get me started.. Do not come here if you are battling a hangover!!! You have been warned. The echoes and chatter noise is so horrible, it ruins the experience or brunch dates to catch up with friends.. You can't hear a word your neighbour says!!<br/>On the upside, I visited on a Tuesday morning for brunch and it was quieter, still busy and noisy but wow I finally was brave enough to bear it and try a dish from the menu - it was AMAZING! Red velvet hot cakes with peppermint candyfloss and bacon! Bloody fantastic and it looked like something out of Dr Seuss!! Also the custard filled donuts are the best in town! So good and bad! Hopefully they can do something about the noise! 🌻🌻🌻 coffee is always spot on too ❤️☕️

We came here for breakfast on a wet Sunday as did half of Auckland! The noise level is constant but the service was friendly. Our food came out real quick. Counter food looks just as good as Little Sisters. Our breakfast was really nice- the breakfast board had a great selection on it.

What an awesome cafe! Recently I went to this cafe on a busy Sunday.I took my 4 year old grandson.It was my first visit and I surely will return.The service was excellent!The staff were busy but they certainly made sure we felt welcomed and comfortable. I was so impressed with the cabinet..such a wide range of hand crafted goodies offering healthy options as well.I love family friendly eateries that offer excellent service and a variety of delicious home made food.

Came here for a relaxed brunch, three of us enjoyed all our choices, the services and the ambience, for me the duck meal is so delicious! Have visited here occasionally for coffee, big thumbs up for the coffee and was knocked over by the great cabinet food. Also, love the floral settings.

I heard so many good review and feedback of here, but Actually I was soooo disappointed about service. We came to the cafe at 2:30pm, and the casher just threw away the table number card, and took a wrong order as well. The way that the front of house serves the dishes was so rude, she just threw the cutlery without any napkin. And also green smoothie was lukewarm not cold ever. It was terrible experience.

Love this place! Fresh open look with all the hanging plants and flowers everywhere. Their cabinet always looks delish and the red velvet hot cakes are my favourite. If it's too busy out the front there's the back room as well which is like a chilled out quiet spot. Unless you want to just sit and people watch! Love it.

The cabinet food is amazing had the coconut and lemon cake and it was super delicious & moist, ordered the eggs bene & my friend ordered the red velvet pancakes definitely satisfied my craving and to top it off the staff were super lovely and friendly 😊 A++

This is the 2nd weekend I've been here and the 2nd time they just are not on the ball! My first experience was amazing but since then I think they have got too busy and can't master the great work I had the first time I came. 2 weeks ago Americano coffee served as 1/2 a cup. Asked for more water. Took 10 minutes and the coffee cold. Bfast turned up with toast burnt on one side and not cooked on the other so asked for another piece. I shouldn't have! Is finished my breakfast by the time I got the toast! Today I ordered the mushrooms again that have got progressively smaller portion since my first dining experience. No egg! I asked to see the menu and she said it had changed. We looked at the menu and it still came Eith an egg. Instead of taking my meal away and bringing me it all together I ate 1/2 of it before the egg came! Get it right people! I won't be back for a while now until you sort things out. It's a shame as the cabinet food incredible but something not quite right in the kitchen :-(

Such a popular place on a cold wet weekend morning – but then, anywhere dry and warm would be popular in such a weather. Packed with hungry people looking for warmth in their bellies, Hello Friends + Allies in Epsom is a café who also caters for occasional private events in its backroom. Its white walls with colourful faux plastic flora accents and hipster doodles make the place cool and spacious, but unfortunately has the most awful acoustics ever. There is nowhere for the crescending noise to escape and absorb, so they bounce around the diners and inevitably is a breeding ground for lasting headaches. Being so busy the foods take ages to arrive, and while they still look nice, there are evidences that they have been on the kitchen counters a while, waiting to be delivered to our table – dried salad leaves stuck on the plates, hardened cooled down eggs, etc. The offerings in the cabinets look delish but we will never find out – in a great hurry as we were to get outside, pushing through the crowds, taking in a big gulp of fresh and and silence as we finally got out that front door. Even if a lot colder, we preferred it to the noise trap inside. Next time we will go where we can actually hear each other while enjoying our meals at the same time, please.Hello Friends + Allies93 Great South Road, Epsom, Auckland

This has become one of my go to cafés: close to my house, amazing food and great atmosphere. Their breakfast boards are definitely amongst the most Instagram-worthy breakfast items in, dare I say, the whole of Auckland, and surely one of the tastiest and best value. Coffee is up there with other similarly high end places, though it is slightly bettered by Dear Jervois in this area. The staff are friendly and keen to help with any queries you may have. I also suggest getting some cabinet food for later: the brioche I got was pretty good. <br/><br/>Overall a much needed breath of fresh air in an otherwise dowdy suburb, one so lacking in such cafés mothballs have formed. I say this, held in the upmost regard, that this could be, with some work, a real giant slayer in the Auckland café scene.

It's always nice seeing a busy cafe during brunch, it's a typical Sunday brunch situation. The sun was out, the dining area was sun-drenched and warm. I came with my partner and two kids during their busiest period. We were looked after as soon as we walked in. We waited for about 5min (this is great considering how busy it was) before we got a table. Sadly thats where the great service ended. Once we were seated, we were not served, we didnt even get the menu. They were so busy that the service went out the window. There was no system on how they do things. We saw two groups being shown to the same table. It was chaos. After asking for the menu and waving around to get served, we finally ordered our food. We ordered long black, latte, ice chocolate, omelette chorizo, big breakfast and egg on toast with extra bacon for the kids out of their standard menu (they dont have kids menu!!). We waited for about 1/2hr for the food to come, which is a bit long but we were fine with it. The big breakfast was good, my husband thought it tasted good... but the omelette was a bit of a disappointment. The pickled onion felt out of place and I couldnt taste the thyme and rosemary as per the description... It was a bit like my cooking, edible but nothing to brag about. The coffee was burnt and the ice chocolate wasnt sweet at all. Overall, i feel like their food is overrated. But i'd love to come again on a weekday when they're not too busy and ordered something else. They had so much potential. I am sure the service would be so much better when they were not busy.. And the staff would have smiles on their faces.

First visit was on a Thursday around 10.30am. It was buzzing but not crowded. Cabinet was crammed full and lusciously overflowing with mouthwatering treats - really REALLY nicely presented (although missing a lot of labels so hard to know what everything was). However, we ordered off the menu - friend had pancakes and I had the breakfast board. Everything was beautifully presented. Friend requested more syrup which came quickly. My only complaint was that my egg was hard-boiled so I couldn't dunk my soldiers. We each chose a sweet from the cabinet to take home.<br/>Second visit was with my sister on a week day around 3pm. Bad idea - I really wanted to wow her with the impressive cabinet but it was almost empty. In hindsight this made sense so late in the day. Third visit was with Dad on a Tuesday around 1.30pm. Cabinet was again heavily depleted but we both enjoyed what we chose. Coffee good. Service good. Go in the morning for the best variety and choice.

I love how the lesser known suburbs are now getting a breath of revival, and offering more options to those not in the central city. This place is already bustling with energy and patrons, I predict that finding a table will be quite difficult in the weekends as locals and non locals alike surge toward this picturesque setting.

Came in for Sunday brunch as we only live up the road. Was quite busy had to wait for 5mins which was fine. When seated got offered a menu and water. The spiced chai and coffee was amazing. My only down fall would be WHAT DO I ORDER!!!!! The menu was amazing, I had to do ennie meanie mini mo to decide on what to have. I had the pea brioche and my husband had the big breakfast. Both delicious. Can't wait to come back and try more off the menu :-)

Hello Friends + Allies has quickly become a favourite breakfast spot for us - the menu is extensive, with some unusual twists and specials. The breakfast board, chorizo omelette and the Valhalla sandwich all stand out. They're always extremely busy, and either don't have enough staff on or haven't taken too much time to train their staff! They often seem flustered and overwhelmed, but never rude or pushy. Little things, such as sometimes we've waited whole meals without being served water for the table (even after several requests), do let the place down a little. However, with great food, a tempting cabinet and an absence of any real competition, I can't see this affecting their business - it definitely hasn't put us off from our monthly visit.

Such an excellent place. The food is outstanding, a big step up from the usual cafe fare. I've been here a fair few times recently - several times with my teenage kids and also with business associates. The service is great and the food is always perfect. The atmosphere and environment is perfect and welcoming and slightly hipster in a good way. Sometimes on the weekend it is packed and busy, a testament to the success of the place. Today I took my son for his birthday breakfast and they gave him a complementary takeaway cake to say happy birthday - it was a lovely and wonderful surprise! Highly recommended, looking forward to many more meals and coffee here.

Saw this place advertised on the Urban List Akl so I knew I was going to be in for a treat. This place is packed! Try get there before the lunch rush if you can 😝. If you like speedy food, this is the place for you. The food came ridiculously fast and was absolutely beautiful - best cafe food I've had in a long time. My only critic is the service, while friendly, is very disorganized and all over the place 😣. All in all this place is your new best friend + ally ✨.

I was looking really forward to coming here after reading a few reviews and seeing pictures of all the food. <br/><br/>We arrived at around 2pm (wanting a late lunch) to be told by staff that the kitchen was now closed and that they only had cabinet food and drinks available. This was a huge disappointment as I had already checked out the menu and knew what I wanted to order. Anyway I had a look at the cabinet food which was near empty, there were no savoury items left, just sweet cakes, slices etc. Personally, I think its unacceptable to have barely any food left and a closed kitchen at 2pm... I ordered a banana smoothie and a mini victorian cake with coconut, mascarpone and lemon curd. The smoothie was nice but nothing special or amazing about it and the cake was extremely dry. <br/><br/>This place was a big let down for me.

BEST CAFE I HAVE EVER BEEN TO. <br/>Food was amazing, cafe setting is great. Such a wide variety of foods including cabinet sweet and savoury. <br/>Service was incredibly fast and friendly and the Doris plum and dark chocolate brioche was to die for. <br/>Best hot cakes I have ever tasted and the salmon was fresh and the serving sizes were very generous.<br/>Would recommend to anyone regardless of whether you wanted a sit down meal or morning tea.

I've heard lots of good things about HF+A so my sister and I decided to check it out for brunch. The cafe is deceptively large and while there were many people there we were happy to quickly find a table.<br/>However we were both quite disappointed to find that the orange juice wasn't freshly squeezed. I had made the assumption that it would be and when it arrived it looked and tasted like juice from a carton. <br/><br/>In terms of the food, my sister said her salmon salad was really filling however it needed some extra seasoning or condiments as it seemed quite tasteless to her. I had the fenugreek potatoes, which again were nice however the fenugreek completely overpowered all the other tastes. I understand that fenugreek is a strong taste so perhaps I should have been more prepared! We both agreed that some other menu items looked good and we'd look to return, however there was a sense of all style, and not as much substance.

After my stint in London, I am back in Auckland and ready to rip back into the wild food scene. If I learnt anything in London, although there is a lot of eateries on offer, I found it difficult to find any place that nailed brunch. A kiwi’s fav meal, it had to be one of my first meals out.

Nice little breakfast spot which I found close to my hotel on a recent visit. The coffee was great. The food was nice, although based on the wait time and the plate of food I received, some of the items on my big breakfast were clearly pre-cooked. Perhaps they are servicing a business crowd that values speed over everything, although based on the people I saw in there on this day, there must be a different reason for this. Food is nice, but fresh cooked is always best.

This place was absolutely packed!! Not sure if it's overrated or a convenient location or if it's really that good... It was so busy that we had to share our table with another group, and it was so loud and hectic, not really a relaxed cafe atmosphere.. Also we had to wait in queue for 5mins just to order. The cabinet food looked good but there were no labels so it was hard to decide what to get, would've been good to know what flavour all those cakes were!

I was excited to eat here solely based on the name and also the food selection. I already looked at the menu a day before and decided that I wanted the breakfast board. Upon arrival the place was bustling and we were lucky enough to find 2 spaces for us. I opted out of the prosciutto and swapped it with the chicken and thyme sausage and this was kindly catered for. Everything on my board was delicious with a mini selection of 9 items. AND THEN things got frustrating. My food arrived more than half an hour before his. I had to toss up whether to enjoy my food while it was hot or wait until both of us had our food. Slowly I saw my rating for this place dropping. I saw others who arrived after get their dishes before us. We got another latte and asked where the food was and was told it might have been delivered to the wrong table. In this time the staff started clearing our table with the unused cultery being taken away. I stopped her in time saying he hadn't eaten yet. His food finally arrived without an apology. Sorry for the lengthy review but I had plenty of time to write while he "enjoyed" his meal. So basically I came here with high hopes and even though the food was good my overall experience was ruined. Frankly I feel like I came here by myself as I ate on my own. I can understand that it's busy but for one of us to receive their 40 minutes after the other is just unacceptable. I won't be coming here again.

Came here or brunch this morning! Cafe has a really cool atmosphere, love the interior. The art all over the walls is awesome too!<br/><br/>Everything on the menu sounded amazing and the cabinet food looked delicious! <br/>Were greeted straight away by one of the owners who was lovely! I decided to have the slow cooked eggplant topped with mince from the cabinet and added poached eggs and salad, highly recommend!<br/>The rest of our tables had eggs bene and the cool breakfast board which all went down a treat! <br/><br/>Service and food was great! Will be back!

Bright new cafe with beautiful looking sweet pastries out at the cabinet. The place is larger than it seems because it extends further out back. But I think the back room is quite noisy as noise echoes. <br/><br/>Service was friendly but food wise, I wasn't too excited. Menu looked interesting but my mashed avocado and peas was rather tasteless. Coffee beans are by Supreme so I'll stick with that rather than their juice which is not freshly squeezed:( They look like a cafe who would have done a fresh juice but o well. Now I know.

Amazing! The owner was very attentive - on top of everything and even though the place was packed she felt totally at ease and even had time to chat. The rest of the staff were keeping up, polite and knew their stuff. Food was great, and the mocha was probably the best I've had all year. Good job to everyone involved.

Very rude and arrogant. My $19 salmon salad with prawn crackers was brought to the table minus prawn crackers but with no comment or offer of an alternative. When I queried I was told they had run out and I could have some bread instead. I had almost finished the salad with no sign of the bread and I had to walk to the kitchen to ask again for the bread. I was told that it was coming and I was scowled at and ridiculed for asking again. When it finally arrived, I pointed out that I had finished the meal and was told, by the owner "well we said sorry, do you want the bread or not!" Why bring the plate to the table with some of the food missing and then ridicule me for asking for it to be complete? It could've all been fixed with a simple offer of an alternative or a complementary coffee. It was a very unpleasant experience and despite working nearby I don't see how I can ever go back.

Loved the setting at Hello Friends + Allies and everything in there cabinet looked amazing! I opted for a cream donut which really hit the spot. However as we planned on having breakfast we also ordered the breakfast board to share... I was a bit disappointed and I'm really unsure how it was supposed to be eaten. It should have at least come with a couple of pieces of toast.

One of the coolest coffees in Auckland. Nice place, clean and spacious. They have a lot of sort of sweets and savouries.<br/><br/>My lamb pie was good, but could be crunchier (they made the mistake of heating in the microwave). The dessert was great, not too sweet, just as I like, and the coffee was better than average.<br/><br/>Would definitely come back there.

Maybe I caught them near the end of a particularly busy weekend lunch service (about 2pm), but my first impression was not great. I inspected the cakes in the cabinet but couldn't help but notice a couple of flies already sampling the wares. I don't like sharing so I decided to have coffee only instead. I found the service to be inconsistent. On the low end some of the staff seemed disinterested in us, in clearing the dirty dishes off tables, in general. On the other hand the lady who made us a very nice tasting coffee and got us water especially probably saved the day. HF+A was given a decent rap by my mum who recently went but unfortunately my experience was not as good. Perhaps I'll give them another go, surely the other patrons can't all be wrong?

Came here for a brunch on Sunday. This place was absolutely packed. So understandably it took us a wee while to get our food. The coffees came out relatively quickly. They had a great range of sweets on the counter which were excellent. The prices are about standard for a nice cafe. $19 for an eggs benedict, $21 for a big breakfast etc. Thee eggs benedict portion was as expected. 2 eggs,one large piece of bread and 2 rashers of bacon (could have definitely done with more bacon though).

Went for brunch with my friend.<br/>Busy place. Had toasted museli which was amazing!!<br/><br/>Food 9/10<br/>Customer service 8/10<br/>Atmosphere 9/10<br/>Price 6/10<br/>

We checked out this new cafe for a Saturday morning brunch. They have a great collection of sweet treats in their cabinet as well as some delicious menu options. There is lots of seating and although it was super busy we got a table in the back room. They had a high chair for my nephew (it's amazing how many places don't) so a win for weekend brunch.

Went into this lovely Cafe this morning .. beautiful fit out !! Very warming .. Fresh and innovative .<br/>I wasn't really sure if it was table service or not so I had to ask .. It sort of is and it sort of isn't if you get my drift .. I ordered a soy latte which was heavenly .. Then the mushrooms with truffle oil and whipped feta .. It was scrumptious however there wasn't a sniff of truffle oil in there which was disappointing !! I also ordered a side of Avocado which was rock hard .. We all know ripe avocados are as scarce as hens teeth at the moment and out of season so take them off the menu .<br/>All in all a lovely spot .. Counter food looks very appealing !!! <br/>4/5

I had heard about this cafe many times & finally had a free weekday morning with which to try it out. Sometimes when you hear good things about a cafe, the actual experience can be different, but I'm pleased to say Hello Friends + Allies was better than expected! <br/>It is located on Great South Rd near Market Rd which means that parking can be a challenge - lucky for me today I found a spot right outside. <br/>It occupies what looks like 2 shop fronts. The inside is very cool & clean with lots of long communal tables as well as smaller tables. Lots of magazines & papers to choose from.<br/>Service was very good - I had assumed it may be a little indifferent as some trendy new places are, but this couldn't be further from the truth. Very friendly & just the right amount of attentive.<br/>I had viewed their menu online & was pleased to see some unique dishes which I was sure I would order from - I was very nearly tempted by their cabinet though. So many delicious choices - sweet & savoury, it's well worth a look.<br/>I decided to try the mushrooms from their menu - absolutely delicious! I am a mushroom lover but I'm not a fan of the creamy sauce on toast type dish - I'd rather have the real deal. This dish has a range of mushrooms panfried with garlic & herbs. Served on a feta purée alongside a poached egg & toast. The feta helped to perfectly balance the dish - I do like feta but this was just the right acid/creamy flavour & texture. The portion was great value - I couldn't finish it.<br/>Coffee was good - slightly bitter but not in need of sugar.<br/>Can't wait to visit & sample more of the menu...and try to leave room to try some of their sweet treats.<br/>

Pretty nice cafe. Really busy but food is good. Had the big breakfast and it was quite big. Also had the smoothie which was refreshing. Will go back

This place is so cool!! The decor is awesome, such cool art without being over the top. Everything on the menu sounded delicious and the cabinet food looked great. I ordered the chorizo omelette with a side of avocado, along with a latte and an OJ. Unfortunately they were out of juice so I settled for water. My coffee came super quick, it was nice and hot but a touch bitter. My food came also nice and quick and looked great! Loved the fresh greens and the contrast with the baby pink pickled onions, also a very generous portion. The omelette was great, plenty of filling and a nice balance of flavour. The side of dark bread and butter with avocado went perfectly. The pickled onions were the highlight of my meal, the salty sweet combination was so yummy. <br/>The staff were super friendly and helpful, ill definitely be returning to this quirky neighbourhood cafe.

We went to Hello Friends + Allies on a rainy Sunday and found ourselves not the only ones looking for some solace that is the black and gold coffee and eggs and bacon and pancakes and bread...the place was swarmed with people.<br/>The cafe is very spacious, a part from seatings and a sofa at the front, there were more seatings at the back linked to the bathroom.<br/><br/>The inner decor of the cafe is quite minimalistic compared to some of the other "hipster-ish" ones. White walls and tables and chairs were the theme colour with the occasional potted plants dotted around the cafe corner. Their front counter made of pearl white tiles filled with yummy slices, cakes and rolls just tempting us to take a bite.<br/><br/>We were immediately greeted and seated by a staff and ordered our drinks straight away. Their menu is a combination of cafe staples such as muesli, pancakes, big breakfast and the classic eggs bennedict, as well as some of Hello Friend's own twists like Bang Bang Chicken salad and Fenugreek roasted potato.<br/>I ordered the Croquet Madame and it was crusty, salty, cheesy and full of oooey-gooey goodness that is just right paired with the eggy sauce. Their sprinkle of spices were just the right touch to keep my palette interested. Word of caution though: it can become quite rich towards the end but because it's exactly what I wanted/needed/dying for on a cold and wet Sunday, I did not mind one bit. Nuh-uh. My partner ordered the Omelette Chorizo I didn't get a bite but he said the chorizo was really yummy and by the looks of it I did not doubt him.<br/><br/>The staff were although very busy, were extremely friendly and attentive. Their uniform with the blue outfit and the grey apron is so cute I want a set to wear at home too.<br/><br/>Would definitely visit the place many more times in the future. Their ginger slices were calling me and I shall answer next time..

Great experience. Very busy. Bustling place but still fast service with tasty food. Had classic eggs bene and it was delightful. Nothing terribly out of the ordinary for the eggs bene. Cabinet food looked INCREDIBLE. Good quality coffee too.

I have taken friends here a number of times as it is my local.  So I was disappointed on Thursday afternoon when I introduced another friend to it but our efforts to hold a conversation were ruined by the loud pumping music that was obviously for the benefit of the staff and not the patrons. I'm hoping in future they will choose background music (if indeed they have to have music), as aside from that problem, the coffee and food are great.

Holy moly. The pea and ricotta brushetta. The breakfast board. The salmon benny. The cabinet food. The coffee! The awesome service! And the fricken cutest decor I have ever seen. This is my new fav. Also the staff are insane, really knowledgeable and friendly!

Went here for lunch. Great cafe, friendly staff, nicely decorated and the atmosphere is cool, cabinet food looks amazing and menu is comprehensive and interesting with slight modern variations such as being able to choose between buckwheat or California hot cakes. <br/>We had the iced chocolate and California hot cakes and the egg benedict on the roasted potatoe rather than bread. The kitchen was very accommodating to do this. The hot cakes were divine!!! So light and fluffy they literally melted in the mouth and the puréed date was an unexpected delight along with the freeze dried raspberries that offered a slightly crunchy texture. The eggs in the egg bene were perfectly cooked, the hollaindaise sauce was nice, the potatoe was nicely flavoured with fenugreek and were delicious, the bacon needed a lot more cooking, but that's a personal ptlreference. Overall we were hugely impressed with the food, service and overall experience and will definitely be back!!!!

Very busy cafe. I recommend to visit at non-peak time. <br/><br/>Cafe is nicely decorated, very clean and white. Staff is friendly, though orders went a bit hectic as people move seats.<br/><br/>I have chosen a breakfast bruschetta. Quality ingredient used with comb of honey, definitely gave me a surprise.<br/><br/>My partner tried out the hotcake and coffee. And requested to have bacon, syrup on the side. Didn't happened. Hotcake became soggy as it was quench with syrup, cannot taste the hotcake original favour. <br/><br/>Portion is big, nice and filling!

This cafe is fairly new but have been 4 times now as the food & cafe presentation is very good. Service at first was a bit slow but they now have it sorted & together with an interesting menu, good coffee & a welcoming casual atmosphere, this is a winner in my book.<br/>Smaller dishes of smashed avo on toast, or Bircher muesli together with the usual eggs bene. Also have had a delicious salmon & fried potato dish, also tasty chorizo omelette.<br/>The cabinet sweet treats are absolutely gorgeous to look at & also to eat - similar to Little & Friday me thinks!<br/>A lovely "floral" room at the back with a huge table for groups, plenty of space for kids to roam & large open doors letting a cool breeze through on a hot day was perfect. Apparently plans for high teas in this room are underway.

Cool name and looked new so me and my partner decided to give it a go. It was busy but we got a seat straight away. The waiter welcomed us straight away and there was plenty of staff available when we need something. I got a ice coffee, a three ham cheese hollandaise sourdough sandwich and my other haf got the big breakfast. The food was yummy. It didnt had a wow factor for us but it was still a good meal. The kumara hash cake in the big breakfast was very yummy though. <br/>Overall, it is a good place to come to if you live close by.

I went to Hello Friends + Allies for breakfast with friends and came across the menu. I ordered the Eggs Benedict which was $19.50 and it was delicious and cooked to perfection. The dish was served within a few minutes even though the cafe was busy as heck! The staff were really friendly and I loved their enthusiasm which really made it a joy to come. The interior was beautiful and vintage and gave such good vibes. Would definitely love to come again.

We came in for lunch and I have absolutely nothing to fault, my friends and I were warmly greeted, wait staff were very attentive, we all ordered off the menu and food came out quickly and tasted amazing!! Coffee was beautiful also! The place is looking fantastic, so glad to have a new local, will definitely be back!

Having read the Denizen's review of this popular new cafe I was eager to have a sit down meal here. Starting with the positives, I was quite impressed with the cabinet food, on a previous occasion I had popped in and got some of the gluten free cabinet options takeaway and thought they were outstanding. Sitting down for a meal I was also impressed at their gluten free options, as I requested the french toast to be replaced with gluten free bread which wasn't a problem at all.The decor is pretty cool too, with vintage Vogue magazines on each table they definitely have a great theme going. However, there were some disappointing aspects. The staff were pretty all over the show, and there were flies every where. My friend ordered the Bircher muesli and was then told 10 minutes later that they had run out (at 11am?), and our waitress was barely apologetic. I really hope they sort out their service and invest in some automatic fly dispensers for the walls because it has the potential to be fantastic, but just isn't there yet.

Great new cafe in the neighbourhood. The cabinet food looks amazing and the coffee was Supreme and perfectly made. I had the eggplant and yoghurt salad, with seared tuna, spicy and full of flavour. My friend had the free range bacon and egg pie, and said the pastry was so perfect! Busy place with a great vibe, and staff are very friendly. Will definitely be back to try the menu.

It's great to finally see a good cafe in this part of town. It's such a relaxing place to come and have a meal. The staff are incredibly attentive, the coffee is divine - and that's saying a lot for a decaf drinker - and the food is really just too delicious. Choosing off the menu is hard because there are so many tasty temptations on offer. Settling on the mushroom medley, I was not disappointed. The whipped feta and a poached egg make this the perfect combo mushroom dish which is both light and filling. The cabinet selection is too hard to walk past without getting a little something for later; today I've settled on a gluten-free slice of deliciousness to see me through the afternoon. I will definitely be coming here again and working my way through their scrumptiousness.

So much potential but sadly a number of faults. <br/>The food, although our order was taken promptly, took a good while longer than we were advised it would. There were a number of errors with food missing from orders and the quality of some of the food was questionable. <br/>On the positive side, the young male waiter was very friendly and we were asked a number of times how our meals were. Profuse apologies were made following us expressing our concerns with our meals and timing.<br/>The cafe is beautiful, light and stylish, the waiters and waitresses are friendly and very well presented. It's hard to choose what to order as everything sounds amazing and the portion sizes are very generous.<br/>Our complaints could be teething problems as it is reasonably new and I do hope so as I will definitely be back to try more.

A brand new spanking cafe in the Auckland dining scene. Its presence was welcomed with open arms by locals as we came to a full cafe on a busy Saturday morning and managed to take the last vacant seats on the long communal table. <br/><br/>From the former owners of the Little Sister Cafe in Henderson, Hello Friends + Allies has been jazzed up with hanging pot plants, wooden table, colourful artwork and a cabinet filled with gorgeous goodies. The menu is extensive and has something for everyone, whether you are after a classic eggs benedict or a bircher museli. Pair your food with a Coffee Supreme coffee or yummy smoothie and you've got a perfect meal! <br/><br/>I ordered the grilled broccoli and baby carrot with poached eggs, sourdough and cheese, the dish was missing the puffed quinoa which was on the menu. The yolk was runny and gooey but the two shards of egg shell was disappointing. My friend ordered the mushroom medley and they were happily swapped the poached eggs with delicious scrabbled eggs. <br/><br/>My cold brew coffee came with a side of magic milk which was a combination of condensed and regular milk. The size was very generous and one of the biggest serving of cold brew in the industry. <br/><br/> We had a pleasant meal at Hello Friends + Allies and it's good to see a new local cafe in Epsom. With plenty of side street parking available, be sure to pop by and give it a try! <br/><br/><br/><br/>