Review Celine Mediterranean Cuisine

Erffian Juraimi

Probably the best Mediterranean halal food in Auckland. Take your pick from the extensive menu, with fish, chicken, beef and lamb all available. Establishment owner and staff are very approachable and friendly, always on hand to offer advice on your food choices. Food was simply delicious; meats well marinated, salads fresh and portions all around generous. Prices for each of the five dishes we ordered were fair for value. Atmosphere was warm and friendly, with customers streaming in (looks like regulars) asking after and chatting away with staff. Worthy of a return visit! Definitely recommended.

Rinaz Mobhani

I ordered Grilled Chicken Shawarma for the lunch. Staff/ cashier was very courteous. It took around 10 minutes to get my order prepared. Shawarma was fresh and delicious, I ate similar shawarma at Dubai and my taste buds started reminiscing that flavour. Would definitely come again😊

Jessica A

Everything was delicious and full of flavor. The food was fresh, the staff was super friendly. Great place for a quick bite.

linjing wang

It’s not hard to become a regular at this gem of a place, especially with such juicy and flavourful kofta. It’s become my new comfort food and it’s always a pleasant experience with how friendly the owner is! Good portion and I can taste his kindness in his food wallah.❤️

Arman I.

Celine is our go to place whenever we're in the CBD. We have returned once again recently and each time we remember why. They have the best shawarma I've tried so far. The view is nice, staff are friendly and the food is delicious with unique seasoning, marinating and sauces.

Maria Armani

veryyy kind and cool owner & the food is such great portions and GREAT quality for such low prices especially with this inflation 😭🙏🙏& such fast service too, truly deserves more than 5 stars. anyway this is definitely the place to go to eat!!!! i am drooling thinking about the food i ate yesterday #Fr

AdivoVEVO

Honestly the best Chicken Shawarma I’ve ever had the pleasure of eating, everything made in-house! The service was super friendly and warm, such a welcoming smile and great atmosphere. It’s a little hidden and doesn’t look as flashy as all the other restaurants downtown, but the food is out of this world. A genuine place with beautiful food that leaves you feeling full and happy, what more could you want?

Ju W

GRILLED SHAWERMA & MIX KEBAB were both highlight dishes here. The portions were generous and fulling, needing to take home some left overs. The owner was friendly and can see they had alot of regular customers returning. The atmosphere was authentic and there were seats on the upper floor which I didn't see from the outside. Will be back again!

baytorck

Halal food. Generous portion. Reasonable price considering situated in CBD. Had the steaks. You may ask them when ordering to exchange side items on the menu for example fries to rice or egg to salads. The steak was good but not great hence only 4 stars. Not sure about other menu. Give them a try and they close quite late.

Mauricio Kimura

We just stopped in this restaurant because we saw a tiny Brazilian flag attached to the name. We had an amazing meal at this place that left us feeling satiated and happy. The restaurant's special dish, "bife a cavalo", was a juicy steak topped with a fried egg was cooked to perfection and served with some lovely fries. Another highlight was the "bife acebolado", a beautifully flavoured steak with caramelized onions that simply melted in my mouth. Lastly, I decided to try out the "stroggnoff de carne", a beef stroganoff dish that was creamy, tangy, and full of bold flavors, which was perfectly balanced by the tender strips of beef. Overall, this meal was a treat to remember, and I would recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for a memorable Brazilian food experience.

Unaiza Ali

Amazing food ....best halal food ive had in Auckland.

Julie Nicole French

Best food... EVER!!!! I have had a ton of falafel in my days, but NONE compared to the amazing falafel that they make here at Celine!!! Everything is good from the food to the coffee, and you get the great friendly family atmosphere as well. A must do while you are in Auckland! :-)

Jim Marjoram

Best falafel kebab I've had in New Zealand. Finally something that doesn't taste like it's been dumbed down for the kiwi palate. Good balance of spices with plenty of humus and tabouleh - not the handful of lettuce that usually passes as salad. Very friendly and helpful

Lee Rabbidge

Best place for everything - pizza, kebabs and shisha

Ibraheem Khudeish

Its the best place ever and the owner is really friendly and helpful ;) they have great waitress. LOVE IT

Andy White

Looking for somewhere offering tasty, fresh and healthy food and reasonably priced I stumbled into this amazingly welcoming restaurant. I went for the mixed grill which was brilliantly flavoured, look forward to visiting again next time I'm in the big smoke, cheers guys :)

Abdulla Ali

great healthy food, extremely recommended

Ernie Sajow

The BEST Iranian Food in Auckland CBD .. !!!

Alastair Turner

Turned up 10pm on a Wednesday with 7 hungry family members before the Premier 00:01 screening of Star Wars-The Awakening. One guy on his own managed to cook u a real feast and it was a complicated order. Was top notch too. A really good start for the big night. Handy to IMAX. Thanks for that.

Naylar Uisa

Thank you for your love & support for our community. Beautiful food and great service. Thank you Celine Team!!

HaSh ZeUs

Great service and outdoor area to enjoy Shesha !!

Mona van Mour

Best pizza in Auckland and super service! ;)

Je Ko

Nice spot and very good Food!

Ash Con

Excellent food and location!

Haroos

Came here just for the shisha and it was really good. Good seating and good location where there’s a lot of people and places around. The customer was quite good and it was resonantly priced. I think I have found my shisha spot for my next Auckland visit.

Shu Zhang

I had the their dish at least 8 years ago when they used to be down at the international food court. Then I moved to Christchurch and the food court was shut down. I didn’t remember the name of this awesome restaurant but the taste remained for 8 years until my colleague told me about Celine. Then I realised this is the restaurant I visited 8 years ago! The owner is so nice and chat with me when I visited 8 years ago but he probably won’t remember me haha. Love it!

Thehonestone

Portions are a good size and the food is standard, but Im not sure about the hygiene of the food. I found two hairs in my rice. Really disappointed.

Medium_Rare

One of the few places in Auckland CBD where you get a quality meal that doesn’t skip out on portion size. Meeting a friend of mine from Grimshaw and Co, we couldn’t stray far from his work so while we were walking around we spotted Celine Café’s wall with images of delicious filling food. A warning though is that considering right now its summer what I’ll recommend is to sit at the bottom if possible, we went upstairs and it was roasting. Aside from that the food was scrumptious and filling. I love how they provide flavored rice and the steak was cooked to what Medium Rare standard should be. Juicy and tender. The Chicken Kebabs had that nice charred flavor while still being moist. 100 times better than those shitty little Kebab stores you see on Queen Street. Drop in at Celine’s for a nice truly wholesome meal. Overall Grade: A Showstopper: Flavored rice, Chicken Shish and Steak.

Sherlie Chan

This restaurant has a large menu and affordable price. Friendly customer service and tasty food as well. The food also has halal logo 😊. Favourite retaurant 😘

Sheila Ayu Wijaya

Really like the Celine Fries and shawarma, very tasty... Sirloin steak also great, but the rice taste quite funny, some of it no taste and some of it very salty. Anyway, Alhamdulillah it's halal.

Dani

Favorite place to do shisha and to kick back with mates. Comfortable upstairs area too. Food is always good and the customer service is too-always warming and welcoming everytime we come in. Maybe a little something they could improve on would be the cleanliness of the bathroom as its always messy when I come in but other than that such a great place.

Hotdog&Buns

Out of the delicious looking menu items I picked a lamb dish that was served on yellow rice. The rice was pretty salty and overcooked. Since the rice was already flavoured, it just became too overpowering with the saltiness of the lamb. The lamb itself wasn't bad but given the price, there was just too little of it. Perhaps I should have gone with a steak or chicken. The lady who served me was fantastic. So this place deserves a slightly higher rating than if I were to base it on food alone.

Fahim

Worst experience ever, the menu looked nice so we decided to give it a go, we went upstairs tbh it was dirty you could see food remains probably from a week ago on the chairs, table was greasy... Food was not cooked properly, we ordered Steak with rice and Shish kebab on rice ... Steak was full of blood and I went downstairs and spoke with one of the guys and told him about it, he said that he thought thay I prefer my steak to be done this way ( nonsense) why would he assume what customer wants???? I told no my friend please cook it until it's fully done then bring it...five minutes later he came with the same plate this time the steak was cut in to little pieces again full of blood, we decided to leave... I mean for God sake why would you serve your customer such a food... Please atleast respect and ask customers what they want ... Never going back

Deano

Recommended by friends so decided to check it out and it wasn't a let down. Great food! had the mix kebab the chicken & lamb were well marinated and seemed fresh,rice had flavor. Only downside is that they are bit slow on clearing the tables and it gives you a dirty feel when you walk in to have a seat for your meal.Only reason for a 4 star.

CYYTee

The food never cease to amaze me! I have been a customer since my uni days :) food is definitely a 10/10 however the cleanliness game needs to be improved.

João Plácido

So...A Saturday late lunch and we found this place through the awesome smell coming from the restaurant. We were a little insecure but it payed off...big time. What an amazing suprise!!! The rump steak,the sirloin, the bife a cavalo....everything was very tender and tasty. Great staff and affordable prices.

Jianjia Wang

Delicious food friendly service , healthy ingredients, freshly cooked big portions and reasonable price 👍👍👍. Upstairs good for family party and meetings with friends down stair for people to enjoy of smoke shisha 😊😊😊

Manoj Patel

Place untidy, no one there cleaning, had to ask someone to clean up the area especially when it was quite, we were the only people upstairs. Food is average for its money but had no taste. Would attend again and try something else. My mate who had a kebab said it was quite nice.

Andrew Spencer

This place used to be in the international food court round the corner, which later shut down. VERY glad to see it had reopened, wonderful food and the host is very welcoming.

Natasha R

This place is a hidden gem. I had the Khabsa and it was exactly how it should have been. Hearty and tasty to the brim. Lovely owner. Looking forward to coming back 10/10 . I personally find the price reasonable.

S Ansari

Have always walked passed this place so many times while going to work in CBd. Only came in for a team lunch the other day and had a good time. The food is a bit on the pricier side, I ordered mixed grill on rice.. it came with chicken, lamb and beef .. the meat was delicious, the rice was flavourful. I’d love to try the shawarma, it looked beautiful. Next time! 😊

Arvin Raymond Dsouza

We always wanted to visit this place. But, today was the day. We went there for lunch. We had shawerma and Celine fries. The guys at the restaurant were friendly and nice. The shawerma was of a good portion and tasted amazing full of flavour and the Celine fries were amazing too. We really loved the food here. We will be back for some more good food at this place.

Suhail Rizwy

Although, it’s not the best location this food outlet is a gem for great Mediterranean food. The servings are quite wholesome and large and there is great value for money! If you love good taste and healthy food, this has it all. Mind you, the service does take a while and that needs improvement!

S2Psycho

This Man who cooks here is amazing! The shawarma here is best in auckland by far!! Everything is cooked with passion. Only the down fall is the service and speed but you know other than that i can wait for amazing food! Also could be pricy for some people.

Mizna Afzali

It has a new owner, a better menu and an awesome chef. My fav kebab on rice shop from The Underground food court has been moved here. And we've been eating there since 2 years now. And head to this place for me and my hubby's personal favs. This time again we went for our dinner to the same person's eatery but in a new dine-in which is Celine ofcourse. The food is simply mouth watering. My fav is Chicken Kebab and hubby's is Lamb Shank.. served with flavour rice and optional fries and sauces. Yummmy

Debin Sabu

With 13 years living in the Middle East I was looking for a shawarma which would be almost similar to the one that's available in the Middle East. With a lot of trial found this place. Had a lamb shawarma grilled 😍. It was worth the trail and the food here did satisfy some of my middle eastern food cravings. It was 14 dollars a wee bit high and the combo is 20 dollars. The staff are friendly and the shawarma was good. Would def come back

HJ

If your after a quick late night meal in the city then this is the place to go to. It's bigger than it looks, with seating outside and the option to dine in upstairs - this kebab place is buzzing on the weekend. With all the usual Turkish options there is something for everyone. We ordered the falafel pita and the signature fries. The pita was well portioned and fresh. The fries were a little unusual! A plate full smothered in garlic yoghurt, sweet chilli sauce and mozzarella.. It was something different! But worked well with the pita. Prices are what you'd expect for a kebab joint. It's the late night convenience and fresh hot meals that gets the crowd here!

Chris McKinney

Great food, probably the best Middle Eastern takeaway in the City. Great flavours and discounts for people that work nearby. Highly recommended.

Emma W

I came here to get a takeaway shawerma for lunch. The only staff member I saw was wiping benches with a dirty tea towel when I entered. I asked to have some salad in the shawerma, like the kebab, and was told that salad is not included. I agreed to try it, as it is from the menu. The staff member was still handling the dirty tea towel when he started to put the shawerma together, no hand washing and no gloves. He also checked his phone while making it. This place may have an A grade food rating but it seems at least this staff member needs some serious food hygiene training. On the plus side the shawerma was one of the better ones I have tasted recently and it did't make me feel unwell but I would be hesitant to return.

Sarah

Came here on my birthday and had such a nice experience. Customer service was smiley and friendly, food was fresh and delicious with generous portion sizes. The seating upstairs is also cosy.

ZEuS_cRiTiC

Very clean and tidy Halal restaurant in Auckland Central. Visited for Dinner over the last weekend and booked a table of 5 ... upon arrival they welcomed us and had us seated. Waitress was the same which helped with our experience immensely not having to explain again and again. She even kept an eye on when our table needed mains as we were going through starters at different rates. Highly recommended for Ramadan special they have :)

Shismeng Cai

The sandwiches and hot chocolates here are amazing! I believe they are running a promo doing $5 sandwiches and i would recommend these over subway sandwiches any day. Also the hot chocolates here taste like they are made with dark chocolate, which i love! Services and atmosphere are also great :).

Rosie Hutchinson

Not knowing the city well, and needing a good feed before going to a show, we went to Elliot Street. The well known places were packed out. We chanced across Celine's. On first glance it looked like a takeaway, but we spyed tables upstairs and decided to order. The pizzas were first class - tender lamb, mildly spiced chicken with fresh flavours - Well done - I know where we are all going next time we need a bite in Auckland. Thanks

Laura Hunt

Delicious food and good portion sizes! I only tried it for the first time today but I'll definitely go back. We had the lamb shakshuka and chicken shawarma. The flavour of the lamb was amazing and the chicken was cooked perfectly. We also got a side of fries and they were some of the best I've had! Definitely worth checking out if you want something quick and different!

Royston Aung

This place does not serve alcohol man what a disappointment. Misleading! The food must be good it hasn't arrived yet. A 140 character restriction for a review? Ok. I'm filling up words. Oh I got there yay.

Roya Rezaei

Our favorite of all time .. amazing food!! if you are not that hungry and want to have just aside with shisha i recommend the cheese and garlic pizza its delishhhhh like the rest of their menue .. try hot nutella its a must when we go there and i take a way the rest of my hot nutella with me always as i warm it up next morning:)) Khalid is a very nice person which i always get good vibes from him and he is a perfect cheff!

Ocray

Falafel sandwich is so flavoursome that i would pay $100 for one of these. It's simply the best in New Zealand

Laith Hermez

Some people eat to live and the rest of us live to eat. This place will definately turn you into a foodie! The falafel drips of authenticity, just like the ones back home. A combo of falafel sandwich and mint tea was sure to please the stomache, mind and soul. Highly recommended.

Jemimah

Good place to go to for a late night meal, serving Mediterranean food. Previously on our first visit, we had the lamb pizza which was wonderful, however, be expected to wait a while. On this occasion, we got the baba ghanoush and the mix grill which was served promptly. The baba ghanoush was a very generous portion for ~$7.50 which was served with pita. The mix grill came with grilled chicken and lamb with plenty of meat for ~$18, served with rice and salad, plenty for 2 adults. A good sit down restaurant to visit with halal meat and who are open late at night.

Daryl

Good Venue. Good Service. Good Food. Good Shisha. I love going to Celine it is such an awesome place to go and the staff there are always really friendly, plus they have a really good range of drinks such as malt beer, vimto and this really nice guava drink. They have a massive range of Shisha and they have such an ideal location, it's great during summer, especially for dinner. I can't wait to go back! Keep it up guys :)

Rima Yousef

My favorite place to dine!! Absolutely love it. Food very promptly arriving, friendly staff, relaxing atmosphere and my god is this food delicious. I have been here numerous times, never let down, great service and exquisite food every time. Have had birthday functions here for large groups of 20+. Shesha here is amongst the best I've tried, real big food quantities and super value for money. Highly recommended!!

Jonny Lin

Really good restaurant, the beef burger I had was amongst one of the best burgers I had in CBD, staff were friendly and the atmosphere was great. The sheesha is alright ($20), it's above average than other places in CBD.

Francis Knowles

Saddens me to read some of the poor reviews that were written toward the start of the year and I will admit the service isn't always eye popping, but I LOVE this restaurant. The food is delicious, the prices are low and the atmosphere gets better every time I visit. The place seems to be transitioning from a kebab house to a restaurant and currently sits somewhere in between.. Maybe the service would be rated more consistently high if a waiter came over to check up on us every now and then? Just a thought. Still, I highly recommend checking it out!

Sally

Wow it's sort of hard to describe this delicious amazing restaurant. Everything about it is just very cultural and it's a comfortable place for me and for others. We will for sure be visiting many more times :) I wonder and wonder how the chef can make amazing food. Where do I start with the Celine Burger :) I'm really craving it right now, all the salad and it's filling as well and the best thing is it's only 16.50 that's a deal right there. Try it right now, your gonna want it for breakfast lunch and dinner because it's the best .

Zaahirah Munif

Delicious Mediterranean food, lovely atmosphere and great service! Favourite dishes of mine would have to be the Celine burger and Mixed Grill, generous proportions and very inexpensive compared to other Mediterranean Restaurants in Auckland, they also have Sheesha with more flavours then I've ever heard of! Highly recommended!

Bowan A

No way is this restaurant expensive! The food here is beautiful, try a Celine burger and for less than $15 you get a burger salad and chips what a deal! Anywhere else in town you get it for twice the amount! Never been late with the food too. Very good environment and their sheesha is very nice. Will be visiting often!

Chitvan Jindal

This is by far my favourite Mediterranean place in Auckland! I've been going there ever since the new owner took over. The food is really really good (the Celine Big Burger is truly BIG), the service is great, and the prices are perfect for a student (plus they serve Shisha!). Few places like it around.

James Yong Jae Cho

Food average, service appalling, staff were rude, would never go back there again. The food was late (as in almost two hours) and when complained about it the staff not only didn't apologize, they made it feel like we were the bad people for even questioning the food being late. If I could, I would give it a minus rating.

Olivia

I would rate it 0 stars if I could Worst restaurant I have ever been to. The owner was so rude to us and it ruined our day. Cannot believe the place is still in business, they had no other customers when we visited. Like most restaurants that sell voucher deals, this place was utterly disappointing and we felt scammed. I wouldn't be surprised if they closed down within a few months like 3 other restaurants from the deal site

Philip

Tried this place with a voucher and was very impressed. The place is chocka full of middle eastern atmosphere. Feels like you there ! Fun central city location also. The hummus platter and bread to start with was very nice. We asked for extra bread and he did not even charge. The service was friendly and efficient throughout. We had pizza and seafood for the mains and again they were excellent. I can normally find things to fault a restaurant on, but honestly there is nothing to fault this place on. If you are after an authentic mediterranean food experience then this is it.

Venkat

I love the place me and my friends always visits the restaurant, I think mostly Thursday and Friday

Angelo

Celines is very much my local now because of the awesome quality of service and food. The chill vibe makes for a choice place to catch up with mates and grab a decent feed. They're shisha's are top notch as they do it well proper, unlike some joints around the city. They're pretty much open all the time which makes it awesome if you want to grab a late bite or a quick coffee on the go. Highly recommend.

Amir Shahab

Awesome place to be with friends and family, very relaxed and chilling environment. Food has always been satisfying. highly recommended :)

Geordie Winlove

The pinnacle of Mediterranean cuisine in the Southern Hemisphere. The wide range of sheesha flavours is what other, lesser establishments strive for. The $5 lunch menu is the hands down best value for money in the city. I have been a regular customer for some years now due to the excellent service and impressively generous loyalty cards, many of which I have finished enjoying the delicious range of hot and cold drinks, from hot nutellas to cold Nutella frappes. Other Nutella based foods are on sale including the famous Nutella pizza. The burgers are delicious and the pizza nutritious (I hope). The staff are lovely and the location perfect for an after uni or after work sheesha session. All in all an amazing location for any occasion.

Eamonn

Celine Mediterranean Cuisine has changed my life... For the better! The food is awesome and affordable for a student on a budget. Especially the $5 dollar lunch menu which has pizzas, fries and falafel (just to name a few) which are all amazing. Although absolutely everything they sell is of the highest quality. I am constantly amazed by the things that they can make out of nutella i honestly believe that they single handedly keep Nutella co in business. As well as the high quality food they have a fantastic atmosphere (especially on the weekends) and some of the friendliest staff I have ever met. This review doesn't even begin to describe how happy i am that this place exists and I don't know how i managed to live without it. I will continue to come here as my regular spot until the day I die. They also have the best loyalty card service for frequent customers i have ever seen, which saves me a lot of money! 10/5!

Liza

Ever since Celine has opened a couple of years ago, my husband and I have become true regulars. And there is good reason for that, as Celine has the perfect atmosphere of casual dining, unique food and excellent service. If you enjoy Mediterranean food, then this place will be your go-to. You absolutely must try their "Lamborghini" lamb burger and mezze platters. To top it off, some delicious deserts and a thousand sheeha flavours to choose from. Located right in the heart of the city, Celine is a must try for everyone! We would give it six starts if we could.

Ayah Masroujeh

Best Mediterranean cuisine I have ever been to! Beautiful middle eastern atmosphere inside and outside. Delicious food many unique and authentic flavours. The food portions are more than fullfilling. I am a regular and so are all of my friends and will always be. Love their sheesha and smoothly blended coffee.

AshCon Street Proz

Good service and great food. My favorite dishes are the Creamy Mushroom Chicken Pasta and the Falafel in Pita!!! The dishes are massive compare to most other restaurants I've been to and having Shisha after dinner just topped it up for me. Highly recommended.

Dog Eats World

Ever since Alp Ice on Lorne st closed, I have not found a nice medditeranian restaurant until now. The atmosphere of Celine is awesome and the food is even better! We ordered a pizza and a salad which left us wanting more, despite us not being able to finish due to the generous portion sizes. The only drawback I can think of is that they don't serve alcohol. But they do do shisha! I would definately recommend this little gem to everyone that wants a good medditeranian meal! Woof!

Danny

Don't let the sheesha smoking people outside fool you, Celine serves high quality mediterranean cuisine. Also the place has a certain charm. For instance, there is no physical menu - instead, it is scribbled over the walls of this joint. I found the staff (including the chef-owner) to be really friendly, even on what seemed to be a really busy night. We ordered the mixed grill and the kofta mezze. The wait was long - just over half an hour on a busy night. But it was worth it! Both dishes were well-presented and quite satisfying. The koftas (beef and lamb patties) were particularly juicy and full of flavour - I would definitely recommend this to a meat lover! The serving size was also very generous. If you're not really hungry, I suggest sharing 2 mains between 3 people or so. If you're into mediterranean cuisine, you have to stop by 12 Darby Street to try Celine.

Kshitij Garg

A fantastic place just to kickback and relax and chat with friends over a cup of Mediterranean tea and a flask of sheesha pipe. The cafe houses the most extensive range of sheesha flavors I have come across here in Auckland. The best one being Red Bull and Green Apple. The staff is really nice, and they come by you every now and then just to have a word. The Moroccan tea they serve is just amazing and food is exceptionally good. I prefer going to this place just to chill with friends as the cafe sits in a by-lane of the main Queen Street and they have an outdoor seating if you are doing sheesha. With palm trees around your seats, you are busy chatting having sheesha and food, as well as at the same time looking at the people around you walking past you. I happen to see one of the pictures on their wall which read - "Shoot for the moon, if you miss you will at least land up among the stars." I guess they aim for the right spot. Its one of my favorite places if I am in the mood of not doing much and still spending some time in peace with friends.

Review Celine Mediterranean Cuisine - Auckland Central