Review Pollen - Auckland

Good coffee & Great food. The open omelette was delicious! Not many tables so have to get in early if you want a seat for breakfast.

Great breakfast that was good value. Good coffee as well. Overall it was really good.

This place has a very basic appearance, but the food is amazing. Staff are really friendly, and it is a hidden gem really on Shortland Street in the middle of the city. The pumpkin soup with the best I've ever had, and my dad tells me the coffee was super good as well. Will be back

Lovely atmosphere, great staff, good menu.

A delightful place for a great coffee, a delicious quick lunch and to have a smile put on your face by the effervescent staff. A brilliant place.

Very nice venue, fantastic food. Great service and good verity, the restaurant is well located with seating inside and outside. It can get a little busy at times and that slows things down, especially the morning with everyone looking for their caffeine fix. Went back it was was nice against the service was a little slower the second time around, I would go back again the food is really good here

Love here, simple and relax area

Bright breezy and light. The decor that is, not the donut. But what a donut. The blue berry almond scone was also too good to resist. The food looks so good I wish there were more than 6 meals in the day Gorgeous cabinet munchables, gorgeous coffee and gorgeous staff.

Great worm and work father

This was our first time at this cafe, it was absolutely fantastic. The staff are super friendly, Kathryn was particularly awesome. We will certainly be back!!

great place, super friendly staff, delicious food & coffee! the smoothie bowl is a dream. cost-wise rather high but worth every single $.

hugs and quiches

Nice coffee shop, visited numerous times over the years I worked in the building. Friendly staff, good service.

Great as always, my morning haunt each morning, with good coffee and food, and great service.

Good coffee and food options. Not a bad cafe at all. Lots of space. Great for meetings.

Nice cafe, great fresh bright atmosphere - their Vanilla iced coffee tastes nothing like it sounds however, was a little disappointed I paid so much for it.

Friendly service, modern suitable place to wait for a meeting at a nearby office or to grab a quick lunch/coffee.<br/>I like how they are using non-disposable straws.<br/>Coffee and cabinet food are my go-to but I also heard their food from the menu are nice.

Cool cafe with outdoor terrace. Great selection of case food including some mini/half sized treats. Horrible coffee though ( agreed by most of my team in the building). Good iced drinks. Again iced coffee is yuk!

In terms of lobby coporate cafes, Pollen would be one of your better corporate cafes.<br/>A nice quick caffeine hit before a meeting on Shortland Street. Decent coffee and a nice people watching spot.<br/><br/>Showstopper Nice location<br/><br/>Overall Grade: B

Came here on a Monday for lunch as it’s just downstairs from the office which is very convenient for us. It’s disappointing how the brunch menu is only until 10.30am though because that’s already half of the menu gone by lunchtime. We ended up getting the cabinet food and between 3 we got the chicken wrap, sirloin burger, pastrami sandwich, frittata, and a little salted caramel slice with macadamia nuts.<br/><br/>The sirloin burger got toasted which added some flavor to the beef and the sauce. The sweet and sourness of the sauce gives it a lively kick to the sirloin which was really nice, but the buns were a little soggy inside. <br/>The chicken wrap and frittata weren’t really exciting in terms of flavor as they both lacked seasoning. It’d be good if the chicken wrap got toasted too.<br/>The pastrami sandwich was quite nice as the pastrami was thinly cut and juicy which brings out the saltiness of the smoked meat. This added flavor to the sourness of the fillings in the sandwich.<br/><br/>You can choose to sit outside under the shade to enjoy a sunny lunch or you could choose to sit inside and enjoy the air conditioning. <br/><br/>Taste - 7/10<br/>Size - 7/10<br/>Price - 7/10<br/>Service - 7/10<br/>Ambience - 8/10

Good food and nice ambience. Came here for lunch with friends, nice food and short menu. Far from awesome, but a good option if you're in the city.<br/><br/>Liked the braised brisket with Israeli cous cous, although it had too much cumin for my taste.

When I saw Pollen on Urbanlist, I know I had to visit this place. I was surprised that this place even existed. Love the cafe. Really pleasant to see and comfy chairs. Clean and staffs are very friendly. <br/><br/>I had my scrambled egg with brioche bun. It's amazing. Egg together with the brioche bun. Love it <br/><br/>Also tried the polenta waffle. If you love waffle, you have to try polenta waffle. It was my first time having polenta waffle and it tasted amazing. <br/>Ps: polenta is kinda made from corn

The service here is terrible. Everytime I come here which is often as I work in the same building, I get annoyed and vow to never go back. It's just handy. The staff seem to have just rolled out of bed or have had a big night, constantly mess my order up and never an apology- just a shrug. Toasted sandwiches that are always stone cold in the middle... how hard is it to melt cheese? The coffee is OK. I think management needs to pick up there game as if it was my business I'd be pretty disappointed in how it was being run. The only saving grace are the cheese scones and other baked goods are delicious!! Change your staff or invest in some training.

Came in with high expectations but unfortunately left still very hungry. The portion size of the waffles were not enough to pass as breakfast/brunch/lunch. Though the dish was delicious, I feel it should have been classed as a dessert if staying this portion or increasing the size to be sufficient for a meal (two others on my table had the same dish and felt the same way). Great decor and service. However having to buy a second lunch elsewhere after paying $18 at pollen for what was meant to be your brunch wasn't ideal.

Having read a write up in the urban list I went to Pollen with high expectations which unfortunately were not met. I had the mushroom haloumi dish which was ok but really dry, and had no sauce at all. The service was alright but not amazing. There are far better options nearby.

There's a new kid on the block and it's got a bit to learn before it rivals it's neighbours such as Pilkingtons.<br/><br/>The interior of Pollen is absolutely stunning - no doubt about it. The copper accents and marble finish are impressive and fitting for a Shortland Street eatery but that's where the impressing ends. <br/><br/>Their order of service is lacking in any sensical order at all. You're not greeted as you walk in, or waved goodbye on the way out. It's not made clear whether it's table service or menus to the counter (staff seem unclear on this as well). And you're not even meal checked by staff to make sure everything is alright with your meals.<br/><br/>Pollen, You may have a nice Instagram and beautiful layout but the basics need some refining. With so many options in the CBD now it's the details that make the difference. <br/><br/>This being said they are new established and sometimes it takes time for a restaurant to find its groove. I'm up for re-experiencing it at a later date but if you're looking for a refined brunch spot, look else where for now.