Review Cafe Kaizen - Porirua

Two of us were here on a Sunday over the lunch period. We were just wanting a snack and coffee. We shared a delicious savory muffin and a date scone - loads of dates. The cabinet food looked amazing and very very reasonable. The staff are very friendly and very efficient. Would thoroughly recommend.

Our group recently dined at Cafe Kaizen in the Pataka building. Excellent selection of food. Very good prices. Lovely atmosphere. Friendly and efficient staff. Place is very popular and best to reserve a table during peak lunchtime hours. My go to place for awesome toasted sandwiches.

Mean feeds! Had a breakfast burger, was one of the biggest and messiest burgers Ive had in a long time! But very nice and really good coffee too, and partner enjoyed her Blat sammie. Really good cafe choice in porirua!

I had the breakfast burger and it's been on my mind ever since. It was tasty and filling and I didn't feel sick after eating it. There is plenty of cabinet options, especially sweets. We choose the rhubarb shortcake every time. It's also great to see Reo Māori signage on the menu ❤️

Beautiful Plum n Apple Shortcake Great savoury n sweet cabinets.Alot of variety Customer service top notch Coffee good Lovely to look into the Chinese Garden Best to make sure no pips (August 2023)

Food looked amazing - try the chocolate cake for an amazing treat. Felt the coffee sizes were not good value. Regular seemed like a small to me. Food makes up for the small coffee.

Friendly cheerful environment to eat in. The staff make you feel very welcome and do not rush you. The food is 2nd to none. Music always playing but not intrusive. We do compare other cafes to Kaizen and they fall short. Keep that good food coming.

Second time here for Sunday lunch. We intend to come back often. Great food, service and reasonable prices.

A busy cafe sharing space with the library and art gallery. Unfortunately the adjoining zen garden is closed off, but visible through big windows. The cafe fare is inventive (Cauliflower Cake, etc) and servings were reasonable, but the food lacked seasoning and there were limited trimmings or sauce, so the meals didn't leave much of an impression. Staff seemed busier than would be expected; while the cafe was fairly full on an ordinary lunchtime, one item we ordered was forgotten, though that was soon corrected.

It was hard to decide what to eat with a big menu and wide range of cabinet food. I had the Chicken Turkish pide toasted and shared wedges with the partner. Pide was great value for money.

Typical nz cafe with a good range of cabinet food and board menu but this is special because they have excellent staff good coffee and the tables are next to an authentic Japanese garden and the pretty special nothing fuddy duddy about it Pataka museum. Three hours slid easily by today.

What a lovely little Cafe. The food is wonderful. Just a couple of things annoyed me. 1st, the dress code is not nice at all. Very untidy. 2nd is we watched the person cleaning the tables. Firstly he wiped the table then the chairs, without changing cloths he went onto the next table. Not very clean practice. I really enjoyed the food though. Tasty & vibrant

Will be my Breakfast hangout now compliment to the Chef & all the Beautiful Staff top notch service Hallelujah Praise the Lord

This cake has to be seen in the flesh to believe the size. It's not as heavy or dense as it looks and it was delish warmed up with cream. 10/10 would cake and coffee again

What an incredible experience. First time eating here. Overall the food was delicious. Serving time was fast. The prices very reasonable and the portion sizes were more generous that most cafes. I can't speak highly enough of the staff. There was a delay between my food and my mums so we got a free wine. I would give this café 6 out of 5 it was that good. And I'm usually quite conservative when it comes to reviews. Thanks again to Kaizen. One of the best cafes in the greater Wellington area that I've been to.

Very busy eatery which is always a good sign. Caramel slice and hot choc were good. Would eat in again.

Good ambience, variety in the menu, great coffee and even better service.

This is my favorite cafe for business meetings, or taking the family out for lunch. As they have a good variety of options, and have a lot of items where I dont see anywhere else nearby. They're usually quite busy which is a indication to me that others enjoy their services and food as well.

My favourite cafe in Porirua - love their cornbeef hash meal and their rhubarb shortcake is a must - Kaizen gives great service and excellent food choice.

My favourite Porirua cafe. The coffee and food is excellent, the staff are warm and welcoming. If noise bothers you take a table out towards the museum: it’s much quieter.

Nice cafe that provides good drink/dining options in Porirua. Ambience is lovely, and you can enjoy the museum exhibitions after having a relaxing time in the cafe.

We had the pea & chicken soup as well as the pulled pork BBQ burger. Food was okay, the soup was quite thin, and seemed undercooked. The burger was nice, but consisted mainly of chips and bread. For $19 it would’ve been nice to have a bit more substance.<br/><br/>Where Kaizen really lacks is in the amenities: the tables are given a bare minimum wipe (not actually cleaned), and the customer service is reactive, not proactive. The soup took an extra 5 minutes to arrive after the burger and only after we prompted a staff member.<br/><br/>It’s an okay place, don’t go in with high expectations and you’ll be fine.

Probably one of best spots in Porirua for coffee. It is beside of library. I have been going there since it had a different name. Coffee is good and food could be better. Always busy and you can feel Pacific welcome. Can be noisy sometime but when it is sunny you feel great sitting there and sipping your coffee. Hard to find fault but not the best. Hence 4 stars. Recommended.

Love this place! My favourite weekend brunch/lunch spot. The food is always immaculate and well presented. The cabinet food is delicious in its own right. Can't comment on the coffee because we rarely have it - but their service is friendly, fast and the food is filling.

Came here a while ago and just had a coffee catch up with my sister. She ordered the rhubarb pie. I had a taste and immediately fell in love. Lol. It had all the right flavors and that bit of cream that went with it. So delicious.

My girlfriend and I went out for lunch on a Thursday, we were out shopping in Porirua and out of the nearby places to eat it had one of the highest ratings. <br/><br/>The cafe is in a library/gallery, the setting was nice and open. We sat near the window which over looked a Japanese garden. <br/><br/>I ordered their Smoked Chicken Salad and my girlfriend ordered their Gourmet Omelette, a few minutes in waiting for our meal the 12 o'clock rush began. The line of people reached out to the door, so coming in just 10 minutes before 12 saves a lot of time. The place was packed and the more people we saw coming in, the more our expectations of the food grew. <br/><br/>The salad mix of the Smoked Chicken Salad was refreshing. The combination of peaches, chutney, avocado, and cashews was different, but it worked. Having said that, there was not nearly enough chicken as you would expect from a $20 dollar chicken salad meal. Most of the chicken strips were very thin, my girlfriend commented that it looked like dental floss, which delivered no flavour, and I could not taste any smokey flavour. Overall, the meal was in my opinion overpriced and the chicken was a let down.<br/><br/>The Gourmet Omelette was a good large portion and was filling, the chorizo was nice and there was a good strong garlic taste in the garlic bread. As for the salad, the dressing was too strong and it wasn't the most fresh salad. Overall a pleasant meal, but also a little over priced for an omelette. <br/><br/>Although our meal did not fully satisfy our palette, we noticed a lot of customers coming for their coffee. We would not travel all the way there just to dine there, but if we were around the area, we will try their coffee.

I have been to this cafe several times for both business and pleasure. It's a great place to bring the kids for a hot chocolate and exploring the art in the museum as well as meet work and business clients to discuss meetings, business topics and contract work.<br/><br/>Loved the friendly atmosphere, great food, hot coffee and the lovely staff. Only wish they were open late night Friday nights as it would be a great place for end of week drinks before heading home.<br/><br/>Cheers<br/>Mereana

First time visitor, I ordered a latte and and big piece of carrot cake. <br/><br/>Service was great , supper friendly and talkative. Coffee was great and so was the cake, was very perfectly dense and delicious. <br/><br/>I was pleasantly surprised by my visit and I'm sure I will be back

Not very nice food and even more not very nice staff. Very rude and condescending. They seem like they are not concerned with your criticism of either. Very full of themselves apparently. Would not return and definitely would recommend you find someplace else to eat. The coffee is horrible as well.

My fav cafe ever woo<br/>

This place by far is the best cafe in Porirua city! I'm a local girl and lived here all my life. This cafe stands out from the rest because it has been around for a long time, since i was a 3rd form college student to now as an adult in my late 20's . I loved the food then and still live it now! The cakes are always my favorite, you pay a fair $6 for a very large slice of cake. They usually have a rich dark chocolate cake served with ur choice of cream or yogurt; carrot cake & my favorite.... the rhubarb shortcake!!! It is so mouthwatering in the cabinet and is definitely a must try cake, for sure! I would love to go there every day but my student budget doesn't allow me to ha! The menu is fantastic. its all worth it, from the pancakes to the eggs, the soup, the salad pasta and another fave of mine, the spinach filo pastry cottage cheese & even the scones and other slices. The atmosphere is friendly, warm and inviting. But they are the preferred choice for coffee catchups, therefore expect it to be packed during peak lunch/morning tea hours. They can reserve a table if there is a large group of u if need be, and the staff there are half of the reason why i have always gone back there and always recommend them to others. I don't drink coffee, I'm a hot chokie kinda gal and cuppa tea person lol. But the other beverages are just as delicious. Also i would rec5the bowl of fries... its definitely a bowl that could be shared amongst 2-3 people. This is my treat place where i love to come when i deserve a treat.... #satisfiedcustomerforlife lol

came here a few days ago for a coffee, it was half three so they were cleaning things up but the food that was out looked delicious i will be back to sample,  even if the coffee wasn't delicious i would definitely come back here just for the amazing friendly customer service i received from the staff,  so warm and friendly.  Awesome keep it up.   I came back here a few days later and tried their mushrooms on toast, OMG, AN ABSOLUTE MUST HAVE DISH!!! very impressive definitely a place to bring someone if you want to take their taste buds on a journey they will never forget.

I had the best mushrooms on toast at this cafe. OMGosh their menu looked so good I was kicking myself for playing it safe on my firstvisit. I will be back to sample more! Mmmm the soup looked soooo good.

We had afternoon tea here - amazingly huge slices of cake, great coffee and excellent, friendly service. Highly recommend.

Great food, quick service with food cooked as ordered. Prices are reasonable. Nice surrounds &amp; you can sit outside. If you are watching your weight keep clear of the cakes, they are huge &amp; very yummy.

Have to agree with the other reviews :)<br/><br/>Food is amazing, great service, very fast and prompt.<br/><br/>Food is reasonably priced. Overlooking a little Japanese Zen garden out the back. Not too noisy or loud.

Based on the first review we decided to have a birthday brunch for a group of six adults and 2 preschoolers. The food was excellent as was the service. Awesome - Thank-you

What a find this was! A friendly cafe found in Pataka, next to the library. Each time I have been, with two small children, have always felt welcome. The food is divine; always fresh, you wont find a limp salad here! Each dish is carefully put together and is a culinary delight. Lots of bright colours and flavours. And the fruit salad is to die for. Generous portions too. They sell some fantastic coffees, milk shakes and smoothies. You simply have to try it - my only complaint is that I dont get to eat there as often as I would like!!!