Review Clark's City Library Cafe - Wellington

Nestled inside the Central library, Clark's was at the vanguard of cafes when it first opened 12+ years ago. It is still doing much the same things, and none the worse for that - but it is no longer a standout destination in Welly. Still, free WiFi, kid friendly, and being a part of the main library means it is still popular and a decent stop. Some gluten free options.

A great cafe experience nestled quietly within the Wellington library. Great coffee and delicious sweet treats!! Steak and mushroom pie was to die for! I threw away the diet for that...So worth it!! Quiet atmosphere, free WiFi and great customer service. Chocolate cake was moist and delicious. Carmel and chocolate slices made sure my dentist stays employed...but so worth it!!

This is a reliable stop when with kids. There is a great selection of snacks and a small play area to keep everyone occupied. The staff seem extra helpful for parents and often bring over orders with kids' drinks instead of announcing for pickup. Proximity to the library, Civic Square and the waterfront make it a great location for any sort of weather.

A handy though busy place to meet up though groups larger than about 6 can mean hunting for chairs! Prices are fair and the selection of snacks is fairly good with some healthy as well as not-so-healthy options and some nice smoothies as well as the usual beverages.

I've been going there for 13 years, and a lot more during the last 3 years. I love the friendly staff and the way they do things. Coffee is always great and the atmosphere puts me in a great mood.

The only one cafe in Wellington with best spot to study, have plenty electrical plugs, strong wifi, cheap and delicious food, combined perfectly with library and praying place.

Clark's Cafe is The Best cafe in Wellington and that's saying something because there're many good ones. Rated on general ambience and food quality.

Located inside the central library, combines good service and infinite culture. Enjoyed the energy tea which comes in a little jar, enough for 2 people.

Good selection of food, nice coffee, great that they had a kiddies area with tables around it. Very convenient!

Pleasant staff, nice reasonably priced food & beverages, and interesting ambiance. What's effectively a public walkway goes through the middle of the café, which I like.

The fare is okay, but ambience is a big no-no - very noisy so not recommended if you're wanting to catch up with friends.

Nice and cozy place to visit. The staff is friendly, coffee is hot and tasty, what else do you need? :)

Nice atmosphere and staff, located with perfect reception of the CBD WiFi, so great for laptops. Prices are high though.

Relatively resionable price, nice coffee and food. I go this cafe everyday.

Really good food and relaxing Cafe. Staff are nice and friendly too! Love coming here!

Have been here a few times, was not overly happy with the quality of food or coffee I was getting for the price, I thought it might be cheaper being in the library but it isn’t to anywhere else in the city, but the quality is definitely less

This pl is a nice spot in the Wellington city library tucked upstairs - it’s very popular. They have nice cakes,sandwiches, pies, sausage rolls etc. I had a nice cheese & mushroom toasted sandwich a sausage roll & caramel slice (👌🏽)All the food was lovely -would have liked thicker bread for the toastie & a bit more cheese. Staff service was nice.

Lovely coffee and a lot if options to choose to compliment your drink. I had butter scotch gluten free cake and it was simply delicious. Come here enjoy a nice coffee while reading your books.

I love this family run place!  I have been coming here for years - and Clarks has got it all!  Fantastic food, outstanding staff and brilliant location and atmosphere.  Having young kids, it is really good being able to sit back, relax and take 5 as they enjoy the playground.   I love coming here in the summer and going for a stroll straight after in Civic square and the water front in the sun.  The coffee and food here really are excellent!  My favorite are their cheese scones and steak and mushroom pies.  If you are a sweet tooth - check out the Clark's chocolate cake and millionaires slice!!   Finally, can I just say one more time how awesome the staff are here - so friendly, helpful and kind.  You are hard pushed to find a more hospitable café in Wellington.  I highly recommend!

Great spot for coffee and cakes if you visit Wellington Central library. Run by a mother and her son and daughter with staff. Food in display prepared in house. Coffee is nice but they don't deliver to your table but you will need to wait and get your coffee. Don't expect a good service from staff. Can be very busy. However very nice spot and decent food. Recommended!

BEST scrambled eggs on toast around!!! perfect portion sizing and was quick service on the food front. However, was not a fan of their coffee

These guys work hard! Until today I just always called it the library cafe... The staff are always chipper, even when they are busy! I pop in every now and again because it's so convenient. Can't complain about the coffee, and the slices aren't half bad either! <br/><br/>Keep smiling guys, we totally appreciate all the hard work you do! :D

The step before Floriditas, and just like it, Julie Clark’s Library café has had what it takes to survive. Since its opening I’ve been countless times – usually bringing the kids to the library and giving them a treat afterwards. Its pretty standard stuff but its cosy, the low ceilings give it a warmth, the bookish ambience is restful, it’s clean, and the lighting is subdued.<br/><br/>I ordered, a piece of Louise Cake and on asking what black teas they had was told an English breakfast tea and Earl Grey, although from memory I’m sure there was a Ceylon OP (orange pekoe). I ordered the EBT. I was asked as to milk requirement and what sort of milk I would like (this is rare in Wellington cafes).<br/><br/>The Louise cake had a good meringue topping but was light on the jam layer and very thick in the shortbread, giving it a rather dry consistency – not delicious as it should be.<br/><br/>The tea came in a pottery teapot – loose leaf. This came with a thick ceramic cappuccino cup, which was cold. On pouring, the tea was initially hot and sippable but faded to tepid reasonably quickly as the cup’s heat sink took effect. I find tepid tea unpleasant.<br/><br/>The tea had less character than I expected – nothing overtly interesting – but still pleasant. It was a good colour and mild astringency.<br/><br/>The tea was tea-Total and I assume the EBT was actually their organic Assam Breakfast Tea. Overall Clark’s did well.<br/><br/>So :<br/><br/>1. Specialist tea offerings (the variety of unflavoured teas): 2/5<br/>2. Brew temperature (the likelihood that the tea was brewed with boiling water): 5/5<br/>3. Cup temperature (how much of a heat sink was the cup – a thick, cold pottery cup scores 0, a warm thin china cup scores 5): 0/5<br/>4. Milk requirements (was I asked about milk and what type of milk): 5/5<br/>5. Strength (too weak or strong =0, just right = 5): 4/5<br/>6. Taste (bad=0, excellent=5): 3/5<br/><br/>Clark’s Total 19/30<br/><br/>Scoreboard:<br/>Soho Brown : 8/30 (Harney’s – sachet)<br/>Sweet Bakery and Cakery : 9/30 (Harney’s – sachet)<br/>Bon Gusto : 10/30 (Twinings – tea bag)<br/>Bellagio : 11/30 (Twinings – tea bag)<br/>K and S Cafe : 11/30 (Harney’s – Satchet)<br/>Astoria : 11/30 (Enzo – loose leaf)<br/>Rosina’s : 11/30 (Bell - tea bag)<br/>Hangar : 11/30 (t-Leaf – loose leaf)<br/>Lamason : 12/30 (Twinings – tea bag)<br/>Ombra : 13/30 (Chai Ui – loose leaf)<br/>Hey George 16/30 (Stash – tea bag)<br/>Chocolate Frog : 17/30 (t-Leaf – loose leaf)<br/>The Little Tea Shop : 18/30 (Tea-Total - loose leaf)<br/>Louis Sargeant : 19/30 (?Harney’s – loose leaf in large sachet)<br/>Clark’s : 19/30 (Tea-total – loose leaf)<br/><br/>Suggestion: Heat the cups properly.<br/><br/>Now to the Lido.

This is one of my favourite local spots and they make really good coffee using People's beans. The staff are incredibly friendly and helpful. Their rice paper rolls are great value and really tasty and their pies are outstanding - be careful though they tend to be on the hot side. Highly recommend - I love these guys and I love the library!

A regular spot for coffee and a quick bite to eat. There is a lot of food on offer but not a lot of it appeals. <br/><br/>Toilets nearby are clean, the service is fairly average though there is plenty of seating and free wifi.

Sure, it's busy, but that just gives it a vibe. <br/>Fantastic breakfast. Great smoothies. Highly recommend the gluten free potato cake, peach melba muffin and of course the "Christmas Mince Pie, that's all I want for Christmas" hehe.

Had just recently discovered this Cafe and i cannot recommend it enough. Huge selection of food, both sweet and savoury as well as a Breakfast/Brunch menu which you can order from and all at a very reasonable price. <br/><br/>The service always fast and very friendly even at lunch time (which always seem to be packed, sign of good a good cafe.) <br/><br/>Fantastic coffee (Peoples Coffee) and though they don't do table run - the wait is never long and i enjoy watching the barista at work flaunting their skills. <br/><br/>p.s Make sure you give the Chicken Blue Cheese Pie and the Spring Roll ago they are very delicious and wash it down with the Lemon Tart (the best i've ever tasted).

In a competitive cafe market like Wellington, bad cafes will be left behind before long. Clark's Cafe, located on the Wellington City Library mezzanine floor, is one such cafe. <br/><br/>Service - which can hardly be rated since it didn't exist in this cafe - was appalling, the dining environment is terrible and the quality of the coffee is below average and certainly not worth the price paid for them. <br/><br/>The front of house staff and the barista did not know what a ristretto long-black was, which I should have taken as a warning sign straight away and left. After a lengthy explanation on what a ristretto long-black was, I was left waiting in excess of 8 minutes (once again, too long for good customer service) and served a drink that had little body, was over-extracted and resembled no crema. These are the hallmarks of a bad espresso.<br/><br/>The barista is also constantly yelling out customer orders which is not pleasant at all. Apart from your taste senses being insulted by the coffee, take note that your ears are bound to suffer as well.<br/><br/>Thank god I ordered a sweet fudge slice to eat, or else I would have been unable to down the terrible coffee served to me!

Best place ever. Lovely decor. Lovely staff- especially this nice young lady with glasses. Always very friendly. Great how there's free water for when you get a headache from reading too much (hehe), and close to the toilets. Fantastic. Good service and cheap. Get a millionaires shortbread, you won't be disappointed (although your doctor might!).

Cosy cafe with nice music at City Library. Lots of choice for light meals. I have lunch with my friends regularly.

I certaintly would not recommend this cafe. <br/><br/>Can't rate the service as there wasn't any. I ordered a cup of tea, the pot was one-third full and the tea was cold. <br/><br/>There are a lot of cafes in Wellington and its a shame that this is not one of the good or excellent ones.

This place was a natural hang out for me and my friends in College, and since coming back to Wellington in March 2011, this place hasn't changed much; which is good. It's still a good place to chill, it's still got nice customer service, the sausage rolls are still HUGE (and good with Tomato Sauce), and the Millionaires are a nice chocolate caramel treat.<br/><br/>Its a really nice setup for the Wellington Central Library building, and it delivers on so many levels.<br/><br/>it's hard not to like the overall environment and atmosphere of this place.<br/><br/>I STILL like Clark's Cafe.

Clark's is a cosy cafe in the Wellington Library. Child-friendly, it also offers a haven away from the noise outside with distinguished decor. A wide selection of counter food is available. Although prices have steadily crept up over the years, this does not seem to deter the lunch time rush. Service is generally efficient (this largely depends on who is working on the day). Clark's is great place to enjoy a book with lunch or a cup of coffee.

It is pretty standard to make takeaway coffees before dine-in coffees. You usually wouldn't notice in other cafes because you are sitting down - Clark's is a bit different as they don't run the coffees, you wait until they are made &amp; they call the orders. I have noticed this can cause confusion if say 3 trim flat whites come up at once! Also the design of the counter can cause a bottleneck. I don't think they were being discriminating...<br/>Clark's is a busy place, I have always found their service to be friendly &amp; efficient. The food is good. The only complaint I would have is the lighting can be a bit dingy in places - but you can always go &amp; sit in Civic Square in the sun.

esterday, i asked for a flat white and was waiting in the queue. Someone who came next to me also paid for a flat white take away. But despite not being the next to be served, she said 'can I have my flat white take away please?' and the person immediately conceded. Now what am I? A non-entity? That the other customer may have been in a hurry is a lame justification. Either she or the one who was attending to her should have had the curtsey to acknowledge me. Is this one of the several kinds of subtle discrimination I am observing during the past 4 months in this country?