The Arizona is famous in New Plymouth for being one of the best takeaway shops open to support the nightlife. They have burgers galore, as well as things like wedges, burritos, and hot chips. I really love the vegetarian burger, one, because it’s so hard to find good vege burgers, and two, who wouldn’t love a burger with kumara and pumpkin patties and creamy mushrooms!?

So not only is Sandwich extreme the best place to get gourmet toasted sandwiches, but they also sell the famous rocket sauce that I love to put on everything. They have a really nice range of salads in their salad bar including a potato salad (one of my favourite salads). They can put whatever you want into a takeaway option including your coffee so there’s no reason not to come try it!

Momo Sushi is my go-to sushi bar with so many different options that there is something for everyone! This is a great place to go if you know what you want so you can get in and out in just a few minutes, come to think of it; it’s perfect if you’re on a short lunch break. Overall, all the food is delicious, with a few standout pieces such as the sweet chilli chicken (and for me, anything seafood!).

Everyone loves a good dessert that you can take away and eat somewhere more comfortable, and what’s better than a Humdingers cupcake (or two) for finishing off a delicious meal? They have freshly baked cupcakes daily in their cabinet that you can takeaway, I love the lemon ones; they have a passion fruit curd in the centre that is amazingly good. I also love the black forest ones, they have actual cherries in them!

Toast is the café within New World in New Plymouth, but don’t let that stop you from trying some of the best cabinet food around! First of all, the coffee is wonderful; it really puts you in a good mood and wakes you up for the day. Second but most importantly, the food, absolutely delicious and is everything you want and expect when at a café; and if you present your grocery docket, you’ll be given a ‘Healthy Choice Ice Cream’ for your child at no charge.

Skate Sport Taranaki is the ultimate indoor sports arena, with roller hockey and derby, incline hockey, and figure skating! There are sessions running during the second week of the school holidays from Monday to Thursday for roller skating and on Fridays nights as well. You can even bring your own skates so you don’t have to hire any out. They also offer really cool skate lessons for no matter what level of skill you have!

Air-Zone is a cool new play centre for adults and children alike, the best part: it’s covered in indoor trampolines! This place is absolutely amazing for people who do gymnastics or just love to jump and flip around; and it’s somewhere adults can play with their kids and not watch from the side-lines! I love getting involved in kids’ activities but not everywhere allows the older ones to participate, but not here! They even have fitness classes which I am very tempted to try!

Mt Taranaki is a favourite place of mine I like to visit in winter; the snow is something that we rarely ever get in Taranaki, so going up the mountain to play in the snow is definitely a bucket-list item when in the region. Bring along anything to use in the snow; cardboard or toboggans to slide on and sandcastle tools to build snowmen with, it’s a guaranteed good day activity! Make sure you don’t forget hats and gloves!

I like to think that Naki Bounce is the place that makes kids dreams come true, it is after all the best place to hire out bouncy castles! With such a variety of castles to choose from, there’s a never ending choice from the pirate ships and houses, to king and queen castles and an obstacle course. And the best part is that it only costs $100 to hire them all out for four hours! This is awesome in winter to warm up the kids and get some exercise into them.

Stoney Oaks is the perfect place to visit in the school holidays, it has the atmosphere of excitement with all the kids around! I know when I was younger I always begged my parents to visit, I loved seeing all the farm animals like the cute little bunny rabbits and the ponies! There are over 300 animals in the park which is insane considering the size, but they’re not cramped at all!

Bell Block Bakery is one that I’ve only just tried recently but it was such a wonderful discovery. Not only do they have your typical pies, chips, and lamingtons, but they have little containers of sushi and chicken salads! I settled for a chicken roll, but this one was different, it had a bun with herbs in it, with red onion and a nice dressing on top of the chicken; it was almost gourmet! I was very tempted to get the sushi though, they looked good enough to rival some local sushi places!

Blagdon bakery is always packed at lunch time, between the hours of twelve and two don’t expect to just pop in and out because you might have to wait a couple more minutes! I’ve travelled from the other side of town just to get lunch from this particular bakery. I love their blueberry muffins; they’re humongous and so cheap too! They’re also quite famous for their pies, my favourite has changed every now and then but I think I’ve settled on the butter chicken pie; it’s a kiwi classic!

Batemans Bakery is right in the middle of town so they’re always busy, and always sold out by the end of the day. Their bread is delicious, it’s so much nicer here than just buying it from the supermarket! Its baked fresh every day which sound so enticing, it’s definitely worth the few extra dollars to get it fresh. They also have a delicious selection of pies and pastries that are quite famous around Taranaki.

The number one place I think of going when I want a little sweet treat is Moturoa Hot Bread Shop, they have the absolute best custard buns! For those of you that don’t know what they are you are missing out; it’s a long bun split through the middle with a line of custard finished with a glaze and chocolate sauce, the ultimate dessert! They also have the world’s largest cookies; some I’ve seen have almost been as big as my head!

Target Bakehouse is where I like to stop if I’m running errands in town and need a bakery that has everything, and I mean literally everything! The shop is huge and has so many things packed into it, a whole wall of fridges filled with drinks, and on the opposite wall several large cabinets filled with all the sandwiches and pastries you could think of. I love that they have chicken skewers in the hot cabinet, they’re so mouth-watering!

Chilli and Spice is a relatively new Indian restaurant smack in the middle of the CBD, and I’ve heard it’s much underrated and has some of the best authentic curries around! They allow BYO or a small few so that means you can bring your favourite red or white to accompany the meal. They do a starter I’ve never seen before called ‘Masala Papad’ which is a poppadum topped with onion, tomato and coriander with spices and it sounds delicious!

Decanta is a favourite hot spot with the locals for sure. With all the event nights and karaoke contests they hold, why wouldn’t you be? In fact I would even go as far to say it’s one of the most popular bars in New Plymouth! Wine and beer tasting is an event sometimes and they usually have a great selection of local bands playing that are getting quite a name for themselves.

Elixir is a special café that is definitely unique with its own style; but everyone absolutely loves it, rain or shine, lunch or dinner! First of all, the coffee there is to die for, it always tastes high quality. Second, they are always jam packed at lunchtime on any day of the week so maybe plan in advance and get nab a table early. They also do BYO after 7pm and have live bands to accompany your delicious dinner!

Mayfair is another one of New Plymouth’s bars that are popular with the locals and is an absolute must ‘to-do’ if you’re stopping for a short visit. The weekend brings many locals to pack the place out for drinks then it turns into a club past 12am with a disco ball and everything! Wednesday is a great night to go as all the burgers are only $10 and they are massive!

Federal café is an all-time favourite café of mine to come have a coffee, have a bite to eat, or just have some chill time with friends. They always serve fresh food that keeps me coming back for more to the point of craving it at least once a week! I’m not sure why but I really love milkshakes in winter time, despite it being cold there it’s something I’ve always done and takes me back to being a kid again; Federal have the most amazing selection available too!

The Kiwi butcher not only caters for your meaty needs but caters for your pets needs too, selling pet mince for a very cheap price compared to supermarkets. They even sell the weird things I’ve never tried such as ox tounge, tripe, and black pudding! It’s always a great place to go if I’m out of meal ideas, they have some pretty solid recipes and pre-made meals available!

Buzz the butcher is renown in New Plymouth for his amazing bacon. He’s definitely the one to go to if you love your sausages because he is the absolute best at making them out of the whole of Taranaki! Buzz is such a nice guy too, and he can pretty much accommodate for whatever meat you need, whether it’s rump, scotch, or angus!

The number one place nationwide that you can trust to buy meat from is the Mad Butcher. I love that they have videos on their website filled with tips and tricks on how to handle your meat. Recipes are also a strong suitor for this butcher and they also have a guide the meat; for example, if you wanted to braise some beef, topside, blade and thickflank are best for it.

The Fridge is a local butcher and delicatessen I’ve discovered recently; it definitely should get an award for most impressive interior! I love that they sells specially made sauces and recommend which meats they go with, it really gives a personal touch to the customers. They also sell non meat items to compliment the meat such as cheese. It’s my go to place for sausages as they claim they’re 95% real meat with the other 5% being fat and spices!

TLC meats has quality meats that are at quite low prices, I’m surprised they’re actually not a lot busier than what they are. They’re conveniently located in the Richmond Centre right next door to a fruit and vegetable shop, so you can almost get all your shopping done right then and there! They usually have staff picks each week to showcase the many different cuts and types of meat they have in stock.

Chilando has some healthy options, and some not so healthy options, but what Mexican restaurant doesn’t? They usually ask you what meat you’d like, or cooked vegetables if you’re vegetarian, what salads, and to pick some sauce. These can go in an option of a taco, as nachos, or as a salad. They load the salad up with lettuce and other vegetables, and I always make sure I get guacamole to put on top!

Tank is a classic staple of healthy eating, you may not like it if you’re not used to fresh produce but your body will definitely ‘tank’ you for it! I personally love it, especially their green smoothies; the first one was hard to get used to but I absolutely loved the ones I’ve had since. Salads are something I regularly buy now, and their ‘Dr Tank’s Chia Greens’ has made it onto my list of keepers!

Pita Pit is like the Mediterranean and a salad bar got married and had a beautiful baby! I love coming here and have never had a bad experience ever. What makes it different is that they offer to cook mushrooms and capsicum on the grill while your pita is being constructed, I really like the ‘Chick n Fala’, especially as a salad option! Take some time to sit down and enjoy with a fork rather than eating with one hand on the go.

The Loving Hut is a vegan/vegetarians paradise! But it’s not only for vegetarians, I’ve talked with plenty of meat-eaters who say they crave the food from here, and if they could make it at home they could be vegan! They make delicious vege burgers that I just dive into, and they always have something with chickpeas which I am a huge fan of!

I know what you’re thinking, how can a bakery be healthy? Piccolo Morso makes delicious fresh juices that will chase away your hunger cravings. They only charge $7 and are full of nutrients, try the ‘Flu Fighter’ which is my favourite; it consists of celery, orange, and carrot. You can also add ginger to any juice to really keep those unhealthy bugs at bay! They also make banana and mixed berry smoothies for an even cheaper price of $6!