Paper Moon - eat, drink and enjoy the sun

Continuing the theme of eating (particularly important when you’re so busy shifting house that you don’t have time or inclination to prepare anything yourself) I have always enjoyed Paper Moon in Mairangi Bay and have eaten there twice in the past week. A colleague took us out for breakfast, which was hearty and nicely cooked (the eggs were perfect), and I dived into Mairangi Bay for a quick takeaway lunch and a coffee to keep me going with all the house cleaning I was doing. I was impressed with the take-away hot food container which was made of recycled cardboard – good on you Paper Moon for this initiative.

The restaurant (in mainstreet Mairangi Village) has an adjoining deli ideal for your morning coffee or  a bite to eat after a walk on the beach. There’s also a bar which is very popular with locals – the outdoor tables and bar leaners are packed on sunny days. Paper Moon has built up a loyal following over a number of years and they continue to provide a high level of service and very good food. Click here to visit their website and  check out the menu.

Just moved house, and we’re exhausted,  so we look for somewhere cheap and cheerful to have dinner on a Monday night. A quick stroll down the main street of Milford takes us to Kashmir of India. We’ve eaten here a few times before and always been happy with the food and the service. The decor feels authentically Indian, with lots of ornamentation, pink serviettes and carved mahogany dining chairs.

The owners are away and a couple of young women are in charge – they are quite attentive and friendly, and they don’t mind that we duck across the road to grab a bottle of BYO wine. A jug of water and complimentary poppadoms -  smartly delivered to our table – keep our hunger at bay while we peruse the menu. Samosas, lamb cooked in a spinach sauce, and paneer with tomatoes, capsicum and onions are all delicious and satisfying. We take a doggy bag of leftovers for tomorrow’s lunch. All this for just $37, plus the cost of the wine, makes for a happy evening. We’ll be back!

Start your day at a Les Mills RPM class with Olly the trainer! Phew, it’s a bit chilly only 5 degrees, bound to be a frost somewhere but not here on the North Shore, and it’s going to be a beautiful day. There are only 20 or so this morning as the other thing to do this morning is watch the final of the World Cup. Olly works us hard and despite a cold start, the sweat starts to drip off my nose 15 minutes in. I start to strip off and I am breathing hard.

This is a great start to a day, and I end up feeling euphoric as the endorphins flow and as soon as I am finished my tummy tells me it’s breakfast time. There are spin classes at most gyms on the North Shore but Les Mills is particularly well equipped, I think their training bikes are the best there are and the trainers, Olly, Frida, Pete Leo are fantastic. Highly recommended.

Sure, it’s not Coronet Peak, but the slope at Snow Planet in Silverdale (just a little north of the North Shore) is heaps of fun. This is New Zealand’s only indoor ski resort. Take the kids there for a couple of hours during the school holidays or in the weekend, and let them loose to exhaust themselves. If you’re a beginner, it’s a great place to gain your ski legs, and you can get a lesson thrown into the hire package. It can also be helpful for the more experienced skier who needs to hone their skills or get a little ski-fit before hitting the real slopes. Snowboarding is popular at Snow Planet, and it’s a safe and easy place to learn to ride. You can even try out your jumps. Snow Planet is open every day, from 10am – 10pm (from 9am on weekends, school and public holidays). Take the Silverdale off ramp from SH1, turn left and then left again at Small Road. All the ski gear is available for hire – check out the prices here.

mmmmmmm……..Fresh Baked Bread

I have (like many people) a passion for good bread. I’m excited to have Wild Wheat on the Shore now (originally in Mt Eden) and visit a few times a week to buy my bread. This is the good stuff, mainly artisan and mainly sourdough (their apple based starter is reputedly 10 years old!). If you think sourdough bread is not to your liking, put your prejudices aside and go sample some of the Wild Wheat product. It’s wonderful! I’m slowly working my way through all the flavours, and standouts for me are the fruit bread, the baguette (ooh that deep crust!) and the kumara sourdough. The breadmaking process takes about 36 hours, which helps to develop the great flavour, as well as making the bread far more digestible. It also keeps really well – just wrap it in a clean tea towel and store in the pantry. This is bread the way it used to be made and the way bread should taste. Wild Wheat Bakery also has cakes and other sweet things, and you can pick up a great sandwich for lunch, then go eat it on Takapuna Beach. Wild Wheat is located in Hurstmere Road, near The Promenade (between GPK and Glengarrys), and there’s another store at 1/69 Lake Road, Belmont. You can check out the range of products and some background information on the Wild Wheat website.

Northart Gallery is a community funded art gallery in Norman King Square, Northcote Shopping Centre, which regularly hosts local art exhibitions and runs after school art classes.  It’s open every day, 10 – 4, and admission is free.   In 2008, the gallery celebrated its 10th anniversary with an  exhibition called 10 Big Paintings,  which received some favourable reviews in Art News and  The NZ Herald. See what’s in the calendar at Northart.