Prompted by our recent shift to Auckland, I resolved that in 2022 Andy and I would work our way through the Urban List’s best breakfasts. Our first weekend in Auckland (despite having lived there for almost two months) was spent suburb hopping, wandering streets and precincts, trying to orientate ourselves as quickly as possible. The idea of exploring by foot is an activity Andy prefers when it’s coupled with brunch, so I thought there was no time like the present to start working through this rather lengthy list of best breakfasts.

Geeks on Sainsbury is in Sandringham, a suburb that is just south of Kingsland. We parked nearby and arrived by walking across a sprawling patch of grass dotted with pukeko AKA my favourite native bird. We chose an outside table and were subsequently a bit confused by the service, as basically there was none. We originally thought that maybe we needed to order at the counter, but once we got these initial creases ironed out (table service is indeed the way, our waitress just didn’t notice us/was busy/dare I say it, couldn’t be bothered to greet us…) we were delivered water, coffee and menus.

Although I had heard delicious things about the waffle option, it sounded a bit too decadent for me and Andy wasn’t too be swayed from his traditional order of eggs benny. Tempted at the thought of ‘doing it for the gram’ I almost ordered the waffle, but in the end I stuck with my gut (I normally regret ordering sweet, decadent things at brunch) and ordered the smoked salmon and cream cheese bagel.

Well, the coffee was good, but the food was even better. Both Andy and I were extremely impressed with the meals we received. There was perfect proportions of everything on the bagel – not too much cream cheese, not too stingy on the salmon and just the right amount of capers and micro-greens to not overwhelm the dish. Also, the bagel itself was deliciously doughy and fresh. It was a win from Andy too: the bacon was particularly well received.

Overall the prices were standard, there was a decent range of seating (it’s a lovely place to sit outside if the weather permits – especially with those pukeko!) and the food and coffee were both excellent. Although we had a shaky start with the service, by the end of the meal we had forgotten this had even happened and left with happy bellies.