Fine dining
Whitebait
Fine dining in a swanky but crowded and loud space. Excellent service. Good wine list. Bookings advised. (Jeff)
Logan Brown
Fine dining in an elegant restaurant (it was once a bank, back when banks occupied handsome buildings). Excellent service. Superb wine list. Bookings required. (Jeff)
Hippopotamus
Despite its silly name, a very good French restaurant, with a reliable wine list and excellent service. It’s located in the Museum Art Hotel: admire the vintage motorcycles and guitars as you pass through, but don’t have a drink at the hotel bar (the bar in the restaurant is much better and a perfectly pleasant place to wait for your table). Ask for a table by the window, which affords handsome views of Te Papa and the harbour, and don’t order your champagne until the champagne cart comes to your table (is it an affectation? yes; is it fun? absolutely). Bookings recommended. (Jeff)
MariLuca
Fine dining. Northern Italian. It's convenient to Rydges where the meeting is being held. It's pricey, but it's choice and you're worth it. (Mark)
http://mariluca.co.nz/
Shed Five
Fine dining along the harbour. Comfortable atmosphere. Bookings advised. (Jeff)
On the waterfront, not far from Rydges. A very good restaurant, specialising in fish. It’s quite big, so you won’t always need to book. (Diana)
Mid range
Ortega Fish Shack
One of the best restaurants in the country. Casual atmosphere. Good service. The space is crowded and loud. Bookings advised. (Jeff)
Pravda
Reliably good food and service in a subversive setting. Bookings advised but not always needed. (Jeff)
Not Russian, in spite of the name and the giant bust of Lenin. A Wellington institution: reliably excellent. (Diana)
Ombra
Good food, served by way of little plates. A groovy, crowded, and often loud space. Excellent service. The cheap house wines are very quaffable, so don’t be guided solely by the price. No bookings. Be prepared to wait at the bar. (Jeff)
Floriditas
Excellent food. Excellent wine list. Most of the time, the service is very good: it’s always very friendly. Good wine list. No bookings but that isn’t always a problem for getting a table promptly. (Jeff)
Boulcott Street Bistro
A wee bit of a walk from the CBD, this restaurant is located in a small and very charming historical house. The food is superb, the wine list is good, the service is often indifferent. It doesn’t take bookings for dinner, so at times one has to wait at the bar. (Jeff)
www.boulcottstreetbistro.co.nz
Cheap & cheerful
Oaks Satay Noodle House
The best cheap noodle house in all of windy Wellington. I would eat there every day if I worked nearby. The Nasi Goreng is reliable and the #14 (brisket noodle soup) to die for. Not for those in need of ambience. But you get a nice view of Cuba Street and Manners Mall for people-watching. Note: up reasonably steep stairs; no escalator or lift that I know of. Bathroom use involves asking the friendly staff for a key. (Simon)
https://www.facebook.com/The-Oaks-Satay-Noodle-House-151124838097/
Ti Kouka Café
An excellent café: good coffee, great food (varied menu); winners of Wellington on a Plate burger competition in recent years. Note: up a couple of short flights of stairs; no other access that I know of. It is possible, just, to get a buggy/stroller up there; it is not wheelchair accessible. (Simon)
Leuven Belgian Beer Cafe (135-7 Featherston Street)
Not far from the conference centre and across from the multiple bars and eateries of the Waterfront, Leuven offers good Belgian beer and aperitifs, plus hearty food. The pommes frites are excellent and the mussels cheap, along with hearty Belgian fare. (Art)
Satay Kajang
Just off Courtenay Place. Cheap and cheerful Malaysian, popular with students. Large portions make this very good value for money. The food is pretty tasty too. (James)
Longxiang
No frills and good value Chinese run by friendly old couple. (James)
https://www.zomato.com/wellington/long-xiang-te-aro-wellington-city
Sweet Mother's Kitchen
A bit pricier, but still far from expensive. Southern-style American place with a nice atmosphere. (James)
http://www.sweetmotherskitchen.co.nz
Mt Vic Chippery
Best fushunchups in Wellington. (Jeff)
https://www.thechippery.co.nz/
Mediterranean Foods
Very yummy and cheap Italian food. Great ice cream and the best cappuccino in town (I think). It is in Newtown. (Babette)