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Best Cafe

30 Stuart St, Dunedin 9001, New Zealand
03 477-8059
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Ranked #15 of 148 restaurants in Dunedin
Price range: $7 - $39
Cuisines: Seafood, New Zealand, Fish & Chips, Chowder
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Restaurant details
Good for: Local cuisine
Dining options: Reservations, Takeout
Description: Established in 1932 the "Best Cafe" has become a Dunedin icon. It has been through world war II and the great depression and has changed very little over the last 80 years it has been trading.My wife and I are privileged to be its third owners and have fell in love with a piece of Dunedin history. Our aim is to supply a great range of local fresh fish with our hand cut chips, also maintain our reputation as the Best oysters in New Zealand. If you remember the days when you used to get bread and rolled butter at the table as soon as you walked in, with feeds that never left you hungry then you will remember the "Best Cafe"
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45 reviews from our community

86% Recommend
    27
    12
    3
    1
    2
Rating summary
    Food
    Service
    Value
    Atmosphere
Date Rating
Dunedin, New Zealand
Reviewer
5 reviews 5 reviews
4 restaurant reviews
Reviews in 2 cities Reviews in 2 cities
5 of 5 stars Reviewed May 18, 2013 NEW

It is the iconic Dunedin seafood restaurant- you will not get better oysters in a more authentic restaurant

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Auckland Central, New Zealand
Reviewer
4 reviews 4 reviews
4 of 5 stars Reviewed May 4, 2013

Very quaint cafe that has been there for ever and is still popular with visitors and locals. Meals come in various sizes so can accomodate both big and small appetites! Bottomless tea and coffee and reasonably priced alcohol.

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See 3 more reviews by Jane S for Dunedin
OleSchool, Owner at Best Cafe, responded to this review
May 8, 2013

Hi Jane Thankyou so much for your review, Im glad you enjoyed our old diner. Cheers Marc More

arrowtown
Contributor
12 reviews 12 reviews
10 restaurant reviews
Reviews in 4 cities Reviews in 4 cities
3 helpful votes 3 helpful votes
4 of 5 stars Reviewed April 13, 2013

Best Cafe has always been reknowned for its simplicity of a menu, including Bluff Oysters & Blue Cod, nothing flash no frills, worth a try

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See 5 more reviews by buckinghamArrowtown for Dunedin
Los Angeles, California
Senior Reviewer
8 reviews 8 reviews
Reviews in 5 cities Reviews in 5 cities
4 of 5 stars Reviewed April 8, 2013

This was the most sweet, tasty Bluff Oysters & Blue Cod I've eaten throughout my world travels. I've had oysters & cod from Alaska, Seattle, Washington DC, New York, Maine, Japan, Hong Kong, Los Angeles, San Diego to San Francisco and these were the "Best".

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See 2 more reviews by Wayne L for Dunedin
Canterbury, NZ
Senior Contributor
36 reviews 36 reviews
17 restaurant reviews
Reviews in 14 cities Reviews in 14 cities
6 helpful votes 6 helpful votes
4 of 5 stars Reviewed March 26, 2013

We went here for a family dinner to celebrate a birthday. It was great to see that the decor hasn't changed over the years and neither has the food. Being served sandwich bread with butter takes you back but it works really well for the cafe. The fish was exceptionally fresh and really well cooked, and all family members were... More

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See 4 more reviews by TischlerAndHubby for Dunedin
Canberra, Australia
1 review
4 of 5 stars Reviewed March 18, 2013

Eleven hungry Aussies dropped into the cafe without a reservation - a challenge for a small business. The staff coped very well and the meals we ordered were nicely done and certainly fresh. More of the family were called in to help (a four year old in training who was very cute!) and we all enjoyed the experience. L n... More

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Alexandra
1 review
5 of 5 stars Reviewed March 17, 2013

Finally got to eat here 2 weeks ago on a visit to Dunedin after having it recommended to me sometime ago. The decor and atmosphere reminded me of some the authentic 'old school' Cafes in London where I hail from, particularly with the white sliced and butter turning up as soon as you sit down. The service was friendly and... More

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Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand
Reviewer
3 reviews 3 reviews
Reviews in 2 cities Reviews in 2 cities
5 of 5 stars Reviewed March 2, 2013

Great food, excellent service, a relaxed and enjoyable atmosphere, as well as value for money. What more could you want... oh yeah, great seafood. Dunedin's number one restaurant for oysters imo.

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OleSchool, Owner at Best Cafe, responded to this review
May 8, 2013

Hi Lynn Thanks for the really awesome review, hope we see you again sometime. Cheers Marc More

Frankfurt, Germany
Top Contributor
72 reviews 72 reviews
21 restaurant reviews
Reviews in 56 cities Reviews in 56 cities
27 helpful votes 27 helpful votes
2 of 5 stars Reviewed February 26, 2013 via mobile

The fish and chips was ok, not special, nor bad. Guess they don't need to bother about reputation since the tour guides and the cruise ships refer them anyway. The place was packed (ca. 40 people) when we got there. We ordered simple meals and still it took them 45minutes. Not sure if they actually talk the fish into jumping... More

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OleSchool, Owner at Best Cafe, responded to this review
May 9, 2013

Hello CayeK Im sorry that you didn't like our management responses and felt it necessary to have trip advisor remove them. Also you felt it necessary to contact us privately as you didn't like being cast in bad light ( Which is fair enough). It is almost ironic that you didn't like what we had written because it made you... More

Dunedin, New Zealand
Contributor
12 reviews 12 reviews
5 restaurant reviews
4 helpful votes 4 helpful votes
4 of 5 stars Reviewed February 15, 2013

A very plain little cafe with still the red checkered table cloths but the fish meals are delicious! Famous for bread and butter being served as a side

Was this review helpful? Yes 1
See 11 more reviews by 289PossumDunedin for Dunedin
OleSchool, Owner at Best Cafe, responded to this review
February 28, 2013

Hi 289PossumDunedin, Thank you for your review, we love the fact that we're a simple wee shop that serves great food and that people appreciate the basic quality. Hope to see you again, thanks Susannah Yeoman. More

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