Food favourites: Purple Weka Cafe
Genuine Kiwi kai cooked to perfection and served with a helping of smiles, and a bit of cheek, is hard to beat. 
That’s especially true of the time–honoured breakfast and lunch dishes, served from 7am onwards at Purple Weka Cafe.
Owner Stewart McDougall says, “Our food is quite traditional, and made on-site with fresh ingredients. Our most popular dishes are the savoury mince served with a soft poached egg and five grain toast, or the creamy mushrooms served with bacon on toasted ciabatta.”
Purple Weka’s Eggs Benedict of two poached eggs on ciabatta, with a choice of spinach, crispy bacon or smoked salmon, smothered in hollandaise sauce, is also a trip down nostalgia lane. But does Stewart really have the most popular dish correct?
Some devotees will swear that by far the best dish on the menu is the classic West Coast-style whitebait patties. “We call these little treasures ‘silver slivers of deliciousness’.
“We respect their natural flavour and goodness by preparing them simply with two eggs, seasoning, and a wedge of lemon, just the way whitebaiters do on river banks after they have brought in their precious catch,” Stewart adds.
Customers can order whitebait patties with thick slices of fresh white bread, or as a meal served with fries and salad. Thankfully, Stewart has copious supplies of them in the cafe’s freezers to keep up with demand. The Purple Weka knows that the way to a Kiwi’s heart is through tasty food at very reasonable prices. Head to Fitzgerald Avenue to add some Purple Weka Cafe magic to your next meal out.
