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Project Employ officially opens its purpose-built Flourish Café in new Takapuna location, creating even more opportunities for neurodiverse young adults. Pictured: Hannah Sykes and Sarah Dann-Hoare A café with a purpose has opened its doors in Takapuna as Project Employ officially celebrates the opening of its new Flourish Café on Anzac Street. More than just a place to enjoy great coffee and food, the purpose-built training café is creating opportunities for neurodiverse young adults to build confidence, develop valuable workplace skills and take meaningful steps towards paid employment. The official opening brought together supporters, community members and Project Employ ambassadors, including Shane Cortese, Angela Bloomfield and Black Fern Atlanta Lolohea, to celebrate the achievements and potential of the young people at the heart of the

Fresh from the ocean not the freezer, Takapuna Beach Cafe’s Fish & Chip Shop returns with its most diverse catch yet. On Thursday 15 October, Takapuna Beach Cafe’s Fish & Chip Shop makes its highly anticipated return. This season, the beachside pop-up is doubling down on what it does best: taking one of New Zealand’s favourite summer rituals and making it better. Since it first started, Fish & Chip Shop has served fish that’s fresh rather than frozen and sustainably longline caught. For season three, it’s going a step further by putting a greater variety of lesser-known, underutilised local species on the menu alongside the classics. “We’ve worked closely with sustainable fishers Kiwifish since 2020, and we’re really proud of that relationship,” says Takapuna Beach

Takapuna’s business community is entering a new chapter, with a fresh identity and new leadership for the local business association, which represents more than 600 companies and 300 commercial properties in Takapuna. The former Takapuna Beach Business Association has officially become the Takapuna Business Association Incorporated, with a new public-facing brand, Takapuna Business, designed to better reflect the town centre’s evolving identity and ambitions. The new name and branding were unveiled to members at the Association’s annual general meeting on 7 October, where long-serving Association board member and commercial property specialist Janet Marshall JP was also elected chair. The rebrand is the first major initiative under the Association’s Strategic Plan for 2026–2031, approved by members last year, and will be rolled out over the coming

What to wear this season and where to buy it in Auckland Spring is here and Auckland’s North Shore is packed with incredible local boutiques to help you transition your style to the new season. We took a walk around town to find the best pieces for you, and the trendy fashion tips for spring 2026. Here is what we are loving right now: Spring dresses Warm-weather dresses are back on the agenda. Feel the sea breeze while you’re looking amazing. KILT has New Zealand-made dresses that work overtime in your wardrobe. We love this reversible piece, giving you both a V-neck and round neck option. Layer it under a light jacket for the office then ditch the jacket for after-work drinks. Glassons have nailed

Get up to date on the latest happenings around the North Shore.Takapuna’s food scene has been turning up the heat. Come taste-test the North Shore’s latest upgrades and new spots. We’ll save you a seat.  New spots to try Yomi Yogurt: Self-serve yogurt and açaí bar  This self-serve spot is built around the idea of total balance, letting you build a creation that’s as healthy or as decadent as you feel like. The choice is yours: a probiotic-rich froyo loaded with fresh fruit, a nutrient-packed açaí bowl or a rich chocolate swirl piled high with lollies. Find it: 51 Hurstmere Road  Sip n Dip: Feed your cravings with crafted drinks & desserts Tailor-made for sun-drenched Takapuna afternoons. Cool off with an ice-cold açaí bowl, with

Mortimer Hirst Eyecare & Eyewear is celebrating 75 years of clinical eyecare, a milestone built on a pioneering start. The practice grew out of a partnership between optometrist Douglas Mortimer and Eugene Hirst. In 1943, Hirst accepted a challenge from an Auckland ophthalmologist to make a contact lens for a patient with keratoconus. With no lathes available, he moulded the lens over a stone cast taken from an impression of the eye and shaped the optics by hand using small brass laps. It is recorded as the first contact lens made in New Zealand. That pioneering spirit shaped the decades that followed. Hirst Contact Lens manufactured hard and soft lenses in a laboratory that occupied three floors of the 9 High Street building until 1978,

Looking for easy, family-friendly ways to keep the kids entertained these school holidays? Takapuna has plenty of winter holiday fun to fill a morning, an afternoon, or a whole day out. From playground adventures and beach walks to sweet treats, shopping stops and cosy lunch spots, there’s something for every kind of school holiday mood. Use our handy list below for inspiration, or check out our activities page for even more fun things to do with the kids these holidays. Why not make a day of it? Start with a run around Takapuna Beach Playground, then warm up with lunch somewhere relaxed and whānau-friendly. Grab some fried chicken and a shake from Cousin Scott’s, or a burger from Benny’s Burgers, share some snacks or the

We’re bringing back our Takapuna Movie Date Nights, and giving you the chance to win tickets! We’ve teamed up with the wonderful crew at Takapuna Beachside Cinema to give away a WHOLE CINEMA of double-passes to some awesome movie screenings! All you need to do is REGISTER BELOW for the ballot, and you’re in the draw to win TWO TICKETS to that movie. If you’re drawn as a winner, you just need to head out for some dinner at a local Takapuna Beach eatery before the movie, then head to the cinema to claim your double-pass by showing us your receipt. There will be TWO movie screenings, and a new ballot will open for each individual screening. Recipients will be drawn at random the WEDNESDAY before the

NZ ICE CREAM & GELATO AWARDS TROPHIES SHOWCASE NEW TALENT AND CLASSIC FAVOURITES In a classic story, a new kid on the block and a long-lived favourite have taken top honours at the New Zealand Ice Cream & Gelato Awards 2026 with two contrasting Supreme Champions crowned: a tiny suburban Auckland gelato shop that only opened its doors seven months ago and one of the country’s well-established ice cream makers. Joylato Blueberry Yoghurt Gelato was named Chelsea Sugar Supreme Boutique Champion, as well as collecting a further three trophies. Owner Esther Cai only opened the doors of the Joylato scoop shop on Hurstmere Road in Takapuna in January. Congratulations also to MooMii Gelato – based in Claw&Art at 21 Hurstmere Rd, their Golden Mango topped the dairy free category! At the other end of