Deluxe Diner (New Plymouth, New Zealand)

The only thing I had regretted after my many trips in America, mainland and Hawaii is to try the real American diner, I am not sure why I haven’t visited any but for some reason I had forgotten it since there are many things to do in the states, so many, it’s so hard to fit everything you want to try and do. I know some may say it’s just a diner as most of you, a diner is a regular part of your lives but for me living outside states, a visit to a real one would be really special. On our recent short trip to the Lower North Island of New Zealand we came across the closest thing to the American Diner and it is New Plymouth, the Deluxe Diner.

Visiting this place feels like we are warped in a real American Diner, the decor, the food, the portions and uniforms of the staff made us feel that way, it was an eye circus, it was colourful, vibrant and it’s all amazing, the only thing missing was the American accent. Another thing that added to the scene is the location of this restaurant, tucked in the quiet part of New Plymouth, it felt like we just stopped over at a deserted gas station on Route 66.

We splurged a bit on this place because every item on the menu looks amazing and those are the ones we don’t usually eat, the burgers, the hotdogs, fries, brownies, floats, milkshakes, all American classics.

So, what did we order?

Burgers, definitely this is a must and we grabbed a couple.

BBQ Beef Burger (NZ$18.90), beef patty, streaky bacon, smoky onions, mushroom, BBQ Sauce, cheddar cheese, fried egg, onion rings and mayo

Grilled Mushroom Halloumi Burger (NZ$17.90), portobello mushroom, pesto, grilled halloumi, watercress, kumara crisps, tomato relish & mayo

Of course, a visit on diner won’t be complete without hotdogs so we grabbed some Loaded Chilli Dog (NZ$18.90), jumbo frankfurters in a roll with pulled beef, smoky onions, grilled cheese, tomato relish, tomato sauce and American mustard

Deputy Dog (NZ$15.90), battered jumbo frankfurter in a roll with smoky onions, sauerkraut, grilled cheese, tomato relish and American mustard

We also had some Soft Tacos (NZ$17.90), two soft tacos filled with slow cooked pulled beef, lettuce, salsa, sour cream & guacamole

and we also tried some Toasted Bagel (NZ$16.90) with pesto, tomato and grilled Halloumi cheese

Curly fries with Aioli (NZ$7.00), because the wife and daughter are huge fans of this fried spuds

for drink, it has to be milkshakes and float so we had some

Thick and Creamy Chocolate Milkshake (NZ$8.00)

and Root Beer Float (NZ$8.90)

then to top it all off, we had some Chocolate Brownies (NZ$9.90) served with hot fudge sauce and ice cream

Everything looks really good, portion sizes are comparable to the real American thing, some prices are OK but some are a bit pricey compared to the local offerings. The food was mostly good apart from some items. Burger patties tasted really great, it was very juicy and meaty but I found the buns were a bit dry. The hotdogs were quite underwhelming, I was expecting those plump tender juicy American hotdogs but instead we got some slim Frankfurters similar to the ones you get in supermarkets. The vegetarian options with Halloumi were all amazing. The drinks were seriously good, so good you feel that guilt on every sip you have. Overall, it was a good experience and if those small things are sorted out, I bet the experience would be close to perfect.

Deluxe Diner
Address: 36 Leach Street, New Plymouth Central, New Plymouth 4310, New Zealand
Phone: +646 757 5300
Website: deluxediner.co.nz