Upon arriving in New Zealand’s fun little capital, it was not long before I stumbled across my first Wellington cafe — and that is because they are everywhere. Believed to have more cafes, bars, and restaurants per capita than New York, I soon learned that the cafe culture in Wellington punches well above its weight on the global stage. It would have been considered rude of me not to immediately dip my toes in the culture and partake in drinking some of the best coffee around. Making my way into the CBD to get my hands around a cup of the good stuff everyday, it didn’t take long for me to realise what really makes the cafes tick — hosted by cheerful waitstaff, these spaces are, more often than not, delightfully colourful, packed to the brim with eclectic decor and serve only the best food and drink. Over 5 weeks, I watched the inner city come to life as commuters made their early morning dash to their cafe of choice for a scone and a long black, and sat next to University students who came to have their study breaks in the form of carbs and caffeine, interspersed with regular punters through the day. Each cafe was distinct and notably different from the last one I visited — yet, all of them provided an opportunity for me to study weird and wonderful artwork, free-flowing design ideas and the ingenuity of each individual owner.
One rainy afternoon, as I was sipping on an Earl Grey at my favourite cafe in Wellington, Nikau, only a short walk from the city library, I decided to do what I think I do best — research the analog way. I wanted to deep dive into the history of Wellington in regards to the thriving cafe culture. And so I did. While it is now hard to imagine Wellington without an espresso machine on every corner, there was a time that cafes were a novel experience for New Zealanders. This culture began in the 1930s with the arrival of the milk bar, followed closely by coffee houses in the 1950s. These coffee houses were fashionable places — a focal point for writers, poets, artists, musicians and academics. As is the case today, music was an important aspect of the scene and jazz was the most popular form of entertainment. The look was pseudo-European and sophisticated. Exotic new foods and new Italian espresso machines were introduced. After a period of decline in the 60s and 70s, Wellington’s cafe landscape has grown in spectacular fashion over the last couple of decades, and it shows no signs of slowing down.
As a compulsive people watcher and a long-time patron of the cafe culture with plans to visit Wellington as many times as possible, I, for one, am not complaining.
Written by Rhea Baweja
Week 5, January 2021
