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Takeaway trauma

Jane O’Loughlin’s lunchtime routine takes a hit.

The first sign that the world had shifted on its axis was the handwritten sign outside Daniel’s Kitchen that said ‘muffin of the day banana and chocolate chips’. 

Never in the possibly 20 years of me buying my regular falafel kebab at Daniel’s Kitchen on The Terrace had there ever been a muffin of the day on offer, let alone one with banana and chocolate chips.

What on earth was going on?

Then I heard the terrible news: long time proprietors of Daniel’s Kitchen, Daniel and Virginia, had sold the business to new owners.

This news rocked me to the core. At least once a week I would pop into Daniel’s Kitchen and order a regular falafel kebab.

Actually, I didn’t need to order it at all, because Virginia remembered my order, as she did for all of their loyal customers. I just needed to turn up to the counter and she would say ‘regular falafel kebab’ and I would say yes, and soon after I would tell Daniel what salads I wanted (not too many onions) and he would carefully wrap it up and I would leave with a smile on my face for the friendliness and the familiarity of it all.

AND THEN IT ALL CHANGED and there was a sign advertising a banana chocolate chip muffin and faces I didn’t recognise behind the counter.

I glared at them as I walked by, pointedly not going in.How dare they buy this business.How dare Daniel and Virginia retire? Why must things change? Where on earth was I going to buy my lunch now?

I like to think of myself as being someone who embraces change, but I had to reconsider once I found myself weeping for lost kebabs on The Terrace.

Perhaps it’s the small things that throw us.Or is it just food?

There are certainly some people in our household that have never gotten over the closure of Myrtle Bakery on Kent Terrace. Now even the building is being demolished, and soon there will be no sign of once was the site of where the community gathered for delicious sandwiches and scones. Perhaps we should erect a plaque.

As Wellington goes through some tough economic times, quite a few familiar places are closing.I think we are justified in being traumatised. These places make up our community, and create our memories.

But things will change, no matter how much we may not want them to.

So I went into my old kebab shop with the new owners and ordered my falafel kebab (not too many onions).The new proprietors were friendly, and the kebab was pretty much just as it always was.

Maybe things will be ok after all.

 

Jane O’Loughlin
Editor, The Local – Mt Victoria

 

 

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NEWS BRIEFS – May

Caretaker’s cottage to go

The caretaker’s cottage at Victoria Bowling Club will soon be removed.

A condition of the club’s lease with Council, approved in 2022 was that the club-owned building should be removed at the club’s cost.

The Wellington City Council said that once removed, the area will be reinstated as green open space within the club’s leased area on the Town Belt.

The Mt Victoria Residents’ Association had asked the council whether the building could be reused for public toilets.  

However, the council said after looking into it, that due to the building’s location, the cost to retrofit it, and safety considerations, it was not considered a suitable option.

No thump from the bumpless hump

Alterations were made to a pedestrian crossing outside Clyde Quay School after noise concerns were raised by nearby residents.

The raised crossing had been installed last year to encourage drivers to slow down, but in recent months further work was carried out to make the hump less pronounced, by lengthening the approach to the raised section on both sides.

A parent of a student at Clyde Quay School who did not want to be named said he thought the original design was better in terms of safety: "If it's not as steep cars will continue to go fast."

A spokesperson for Wellington City Council said the work was “in response to an enquiry from a local building corp concerned with some noise associated with the gradient of the ramp.”

“Footpath and road maintenance in the area coincided with this work to ensure efficient use of traffic management while limiting impact on corridor users.”

Walk this way

An example of a ‘hotspot’ where cyclists and walkers can collide. 

An example of a ‘hotspot’ where cyclists and walkers can collide.  

Three sections of track on Matairangi-Mt Victoria may be designated ‘walking only’ following a review of safety on the maunga.

The Wellington City Council set up a process to look at establishing walking only tracks in 2022 following concerns about clashes between walkers and cyclists, and safety issues with downhill mountain bikers cutting across tracks.

As a result of discussions and analysis council staff identified 15 ‘hotspots’ and made recommendations for each, ranging  from closing the track, to changing the designation or making other safety improvements such as better signage.

The 15 safety improvements put forward include three changes to make sections of tracks ‘walk only’, one to designate a section ‘uphill biking only’ and one to close an unnamed track.

Council staff have shared the recommendations with their working groups and are now aiming to deliver a Council Committee paper in June 2026, which will have an opportunity for oral submissions.

Collision on Austin Street

Wet weather led to a collision on Austin Street in April.

According to a police officer at the scene, a car heading up Queen Street hit a car on Austin St.  The car that was hit ended up swerving into a tree on Austin Street.  No one was hurt.

 

 
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