Anna Shahab King talks the key to a good cafe

Anna King Shahab rejoices in New Zealand's cafe cuisine.

Anna King Shahab has visited cafes all over the country in the course of her job as a food writer. For her new book, New Zealand Cafe Cookbook, she has selected 50 popular cafes and shares the recipes of their best-loved dishes - the ones that never leave the blackboard or cabinet because there would be an outcry from regulars. COLLEEN THORPE asks her about New Zealand cafes and the author herself.

What are five important things all good cafes do?

Make consistently good food and coffee; engage with customers (friendliness goes a long way); keep service prompt, especially ensuring a table gets its meals at the same time, embrace change, keep the place spotlessly clean.

What is the difference between cafes now to ones in the 1960s or 1970s?

I wasn't around in the 70s but have learned that New Zealand's cafe scene evolved from the British-style tearooms to European-feeling milkbars and coffee lounges which marked the 1960s and early 1970s.

By the 80s there was a gap waiting to be filled and it was really the late 80s and 90s when the cafe scene as we know it today kicked off. I don't think that a cafe-goer in the 70s was nearly as concerned about the standard of coffee - origin, roasting, extraction technique and so on.

And the variety on today's menus is really quite astounding. Mind you, today's cafes certainly pay homage to the past with homemade lamingtons, club sandwiches and milkshakes back on the menu.

New Zealand Cafe Cookbook by Anna King Shahab, Penguin, $50

Was there a difference between North Island and South Island cafes?

No, not at all. There's really no regional difference in cafes in New Zealand - they all march to their own beat, having their own personalities, while at the same time sharing common features.

The only difference to note is that local producers are well represented on the menus, so in a Wanaka cafe you'll find beautiful Cardrona merino lamb, while in Napier you'll find a bounty of Hawke's Bay produce on the menu.

How many cafes did you visit to produce this book?

Over the course of the past few years I've visited most of the cafes in the book while on assignment for magazine and newspaper features.

Any favourites?

Every cafe in the book has its own charms.

What was the one standout you noticed in all cafes?

One common standout that all these cafes share is that their owners, and staff, have a real passion and are consistently driving to better their business from a customer perspective.

Describe Anna King Shahab in six words

Driven by curiosity, obsessed with ingredients.

What is your signature dish?

Broadly speaking, salads.

I love making them. At home with my family my signature dish would be my larb moo - Issan-style steamed ground pork loaded with shallots, herbs and chilli and doused in an addictive tangy dressing. I serve it with sticky rice, or if I'm short of time, wrapped in lettuce cups - totally fun food.

What led you to a career in writing about food?

I landed my first job in journalism as editorial assistant on Taste magazine and realised I'd managed to find something that satisfied my greatest loves: for writing and for cooking and eating.

Tell us your three favourite foods and your three least favourite

My favourite three would be papaya salad, barbecue chicken and sticky rice, preferably from a roadside stall in Thailand.

My least favourite would be anything with artificial sweetener; kidneys because I can't abide the smell; and steamed pork intestine, but it's been more than 10 years so perhaps it deserves a second chance.

What are three things about Anna that would surprise us?

I don't usually eat breakfast, I'm useless at poaching eggs, and I own an obscene number of shoes.