Lucky Star is a fish and chips takeaway that blends Kiwi deep-fried classics with authentic Chinese flavours. The menu is built around the fryer: golden-battered chips and wedges, paua fritters, fish cakes, battered mussels, oysters and scallops, spring rolls and curry rolls, all in the hearty style locals expect from a proper corner takeaway.
There is a second kitchen behind the scenes, too. Chinese dishes like pork chow mein and chicken fried rice bring fresh, vibrant flavours to the board, and the chicken satay on rice has become the stuff of local legend — the dish regulars mention first, alongside the chicken nibbles that leave a lasting impression.
Value is part of the draw. Burger specials offering two ham or fish burgers at an excellent price are a standout, and toasted sandwiches from ham & cheese to bacon & egg cover the simple cravings. Patrons praise the consistent quality and the genuine warmth and care behind the counter. Menu prices can change, so it is worth checking with the shop for current pricing.
Every neighbourhood takeaway has its own rhythm, and Lucky Star's runs on two engines at once. On one side of the counter sits the deep fryer, the beating heart of any proper Kiwi fish and chip shop. On the other is a Chinese kitchen turning out chow mein, fried rice and satay dishes that have quietly built a following of their own. It is the combination of the two — golden-battered comfort food on one half of the board, bold Chinese classics on the other — that gives this Auckland takeaway its character.
The result is a menu with unusual range for a shop its size: you can order a battered oyster and a pork chow mein in the same breath, and plenty of regulars do exactly that.
The fryer side of the menu is a deep dive into Kiwi comfort food. Chips and wedges anchor it, but the supporting cast is long: battered mussels, oysters and scallops for seafood lovers, crab sticks for quicker snacking, and a fritter section covering paua, mussel and potato. For the uninitiated, a paua fritter is about as Kiwi as it gets — minced paua held in batter and fried until the edges crisp. Fish cakes, spring rolls and curry rolls fill out the savoury end, sausages and hot dogs keep things simple, and a donut handles anyone with a sweet tooth. There is even a cheese onion potato ball — the kind of singular item every good takeaway seems to have exactly one of. Everything arrives wearing the same golden-battered coat the shop is known for.
Not everything here needs batter. The toasted sandwich line-up is a short course in simple satisfaction: ham and cheese, bacon and egg, steak, chicken, sweet corn, and cheese and onion, all pressed until the filling melts into the toast. They suit the quick lunch run as well as the Friday night order.
Burgers follow the same no-fuss logic — ham, egg, cheese, Hawaiian, fish, double meat and a vegetarian option — with the sea dog and American hot dog covering anyone who prefers dinner on a roll. The burger specials are the quiet headline of the menu: two ham or fish burgers at an excellent price is the deal regulars point to when they talk about value. In a world of shrinking lunch budgets, that kind of arithmetic still means something.
Then there is the Chinese side, which is far more than a token section at the bottom of the board. Pork chow mein and chicken fried rice come out with the fresh, vibrant flavours that keep locals coming back, and the chicken satay on rice has earned near-mythical status among regulars — it is the dish people name first when they describe the place. Chicken nibbles round out the greatest hits, the sort of finger food that rarely survives the drive home.
Reviews keep circling back to the same themes: fresh ingredients, bold flavours, and plates that taste the same on the fiftieth visit as the first.
Ask around and the praise tends to be about consistency rather than novelty. Patrons describe quality that holds steady visit after visit, hearty portions, and service delivered with genuine warmth and care — the small things that turn a takeaway into a habit. Orders are handled simply and without fuss: straightforward food, done promptly.
The menu's breadth helps too. A single family order can stretch from fish cakes and chips to chow mein and satay rice without anyone feeling their favourite was forgotten — one of the quiet perks of a shop that straddles two cooking traditions.
It is worth noting that prices on community listings can drift out of date, so for a big order or a special it pays to check current pricing with the shop first. The listing also carries nine menu photos, handy for a preview of the full board before you arrive.