Manuka Reserve is a neighbourhood park in Bayview, on Auckland's North Shore, and it holds a perfect 5.0 Google rating — quiet proof that those who use it think highly of it. A good suburban reserve is the workhorse green space of a suburb: enough grass and native planting for a short walk, a kickabout or a bench in the shade, without the crowds of the big coastal parks up the road. On the North Shore these smaller reserves are where the neighbourhood actually goes — dog walkers at dawn, kids after school, people taking the long way home. It pays to check the council signage for track links and dog rules before you go, and regulars will tell you the early morning and golden hour are when a reserve is at its best. For Bayview locals after green space on the doorstep, Manuka Reserve sits right in the suburb and, on this evidence, is loved for it.