Mount Maunganui Bakery sits on Maunganui Road in the beachside suburb of Mount Maunganui, Tauranga, and holds a 4.5 rating from 54 Google reviews. A good New Zealand bakery is judged first on its pies: pastry that shatters rather than sogs, and a filling with more meat than gravy. Bread and savouries are usually at their best early in the day, which is why regulars time their visit for the morning, before the popular lines sell down. The classics are worth watching for too — a properly made sausage roll or cream bun says as much about a kitchen as anything on the shelf. And in a surf town, a bakery busy early with beachgoers and tradies tells you most of what you need to know. On the main road through Mount Maunganui, it makes a natural stop on the way to or from the sand.