Hey Coastie is the beachside local of Waikanae Beach — a relaxed café, bar and eatery just steps from the sand on the Kāpiti Coast. It's built around easy coastal living: brunch after a morning swim, long lunches with friends, family dinners, great coffee, local craft beer and cocktails poured in the garden. Whether you're stopping in after the water or settling in for sunset drinks, the idea is that you always feel at home.
The garden bar is the heart of the place — grab a local beer, a frozen cocktail or a glass of wine and settle into the relaxed coastal atmosphere. The kitchen covers breakfast, brunch, lunch, snacks and dinner across the week, opening at 8.30am daily and running until late Wednesday to Saturday, with Monday, Tuesday and Sunday wrapping up at 3pm.
Families are front and centre. A large outdoor playground keeps the kids busy while parents enjoy another coffee or cocktail, and the Lil Coastie menu for 12 and under covers everything from scrambled egg on toast and kids' waffles to cheeseburgers, fish and chips and a rainbow paddle pop — with kids' iPads (Disney and Netflix loaded, ID as deposit) as a parent-pleasing extra. Hey Coastie also hosts birthdays, baby showers, corporate gatherings and weddings in its relaxed beachfront spaces, offers gift vouchers, and joined Wellington on a Plate 2026 with its Birria on the Beach special, extended until 30 August.
Hey Coastie sits just steps from Waikanae Beach, and everything about the place leans into that setting. It's the beachside local on the Kāpiti Coast — the sort of spot where a morning swim turns into brunch, brunch drifts into a long lunch, and somehow you're still there at sunset with a frozen cocktail in hand. The welcome is warm and unhurried, whether you're straight off the beach or settling in for a celebration.
The kitchen runs on a full set of menus — breakfast and brunch, lunch, snacks, dinner and drinks, plus the Lil Coastie kids' menu. Doors open at 8.30am every day, so early coffees and big breakfasts are covered. On Mondays, Tuesdays and Sundays service wraps up around 3pm, making those days ideal for a relaxed breakfast or lunch. From Wednesday through Saturday, Hey Coastie stays open late, which turns it into a proper dinner-and-drinks destination as well as a daytime café.
Coffee is a given at a beach café, but the bar pulls equal weight here, with local craft beer, wine and cocktails designed to sit alongside the food rather than play second fiddle.
If there's a heart to Hey Coastie, it's the garden bar — the team's pick for unwinding after a day at the beach. Grab a local beer, a frozen cocktail or a glass of wine and soak up the relaxed coastal atmosphere. It's exactly what a Kāpiti evening calls for, and a big part of why the late Wednesday-to-Saturday hours are worth planning around.
Plenty of places claim to be family-friendly; Hey Coastie builds the whole experience around it. The large outdoor playground means the kids can play while you relax with another coffee, cocktail or bite to eat — a big reason it's a favourite for families across the Kāpiti Coast.
The Lil Coastie menu (12 and under) keeps things simple and satisfying: scrambled egg on toast before 2pm (gluten-free option available, with a piece of bacon you can add), kids' waffles with maple syrup, cheeseburger and chips, fish and chips with slaw, cheese quesadilla, guacamole with tortilla chips, and vanilla ice cream or a rainbow paddle pop to finish, plus kids' juice in apple, orange or lemonade. The masterstroke for tired parents: kids can borrow an iPad loaded with Disney and Netflix — you just leave your ID as a deposit.
For Wellington on a Plate 2026, Hey Coastie went big with Birria on the Beach — a beef patty and pulled birria beef with corn tortilla, onion and coriander salsa, Apostle Tropical Charred Sweetcorn Salsa and spicy crema in a brioche bun, served with jalapeño poppers and birria consomé, matched with Double Vision Loud & Clear Bright IPA. The dish proved popular enough that it's been extended to be available until 30 August, so there's still time to try it.
Beyond day-to-day dining, Hey Coastie hosts functions and events of every shape — birthdays, baby showers, corporate gatherings and weddings — in relaxed beachfront spaces, with food and friendly service to make the occasion effortless. Gift vouchers are on offer if you'd rather treat someone to a Coastie day out, and the What's On page lists events beyond the regular menus.
You'll find Hey Coastie at 42 Tutere Street, Waikanae Beach, open from 8.30am daily — until 3pm on Mondays, Tuesdays and Sundays, and until late Wednesday to Saturday. Book through the Book Now page on the website or call +64 4 297 0011. Whether it's coffee after a swim, a family dinner or drinks in the garden as the sun goes down, this is coastal Kāpiti hospitality doing what it does best.