Fat Dog

The oldest bar in Rotarua - highly recommend the ginger beer and it's such a great place to come…read morewatch the game!

Two of us came in for dinner after a long day out and about. Wanted something light…read more We had two Cloudy Apple Ciders, a Seafood Chowder and a Harissa Chicken Salad. Both were excellent. The service was fine, even though it was was very busy. Plan to book ahead.

Seafood Chowder and HARISSA CHICKEN SALAD

Pork belly

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Lamb burger

Brew Craft Beer Pub

4.2(26 reviews)

We were exploring Rotorua on a cold NZ winter night and discovered this insanely cool downtown…read morearea. We were hungry and walking through the dark streets looking for anything that might be open and also have gluten free options for me. A few streets down from us we heard music and saw neon lights flickering in the distance. Like unsuspecting deep sea fish we felt magnetized to the sparkly lights in the dark of night, luckily for us that once we reached them we were the ones doing the eating! This restaurant is located on a really cool street partially covered by a neon light canopy, sort of like going into a spaceship. We saw the menu of Brew Craft and were sold. The inside has a nice intimate atmosphere with low lighting with a casual gastropub design. In addition to a large selection of brews, they also have an upscale dining menu with tons of options to choose from. Our server was very friendly and helpful and pointed out their many gf options designated on the menu including unconventional items like chicken wings, chicken tenders, and pizzas. We decided to share the gf chicken wing appetizer and the slow roasted lamb shank main. Both were incredible. The chicken wings were crispy and saucy and kept me going back for more. The lamb shank was fall off the bone tender with a delicious mashed potato. We wanted to order so much more, but as we were staying in a hotel and couldn't take leftovers home with us, we settled with just being full instead of indulging to the state of miserable. It was absolutely delicious though and definitely recommended for anyone who's celiac and looking for a safe gf place to grab some not so casual eats in a relaxed chill environment.

This place belongs on the island of misfit toys, a craft beer pub that doesn't have any craft beer…read more I come in and almost all of the taps are empty. Why did they even bother opening?

Beef cheek plate

Muscles

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Beers!

Hennessy's Irish Bar

3.9(11 reviews)

The best Irish Cottage Pie: tender chunks of lamb in subtly seasoned herb sauce and topped with…read moremash (mashed potatoes) and sharp cheese. Came piping hot and stayed hot then warm throughout the meal. One pint Kilkenny meal! Friendly, attentive service. Typical Irish bar vibe. The Beer and Guinness pie has a spicier sauce and beef not lamb. Both are great. I would order both again and it will be a tough decision as to which to order. Enjoy!

We'd spotted Hennessy's Irish Bar the day before and saw that they would be showing the Super Bowl…read more We decided to drop in on the way back from doing some morning activities and caught half the game. We came around 2:30pm on a Monday and it was busy. It's a typical Irish pub. They have a lunch special ($12.50 NZD) with 9 options. Sadly, they'd already run out of the lasagna & salad. The main menu is split into starters, light meals & snacks, gourmet burgers & sandwiches, mains, salads, vegetarian meals, kids meals and desserts. - Clam chowder ($12.50 NZD) - B wasn't feeling well so she opted for a soup. She said the clam chowder broth was sweeter than normal but had a good amount of seafood in it. - Ham, cheese & tomato toasted sandwich ($12.50 NZD) - served with fries. Fries were boring and barely crispy. My dad got his sandwich without cheese. It looked minuscule. - BLT Baguette ($12.50 NZD) - served with chicken schnitzel. The bacon was more like a slab of dry ham; took out half of it. It was decent but nothing more than that. I could have ate another. Food wise, go elsewhere. Best to come here for just drinks and to catch whatever sport you fancy watching.

Closeup of ham, cheese & tomato toasted sandwich

Bar

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Date of birth chart (hilarious!)

Craft Bar & Kitchen

3.5(42 reviews)

0.1 km

Very good restaurant with friendly servers. They have daily specials in addition to their extensive…read moreregular menu. They serve New Zealand lamb, beef, pork, and chicken. They also have an extensive alcohol selection though we didn't try any during our visit. There is a large interior space as well as an equally large outdoor patio. They have outdoor string lights that help set the pleasant ambiance. A mixture of high and regular tables line the space. We ordered a Lamb Shank, Pork Ribs, and a Custom Grill with 2 portions of beef and 2 portions of lamb. All food came out in about 15-20 minutes, which was a bit long but we had ordered close to their closing time. I appreciated that they didn't complain, but were smiling and happy. Never once did we feel like we were being rushed out. Everything we ordered was delicious and tender. The chips (fries) that came with some of our dishes were crispy and fresh. The salad that came with my custom grill was perfectly tossed together. The prices are a bit on the higher side, but the quality cannot be beat and the service was 5/5. We'd be happy to return here if we're ever back in the area!

Well, restaurant on this food row. It may be a brewery but unfortunately I couldn't drink…read moreconsidering all these winding roads all around. Food good. Most steaks are brought cold and you sear them on a hot stone. We had no time for such play. Steak was good. Great music and music videos up on the monitors. All the songs are my type if I may say so. Staff professional.

You can add a Scallop and Shrimp skewer to your order

Pork Ribs + Chips + Salad

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Sour kiwi, Good George ipa

SOBAR

3.7(3 reviews)

This place was weirdly OK. Just my 2nd spot in New Zealand. It was only a couple of hours after…read morebreakfast so we just stopped in for beer and finger foods. Typical bar food, typical outdoor bar vibes as well. The service was pretty good. It was easy to get the servers attention to get whatever we needed and we were seated immediately too. As for the food, it was weirdly OK. For example. The steak bites were inconsistently cooked and were hard to cut yet were still decently tender if it was a piece that wasn't over cooked. The Katsu Prawns and calamari were super crispy but the proteins were like minced or chopped like they were placed in a food processor. Decent selection of beers on draft, bottled and canned. Large cocktail list too.

The owner is a charmer going out of his way to touch up the place into a cozy atmosphere which…read moreserves food from a well paid chef. I look forward to my return to Rotorua

Name

Wings

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Ponsonby Rd

3.8(4 reviews)

I can't believe this place isn't on here . I want to let you know this is THE place to go for a…read moredrink in Rotorua . The service is pretty snappy and the music which what I thought was just an iPod was actually a two piece band . Go now !

Great bar, great music from the Dj and great brews. Easy to…read morefind on eat street. We are having a great time.

Entrance to Ponsonby Rd

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Jazzed Bar & Eatery

4.5(2 reviews)

Wow. What a surprise!!! I found this restaurant through a GrabOne deal and as is the case with…read moremost GrabOne's, I set my expectations pretty low. After all, they are trying to attract more business, right? Jazzed Bar and Eatery is along Meat Street (their spelling, not mine) which is a walk street with mostly bars and restaurants. My Husband and I came in on a Sunday evening after a day at the spa, and it wasn't that busy. We both ordered the roast lamb and MY GOSH. It was DELICIOUS!!! We also ordered a dessert and that was equally delicious. How is this place not PACKED?? I asked the waitress because I really couldn't believe that this place was swarmed with hungry guests. She explained that they had hired a Chef when they first opened that had exaggerated a fair amount of his resume and in the short time that person was there, it tarnished their reputation a bit. Ah ha. Well, that explains it. Fact is, there is a new Sheriff in town, and this place was wicked good. The meet was perfectly cooked, the flavors complex, even the house wine I was served was delicious!! I hope once word gets out, I hope we will still be able to get a table, but I wouldn't mind waiting a bit since food this good needs to be shared!! We will be back!!

I was craving for some nachoes, and found this place…read more It was quite empty when we sat down. And alot more romantic than some of the places filled with loud people and happy hours. The waiter was one of the most friendliest people that has ever waitered me. And gave us some good advice on what to order. The food was awesome and well priced.

Sticky date pudding: Failed to take a photo before, and it was so good that it didn't last long!

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The Lincoln

5.0(1 review)

0.5 km

Walked in due to the price posted outside - at NZ$13 for my meal and coffee, this was the best…read morebreakfast deal in Rotorua. Eggs are made to order, home fries are certainly from frozen, but the speedy service, quantity of food, and low price made up for it! It's breakfast, so it's pretty much the same everywhere. If you are expecting organic or farm-to-table, you probably want to keep walking. Bonus: could get an American style coffee which can be a bit of a challenge. Located close to town center. One catch was that my credit card didn't work and I was requested to pay in cash. Sounds like there is sometimes an issue with out-of-country credit cards. The five stars are because this is exactly what was advertised - decent food at a low price.

Bar and bar seating

Order at the bar

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Outdoor seating

Holy Smoke

4.5(2 reviews)

I have been craving a chai since coming to Australia and New Zealand. What I have found was not to…read moremy liking, kind of watery and bland. Not here, creamy deliciousness abounds! Seriously just order one! The food was very good as well. We both had eggs Benedict, hers with a very good portion of smoked salmon, mine with bacon. Both were cooked perfectly, the eggs were just right, a tasty but not overpowering hollandaise sauce? We will definitely come back again!

What an excellent dinner! I started with Haere Mai cocktail, which was delicious and had a lovely…read morepresentation. I ordered the ribeye steak with creamy potatoes for main course. The steak was tender and cooked to perfection. My husband ordered the fish and it was also great. We shared the rhubarb crumble for dessert and it was yummy! Staff was friendly and attentive, although food was a slow arriving or I would have given five stars. Cost quality ratio was good and I highly recommend this restaurant.

Picnic Cafe

4.7(33 reviews)

I came here for breakfast two days in a row and would have kept coming if the timing had worked…read moreout. Very pleasant cafe with good food, great coffee drinks, and great pastries. If I ever come through here again I'll try a smoothie. It's right by the tourist-heavy Eat Streat area but it manages to feel like a true neighborhood joint. There were always locals hanging out when I was there. No wifi, unfortunately. Very tasty Eggs Benedict. If you're at one of the nearby hotels and want a more down-to-earth spot for cafe fare, you'll probably be as grateful as I was for this cafe

Great little cafe next to hotels and the park. Excellent service and delicious coffee! If we had…read moremore time, I would have ordered food as we saw it coming out and delivered to tables and it looked delicious! Noticed this cafe from the window of our hotel room and saw cute tables outside with patrons looking relaxed and welcoming.