This was by far our favorite meal in Wellington and the service was super attentive and friendly…read more We never went without food or drink or the staff asking how things were going. To start with the appetizers the Oysters with the vinaigrette were the best I had in New Zealand we ended up ordering more because they were that good and the ceviche was excellent as well. Our daughters lemon prawn pappardelle pasta was fantastic she soaked up every last bit with the delicious bread. Both my wife and I ordered fish which were both prepared well and delicious. If I had to pick one restaurant to go back and visit in the North Island this would be it. The ambiance was quaint and comfortable with a fun vibe. We would highly recommend Ortega and hope to visit again.

We were a group of 3 with hunger in our eyes and jet lag in our spirit…read more They took us in, and let us know we couldn't sit longer than 90 minutes due to the busy night, and sat us at the bar. We ate fabulously and deliciously. Everything I read the description of and assumed wouldn't be as good as it sounded proved me wrong. cocktails were divine. They let us stay long enough for dessert and smiles, and a lil chit-chat with the bartender. All the staff seemed to love their jobs, the environment was warm and inviting, and I always look forward to going again when in Wellington. Go! You won't regret it.

If this is all I ever experienced of Wellington, I would be content. I'm having the "Story of Our…read moreSeas" tasting menu. There's no excuse when dining alone not to indulge in food porn photography ... so here goes every course and beverage. Writing about each would take more time than I have between courses... . The first oyster and vermouth with orange slice started me swooning... OMG the ravioli and the breads are a m a z I n g. I'm in heaven! OK I'm just going to say it: "This is the best restaurant meal I have ever eaten, in my life!" And the last time two times said that was at Fleur de Lys in SF, and at a little place in NOLA, no longer there, both many years ago. If only I could preserve the taste memories... definitely motivation to try! The beverage manager/sommelier is Rebekah, from Iowa. She has chosen the pairing and she knows her stuff! The wine pairings are amazing, and each is delicious. "Tough job?".... Nice career choice! The smoky Sancerre was delicious. I suppose that by beverage #4, everything is going to be superlative.... well the brassica (cabbage), celeriac, cheddar, and truffle... with this was inspiring. I want to learn to make food this good! My favorite of all - the perch. I pray that we conserve the seas so that our descendants don't just read about when the world was so full of a number of things... I tasted the cheeses too ( just to help finish off the Mancini Bianco. OK: decadent, over-the-top, once in a lifetime - Hope you can do this too! I added in a modest cheese course with raisin bread and pear? (to absorb the remaining wine. The "over-the-moon" 'Brie-like' cheese was orgasmic. Desert (read the menu description), inspired? along with small production: Petit Manseng. I'm sure I'm not the first to discover this... I'll have to look it up. Top Chef Master NZ? All guilt absolved, now that I have shared this... I may not be a sophisticated diner, but this is sensational! Wish y'all were here. To those who take this tip, and express your gratitude: YOU ARE VERY WELCOME! - so happy to share Also: service was teamwork - very caring, and improv choreography. Kudos! This is clearly their happy place. The chef and 'beverage manager' remind me of the Protopopovs (sp)?, ice dancing... That was two 1/2,hours very well spent! The other diners have company and are more blasé. I am the only one visibly swooning. My next career: food blogger?! BTW the $$ is misleading. At $100-200 ($75-150 USD) for tasting menu without/with wine pairings it is $$$$, BUT for this sublime, out-of-this-world experience, not unreasonable.

Outstanding dinner! It's a set menu, typically on the high end side for $90 per person. However,…read moreworth every penny. Food from preparation to presentation is fantastic, service is outstanding, friendly,prompt & knowledgeable, and the ambiance is quiet, nice & modern and spacious. One of the best meals we had. Can't rave enough about the food... it's so fresh & flavored perfectly. The oysters just melts in your mouth. The lamb had various cuts that you can taste the goodness & different texture from crunch to tenderness. And the desserts are just superb, very decadent yet simply wonderful. Very special dinner!

My husband and I needed a place to grab lunch after the ferry ride, and didn't want to stray too…read morefar as we had a train ride coming up. We walked in to Cockles since they had a patio to eat on and it was the most beautiful day. The menu was extremely limited (maybe 5 items to eat), but we found out that it was the first week the new owners had it. They said they had some changes coming and didn't want to roll out a whole menu ASAP. They wanted to perfect it and make changes to make the place theirs. The wife and son were very friendly and welcoming. I had the blue cod fish and chips and it was probably some of the best fish & chips I have ever had! I was extremely impressed. They had a decent beer selection, too. I am excited for this couple to see what they do with this place, especially if the fish and chips were that good! (By the looks of the new menu now- it looks amazing!)

We came here the other day as we were in Wellington and strolling along. They had great reviews on…read moreYelp so it was worth a shot to check out. The restaurant is up some stairs in kind of a neat place. We were seated right away and given menus. There was a physical menu handed to us but they also have menus as well as specials written on different chalkboards. Everything sounded so delicious and it was truly hard to narrow down what we wanted. We chose to get several things and split them in order to be able to experience as much of the menu as possible. We started with the pulled pork toast which was delicious. It was a buttery toast with the pulled pork on top. It was similar to a crostini. Next we had fried fish with a salad that had some great ingredients. It tasted like it had olive oil with lime vinaigrette and red pepper alongside an egg. Then we also had the market fish which was kingfish I believe. It was served sashimi style with chili sauce. Last but certainly not least we had fried clams. I was surprised at how amazing these were! To finish off the great meal we ordered the banana donuts for dessert. And WOW is all I can say! They had caramel sauce with chocolate, and were so delicious. Also be sure to try the vietnamese lemonade. The service was fantastic as well. Will definitely be back!

Up a flight of stairs, the Wholesale Boot Company is popping with energy and easily recognized by…read morethe amazing flavors wafting out. We had to wait a few minutes for our table (a good sign) and alit at the small bar, ordering a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc from a vineyard recommended by the manager (Dogpoint, in Marlborough). We chose a series of small bites and were soon shown to our table; food started arriving rapidly, everything delicious! Bluff oysters and tempura oyster mushrooms; prawn sambal tacos; sticky Vietnamese-style chicken wings; prawn/chili jam salad. Too full for more, other dishes also tempted; a half-chicken satay style, Jamaican bbq fish, and smoked fish croquettes, among others. A solid recommendation, make an effort to come here!

The Crab Shack had the ambience of a boat house and good customer service. However, the food was…read moreexpensive for what you got and not that great. A group of us had the seafood boil, which they said was good for 4-5 people. It seemed more on par with 2-3 people sizing if you go by U.S. seafood boil standards. I was also a bit disappointed they only had one type of crab on the menu when the website detailed more options that were not available. The mud crab legs were way overcooked in the seafood boil and mushy. The calamari was probably the highlight of the food we tried. Lastly, the restaurant did not have any parking, so we had to use the nearby parking garage which ended up costing $30 for only a couple of hours.

A bit on the pricy side, especially with what you get…read more Came at a busy time. They were out of potatoes... I would not recommend the Snow Crab as it was underwhelming for the high cost.. Instead go for the mud crab and Aussie blue swimmer to satisfy those crab cravings

Went to a Christmas function here with a group that booked out the restaurant…read more The service was fantastic, staff friendly and efficient. The set menu had lots of interesting options. For entree I chose asp with prawn sauce. Delicious. Main course was grilled swordfish with celeriac and greens. Well cooked and presented. Great to be able to deliver multiple meals at once to such a high standard. Didn't have dessert but they looked great and all eaten up! Only negative was the starter was a messy shared plate that was really suitable in these covid times as unneeded to double dip with your fork (I chose not to - had first mouthful only)

We had brunch at Capitol and I couldn't really fault the experience…read more I had the buckwheat buttermilk pancake and it was unlike any pancake if had before. It was a couple centimeters thick and was possibly deep fried, it came doused in berry coulis and a dollop of mascarpone. It was perfect after a night out. I also had a side of hash browns which was handmade, much better than the store bought alternative. The service was great although one of the staff didn't appear overly happy to be there but hey it was a Sunday morning! Also, they had a dessert menu with brunch, this should be mandatory everywhere, unfortunately felt the social pressure of life telling me not to do it! Especially after pancakes.

A great range of choices. Love this place. If you want…read morefresh fish, and cooked fish and chips this is the place to come.

Fish and chips are on my to eat list during my visit to NZ. After Googling for "best fish and chips…read morein Wellington", I headed over to Trawling Sea Market, which happens to be about 4 blocks from my hotel. This place is not a restaurant. It's a seafood market that also cooks your fish for you. They can grill or fry it. They do have a few tables and chairs but most people take their food to go. The store is clean! I walked in there and did not smell "dead fish" at all even though they are there. That shows you how fresh everything is! They sell combo meals that come with X pieces of fish and hot dogs with fries and drink(s). I really just wanted to try their fish and chips. One piece of fried fish is $4.10 (NZ dollars). Since everything I ate in NZ seemed to come in smaller portions compare to US, I ordered 2 pieces and skipped the chips (about $3). All the cooked orders are placed in paper bags. As soon as I got mine, I rushed back to my hotel room. As I took it out from the bag, I was very impressed with the size of each piece! I could have just ordered 1 piece! It was also very crispy outside with very fresh fish inside. I LOVED it but I could only each one piece. The other piece will be my breakfast tomorrow. The staff in the market were very friendly. The older guy at the counter greeted many of the customers by their names.

Good place for fish & chips at lunch! You get a huge amount of fish, and there are other seafood…read morefavourites on offer as well. There are several fairly priced specials on offer for the lunchtime crowd here, but beware that '1 half scoop of chips' is more than enough for two people. The world's smallest container of sauce can be had for $1, so bring extra cash because you'll need 2 or 3 of them to go with your meal. Sauce prices aside, the only real drawback to this place is the lack of seating. There are a few tables outside but you'll be blasted by sun, wind, and rain any day of the week out there so it's not ideal. WTS also sells fish and seafood like a supermarket, which is cool!

I walked to this store on Lambton Quay on Friday, December 22, 2017, and arrived at 6:20 p.m…read more Although it clearly stated on the door that the store would remain open until 7:00 p.m. on December 22, 2017, the store's employees insisted that the store was closed and refused to sell any seafood at 6:20 p.m. When I pointed out to them that the door of the store stated that the store was open until 7:00 p.m., the store's employees explained that it takes time to clean up so they needed to close an hour early. This is a disgraceful way to run a business, and this store just lost our family as customers.