Best Steak sandwich in town well worth a visit The Phoenix…read moreon the Strand Gastropub with an atmosphere!

While road tripping across the north island of NZ we stopped by The Phoenix in Tauranga for lunch…read moreand it didn't disappoint. The Angus burger was terrific and paired well with the golden lager. Nice atmosphere and staff was friendly.

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.

This is my first 1-star restaurant review... Yikes. It already had a 1-star review, which, had I…read moreknown, I would have avoided it in the first place. As it was, we'd just driven 2 hours, the kids and hubby were hungry cranky and pub food seemed like the best idea at the time. The atmosphere and decor aren't actually bad, but man, the food was terrible. I ordered a cheese pizza (like, just sauce and cheese) and the server had difficulty understanding this request (because it wasn't one of the menu pizzas -which to me, all looked like awful combos for a pizza). Anyhow, I suppose that should have been my first clue. The pizza came in a fairly timely manner, but the crust was thin and soggy, the sauce tasted like leftover spaghetti sauce and the cheese was manufactured tasting. It really sucked. Even my kids wouldn't eat it (insult to injury). Stopping in for takeaway at the local Pizza Hut or Dominoes would have been WAY better. My husband got the "special," roast of the day. Special indeed. It was a few small pieces of pork, cauliflower and broccoli (both tasted previously frozen) with weird white sauce, one piece of roasted potato (flavorless) and some carrot sticks and a scary looking fried thing that I can only assume was meant to be a crackling. The whole dish tasted as bad as it looked. Do yourself a favor and eat before you come here, or just don't even other coming here at all. Yuck.

Stumbled upon this place looking for lunch one day. Absolutely loved it! Staff were friendly and…read moresuper helpful. Food was delicious and reasonably priced. Nice little pub in the middle of town.

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?

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.

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.

In Hamilton for 2 nights. Enjoyed this spot twice . One of…read morethe few bars we could belly up to as many in NZ seem to have no stools. Great cocktails and beer selection. Friendly, engaging staff.

This is a serious contender for best bar in Hamilton. I came here Saturday night with my husband…read moreand a couple friends. Why, why have I not been here before now?! I used to live just up the block! My husband had already been here and, somehow, did not bring me in immediately. This is one of those places where I had a "love at first sight" moment. Even on a fairly crowded night, the vibe in this place is super-cool. It's small, almost uncomfortably so, but in spite of that (because of that?) it has a great intimate feel. The cocktails are pricey, but different and skillfully prepared. There is a good selection of whiskey (my whiskey-loving friend tells me). There was a DJ artfully spinning a weird, awesome, "did-he-just-do-that?" selection of tunes. The decor is comfortable/cool, with walls of exposed bricks and "I never want to get up" comfy couches. The back walls are lined with loads of books and one portion of the ceiling is covered with records. They appear to have some bites to eat, but admittedly, we were just there for drinks. It's a little tricky to find, set back from Victoria Street down a side alley. But, it's SO worth finding.

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.

Lots of great vegan and vegetarian options for a hot dog place! I had the cauliflower wings which…read morewere crispy and deliciously spiced. They came with a coconut sauce that was exquisite. My wife had the pumpkin fritte bowl, which was flavorful and delicious - fried pumpkin is great! One of my sons had the open faced veggie sandwich which he devoured, and my other son asked for the fettuccine without bacon and mushrooms, and they happily obliged. Great family atmosphere, and great service!

Fun lunch on a quiet Sunday afternoon. This restaurant has been here for 30 years and I could see…read morewhy. My husband and I split the chicken satay salad. It was plenty of yumminess for both of us. Lots of tender chicken served in a bed of greens, red onion, tomatoes and crunchy noodles. The chili sauce as generously poured on top. We had a large cappuccino to accompany our meal. We chose to sit outside and appreciate the warm summer air. Win win

Awesome food! Great staff!! Wonderful menu with plenty of vegan and gluten free options!!…read moreCelebrated my partners birthday breakfast and they brought him out a delicious carrot cake muffin with a candle and sang to him!! Went because saw locals review on yelp! Was definitely his favorite birthday breakfast!

Great coffee and friendly service. Excellent menu food but the cabinet food is priced a tad too…read morehigh for what it is.