Went back in March this year for my husband’s birthday with another couple. We were met by a friendly waiter who certainly knew his stuff. The food and drinks were out of this world. Beautifully presented, imaginative and delicious. It really is a place to go for special occasions and to feel spoilt. It wasn’t cheap but for this standard of dining you can’t expect it to be. Top notch, the best restaurant by far in Whangarei.

Came on the way to Russell for the oyster festival and was amazed by the food here. Very well presented and tasty. Good wine list as well. Service was a little on the cold side but thats to be expected in a place like this and was efficient none the less. Will be back!!!

Went to `a Deco for my partners birthday recently.
Had a fantastic night, the food and atmosphere lived up to its reputation. The waiter was friendly, knowledgeable and had a great sense of timing.
All of our group were more than pleased with our delicious meals, and were amazed with the finer details.
The snapper ravioli was outstanding, and the kiwi take aways dessert will bring us back!!!!
We are lucky to have `a Deco in Northland. =)

I must say ‘WOW’

What an amazing night we had at art deco.

We went up to Whangarie from Auckland to visit some friends and they recommended this restaurant to us.

After working over the menu for quite some time my Husband and I decided to go for the tasting menu which had included wine matches.

With everything taken care of all we had to do was sit back and enjoy the Delicious treats coming out of the kitchen

It was so refreshing to see great food out of Auckland and a few of those ‘top notch’ restaurants could learn a thing or two in service compared to this place.. Every dish and it’s wine was explained to us by the very helpful waiter.

Would highly recommend If your ever in the north!

Went there in a party of 20 having agreed a price per head before hand for the food. Just after the dessert was served we were informed the meal would be $15 each higher. It looked like a very well rehearsed routine – has this happened before? Be careful about thinking you have a good deal booked, it may cost more than you realise! 20 annoyed people!
The food was nice, service good, shame about reneging on the price.

Having read the other reviews for a’deco it seems they have good days and not so good. We were there last night and while the food was pretty fab – well presented and great flavours – in fact almost as good as Pure Tastes Restaurant in Paihia – the night was somewhat spoiled for us by the ‘couldn’t care less’ attitude of the waiter. He could do with a lesson in service from Antoines or indeed Pure Tastes. In saying that the waitress was helpful and very pleasant. The menu on MenuMania is very out of date, as are the prices.

Our second time at A Deco, the first time was lunch.The presentation & quality of food would be very hard to fault. We did have a long wait for our main course even though not a busy night, however it was worth the wait.Expensive but you get what you pay for & this is top quality food,

I went here by myself on a quiet wednesday night. I was already blown away by the presentation of the food and the taste didn’t disappoint, it was easily the top food experience I have had in a long tome. Truely amazing.

The Jaffa dessert was worth every penny.

Compliments to the chef and to the waiter there, he was very helpful and hung around for a chat, he even managed to find me the paper to read as I was there by myself

Very pleasant evening, enjoyed by all six of us.
Excellent food, service and wait-staff!

having been three times i can only say the food has been excellent every time.
The staff have been most helpfull.
On two occasions we arrived without booking and were fitted in.
dining here is a culinary experience and by far the best in Whangarei.If you are just out for a pig out Iwould suggest you go some where else but fot exquisite it is the place to dine

I have passed through Whangarei many times in the past and never stopped. I had not thought it worth the effort. However on a recent escapade I decided that it was about time to, and so I did. Well am I pleased I took the time. I didn’t just stop for a burger and a coffee, I stopped for the night.
I decided to upgrade on the food front and entered A’Deco with gusto.
I was welcomed with enthusiasm and delight. I felt at home in the surroundings, welcomed into a warm and friendly setting – out of the cold, dull Whangarei night (due to wintery weather). Seated at my table with a peek of the kitchen and the Chef’s meeting the customers demands – it made it all the more enticing. Menu presented – and I drooled – a napkin was presented and drool was removed…… I wanted everything. Pray tell, how was I expected to choose 3 dishes? I was told by Jessie that I was welcome to stay all night and taste them all. Sadly it was not to be.
I devoured my meal – three courses with wine to match. It has to be said that of all the places I have eaten – and there have been many (Having travelled extensively in the States and Europe) this is right up there with the best of the best. I live in Auckland – but I would gladly travel to Whangarei for this experience again. It was outstanding, the service the food and the attention to details and customer demand were without a doubt the best I have come across. The Head Chef shows a true commitment to the love of food and it’s preparation.
Give me A’Deco over any highly respected Auckland establishment any day.

I will be back.

Recently we dined at A Deco with my Grandparents – What a fantastic evening!!
Staff were amazing from begining to end they were knowledgble,friendly and highly professional. The food was sensational, artwork on a plate! Brenton Low and his team are highly skilled! Would recommend this restaurant to anybody wanting a fantastic night out with value for money – where else in Whangarei do you get service and food of this quaility?!!

This is a great settlng. We arrived on a Friday night and immediately got a table. We were impressed by the ambience, presentation of food, and well selected wine list. However the food was a real let down. All the meals looked good but the flavours just weren’t there. There meals lacked a balance of complimentary flavours and we wondered about the quality of produce given how flavourless the lamb and venison were. A couple of minor points – the service seemed a bit uncoordinated and the wine list is overpriced. Given the price point of the food and wine, and positioning as a fine dining restaurant, A Deco isn’t a patch on Auckland’s equivalent restaurants.

We had never been to Art Deco and took a special friend for her birthday on January 23rd. The evening was a big embarrassment for us and we’ll never return there.

We arrived for our reservation at 7pm. There were just a few tables seated. We ordered starters, entrees and mains. There was 45 minutes to 1 hour between courses and the main did not arrive until 2 1/2 hours after we’d been seated. It was disturbing that the table next to us arrived well after us and after we’d received our starters; however, they all received their mains before our entrees.

Service was poor, perhaps because of how busy the place became. They were clearly understaffed. The food was mediocre to poor, maybe because the place was full by evenings end and the kitchen understaffed. The snapper fish was tasteless and I had to ask for kaitaia fire sauce to try to resurrect it. My husband and our friend found the venison too game for their taste. None of our food was served hot. Even the dinner roll, very small and hard, was tasteless. Being famished after a couple of hours without my main (I did not get an entree), I asked for another roll. The wait person said we usually only give one a person: it will be another 15 minutes at least to heat you one–it was 35 minutes for the second little roll. The portions were too small for the price: at least, I didn’t blow my diet.

We had wanted to treat our guest to a birthday dessert and were even willing to accept the risk of that course being poor quality. At 10 pm, after 3 hours in the place we asked how long the dessert would take and were told the tart needed to be made by hand and it would not be ready anytime soon.

The decor was pleasant enough and the presentation of the food nice. But the service, food quality and value for the money was very poor. There won’t be another visit by us.

I’ve been to A Deco three times now, and all three times my partner and I have thoroughly enjoyed the experience. The wait staff were professional, friendly and courteous and knew the menu inside out. The restaurant itself is elegant and beautifully appointed and the food is some of the most sophisticated and delicious I’ve tasted in NZ (have lived in Sydney and London) with delightful touches such as real focus on local produce, the delicious freshly baked bread rolls and the spoon of sorbet to cleanse the palate.
I can highly recommend this place for a romantic evening – it’s not a place to take your family or a mob of people; make it a night out for a special birthday or anniversary instead, just the two of you.

Our firm went here for our Xmas dinner function last year. What a joke. The head staff were obnoxious and unfriendly, the meals were totally mixed up, arrived very late (two hours after ordering!) and were extremely small. The only highlight of the night was a “junior” waitress who was marvellous – despite the fact that the head matire’d treated and spoke to her like a dog. Lots of wine was consumed (because we didn’t have food in front of us)and we were determined to have a good time regardless. I had been told that this restaurant was THE place to go … well, none of us would go there again (and by the way, we were a corporate firm too). We were there with partners, and all of us have spoken about our unpleasant experience there to others. Never again!

A Deco is fantastic – set in a beautifully restored two-storey Art Deco house. The food and service is impeccable – not at all what you would expect from laid-back Whangarei. Brenton Low is talented, and the wait-staff are attentive, without being obsequious. The only disappointment is that the restaurant is often closed over the Christmas and New Year break, and well into January – when the target market of out-of-towners who read Cuisine magazine are headed North. I recommend the staff take their holidays later, so I don’t miss out on the wonderful experience of A Deco, when on my annual pilgrimage North!