We are in the Hawkes Bay on holiday and after looking through pamphlets in our motel decided to have mothers day lunch at this winery. The meal was great and the dessert (chocolate) the best we have tasted, however when we walked in and asked for a table in a half empty room we were asked if we had a booking (fair enough) but when told no the maitre’ d went to a lot of trouble scanning the room to see if he had any tables. Finally he found something for us on the deck. I feel that as the place did not fill in the time we had our meal and we left at 3pm to make us feel uncomfortable as we had no booking was pretty pretentious. The rest of the staff I couldn’t fault but this person needs to have a think about himself, he didn’t know who we were and I have eaten in finer dining than this. We spent good money here and overall enjoyed the experience.

We visited various wineries around the area & we were highly recommended this restaurant by a friend who is a very good chef in Hamilton. We didn’t make it to the cellar door to try the wines which we will make a point of doing next time but we came in for dinner. We received very, very good service by all of the staff there (in particular a nice young girl with red hair – we didn’t see a name tag).
Our meals were served quickly & all well presented & tasted fantastic. We were offered drinks throughout our time there & were well looked after. I had the salmon & my partner had the steak – both were cooked to perfection. Desserts were also of the highest standard.
This place has obviously taken the previous reviews into consideration & the staff have become a well-oiled machine. We cannot fault anything, we thoroughly enjoyed our time there & will most certainly return in the near future.

I live not far from Elephant Winery. We had friends come from auckland for one of their birthdays. I suggest Elephant Winery as we hadn’t been there. The setting is beautiful. However the service is the mosty shocking I have ever received. We never had our wine glasses topped up (which is what is meant to happen in a top vineyard). I order a beautiful eye fillet steak which arrived at the time COLD. Yes I know you are to let steak rest. However, letting a steak rest and letting it go cold are two very different things. I will not go back to Elephant Winery and will not ever take any one there for a lunch or dinner. Drink, mybe, we’ll see. It costs so much to go out. Yet all we want is good food, good wine and good service. Not much to ask for considering the amount we are paying. Wake up Elephant Winery.

Elephant Hill should be a five star restaurant, but the poor service lets down the fantastic food and location. I have even held-off posting this review based on sending them an email outlining the issues we had, however they never replied.

All that said, the ravioli entree was magic and a real stand-out as was the salmon entree. The wine matching was also practiculaly good.

Won’t be back, in an area where there is no shortage of choice.

Jan 2013
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I received a reply to my email thanking me for our feedback and assuring us that they do strive to maintain high standards.

Will be keen to re-visit when back in the bay for a second chance.

While the setting is stunning and the food as you would expect, of a high standard, we left feeling very disappointed with the service. We had to request service all throughout the evening, whether it was to order drinks when we first arrived, ask for childrens menus, ask for glasses to be topped up with wine, order more wine, and then to top it all off, wait 45 minutes an hour before someone finally could be bothered to take our dessert orders. By then, half of our large party had had enough and just wanted to get out of there.

The winery restaurants in Hawke’s Bay certainly are the best in fine dining. Excellent service, fabulous food and great atmosphere. Elephant Hill and its neighbour Clearview Estate would be the best. A real treat and classy setting. Took special care to find a spacious table as MIL was in a wheel chair.

Wow.. Amongst all the many winery restaurants there are in Hawkes bay, I count this one the #1. We took our families from overseas for dinner on 27th Dec 2011. First impression: What a charming feel-relaxed superior interior design!! Second impression: they provide u a 5-STAR quality SERVICE, FOOD TASTE(9.5/10), WINES and beyond (we were served complimentary fresh small-portioned bread and a shot of heavenly-yummy pumpkin soup in an espresso cup). I tell my friends this is the BEST winery restaurant in the region and MUST to DINE here when visiting -otherwise you will miss out!!!

We had an absolutely delicious lunch here in early October 2011. The staff were great and very knowledgeable. The wine was beautiful and we particularly loved the viognier.
The peanut butter mousse dessert was to die for and was perfectly complemented with the Rania dessert wine.
Gorgeous food, gorgeous wine, gorgeous setting.
Well deserving of 5 stars.

Updated to add- we returned here just after Christmas 2011 for dinner with some overseas friends.
The food was just as gorgeous as we’d remembered and we enjoyed delicious wines and fabulous service once again.
We were the last table to leave but felt no pressure to go.Thank you for a wonderful evening.

I run a local wine tour company in Napier and regularly visit Elephant Hill with my clients either for, wine tastings or lunch. The staff at Elephant Hill will go out of their way to make you feel at home and relaxed. The restaurant leans towards contemporary European style cuisine with a very modern chic decor. I am a big fan of their eye fillet and the crab cakes when in season. The sunken lounge, restaurant and the terraces outside, take advantage of sweeping views out over the sea cliffs to Cape Kidnappers, very relaxing. The cellar door has a range of wines to suit most palates ranging from Sauvignon Blanc to Viognier and Pinot Noir to Merlot. The Merlot is a big hit with most people and is a very good example of an approachable drink now style of Hawkes Bay Merlot.