We came down from Auckland for the weekend and decided to try Harbourside on Saturday evening. It was fantastic! It was a pity it wasn’t summer as it is in a beautiful setting right by the water. Nevertheless, we had great mains, delicious desserts and very, very good service from our waitress. The restaurant was busy but the time between courses was perfect. The atmosphere was relaxed but professional. We will definitely visit again.

Absolutely delicious. Amazing knowledgeable waitress, incredible service.

Duck cooked to perfection, thai fish cakes were very tasty.

Meal enjoyed by all guests.

Could not fault!

Great setting. Had three entrees, two mains and two desserts between two of us. The food was average all around. I was told the burger comes medium rare i asked for i medium and got tiny patty well done. Came for duck spring rolls but they were sold out at seven pm so bad start. Good service but wouldnt go bak for the price.

Over priced and not to a high standard that it used to be wont be going again

Really unhappy. Went for Christmas dinner waited forty minutes for soup that was inedible and cold. Then the entree came which was equally as terrible. I don’t write reviews but for a restaurant that charges $120 per head less than acceptable is an understatement. On complaining the manager looked arrogant and handed our deposit back rudely and abruptly. Christmas day ruined. Never again

Dined here with my husband mid-week. It was our second visit as we don’t live in the area. Our first visit was three years ago & was very enjoyable so we were keen to return. The location & setting is lovely. We found the staff to be friendly, professional & attentive, however the food did not quite hit the 5 star mark that we had been looking forward to. We shared duck spring rolls to start, which we both agreed were exorbitantly priced at $22 for 3 small rolls. I was disappointed to find a bone in mine. As others have commented, mains don’t come with any form of vege. Hubby’s fish was dry & overcooked and he didn’t enjoy. My main of chicken on risotto was lovely. Desserts were also very nice. Overall a nice restaurant but perhaps not quite worth the hefty prices.

Thank you Harbourside! I celebrated my birthday with lunch and 20 friends at your place recently. Peter was very easy to deal with and made helpful suggestions at the planning stage. On the day everything was executed with unobtrusive yet friendly professionalism. All the meals looked great. Harbourside organised and iced the birthday cake which was delicious. Friends loved the menu being divided into small, bit bigger and mains. After 2 years in Auckland, it was lovely to return to the special place that is Harbourside.

I went with friends last night, it was the best meal I have ever had – ever. The food was simply amazing with both taste and presentation being top notch.

The truffle ravioli starter was mouth watering, the Savannah fillet was even better and finally the licorice brulee was the perfect ending to a wonderful meal.

I will definitely be going back!

Great spot right on/over the water!
We went on a Friday night and it was very busy which is good to see. The wait staff were great.

Entree’s are a little pricey for what they are, and the mains need veges! I had the venison and it said it had brocollini – there was only one single bit! The only green veg on the sides options was peas : (

The duck was really good, you get half a duck so its a big serving.
LOVE the menu printed on newspaper, great match for the batch/crib feel of the place.

If the entrees were slightly cheaper and the mains came with veges I wouldve given 5 stars,
but it was a lovely meal with great staff and we will go back next time we are in Tauranga – probably for lunch so we can see the great view.

Food was superb but a real lack of fresh veges disappointed .
Unless you order extra veges there really are none ! I had venison with kumera & brocolini. Venison & kumera were yummy but the brocolini was one very slender lonely strand. Considering the prices a decent helping of fresh greens should be provided.
If you wanted to order greens the only choice was peas { presumably frozen} with bacon and that didn’t appeal at an extra $8 or so.!! Where’s the fresh brocoli etc ?? It’s in season & cheap !
Wife had steak with wilted creamed spinach & that would have been lucky to have been one leaf it was so insignificant. Again the meat was beautiful but we went home feeling totally under vegged !
A meal should come as a meal without having to add essentials such as veges without a big extra cost.

Would go elsewhere for that reason.

Table of four on a Saturday afternoon (not very busy)
Table service was attentive and lovely, food was slow – luckily we were in no hurry but I hope that if we had said we we were rushed, the chefs would have pulled finger.
Entrees were good apart from the prawn cocktail which was overpriced for what was delivered.
Mains satisfied (and more!).
No sweet tooths so no desserts ordered.
Wine list adequate, beer drinkers were well catered for.
LOVED the newsprint menu.
All in all a good dining experience. For $24, it should be a crayfish cocktail. As a prawn cocktail it is a disappointment.

A great lunch spot on a nice day if sitting on the balcony. I eat here often and the food is consistently good as well as the service. In my view the best place for lunch in tauranga central.

I hadn’t been to Harbourside for a couple of years due to a previous disappointing experience. The place is a shadow of what it was when the previous owners had it, when I probably dined there once a fortnight. The menu is very limited and overpriced. I took a group of 15 for lunch and we arrived at 12.30 and got our meals at 1.45pm. At least two things on the already limited menu were not available. The chicken in the chicken thigh stack was singed. Five of us had this and the chicken was so overcooked (burnt actually) that it was difficult to find an edible bit as it was so hard. They have the best location in town and should be the best restaurant but, sadly, no. I will never go back.

We had heard that Harbourside had upped its game since the last time we went so we were looking forward to seeing if this was the case, and I’m pleased to report it seems to be so.
The staff were friendly and knowledgeable with regards to food and wine pairing. Our orders were taken quickly and arrived in good time.
The food was great- the crab cakes were divine as were the oysters.
My husbands steak was cooked to perfection and the flavours of the mains were well balanced and delicious. The presentation was to a high standard.
The dessert was delicious however my only criticism would be that the sour cherries described in the menu were merely canned cherries- and seeing as cherries aren’t in season I can forgive this!
Thanks Harbourside for restoring our faith that there is a decent restaurant here!

I have been eating at the habourside on occasions for years. It is housed in a great spot, on stilts over the water in Tauranga. The ambiance can be very nice on the right evening, however sometimes when there are big groups in can be a bit loud. Overall the food is enjoyable and service is pretty good.

Yet another superb meal at Harbourside – the only place to eat in Tauranga.

Fantastic food, fine wines, excellent service and beautiful harbour views.

We were disappointed with our mains. The size of the Angus steak looked much smaller than was stated in the menu. The side salad we ordered was did not have the ingredients that was stated in the menu, which was disappointing. The desserts were overpriced to say the least, 3 scoops of ice cream for $14. We did not feel we got value for money at all, we would not go back again.

Went recently for family birthday, had a lovely meal and excellent service. I arrived early to set up a cake, the staff were very helpful with this. All our meals were beautifully presented & perfectly cooked. The service was wonderful, giving good understanding of the menu & dishes, attentive without being over the top. Definitely recommend.

went here for dinner a few months ago and was pleasantly surprised at the service and quality of the food. Good to find a good restaurant with quality service. The meals were tasty and price was affordable.
Will be coming back.

WOW….the food was amazing and the prices too.
Nice atmosphere, service was quick and friendly.
We had the fish of the day, which was snapper and flander. Both were amazing, the wine was very well priced.
The scenery with the lights from The Strand added more mood to the over all feel of the night.
Would recommend Harbourside to anyone and everyone. Will def be going back there again.

We haven’t been here for years but boy as a wedding anniversary meal venue this was a real treat.
Our two mains were absolutely fantastic
Rosco

We dined at the Harbourside Brasserie on Sun 20 Sept 2009. First up our drinks order was incorrect, then we never received our order for bread at all. The scallops entree was average in quality, as was the chicken, prawns, and avocado salad. Our mains were the chinese style roast duck and the belly pork, both of which were very average. When it came to desert we ordered the tiramisu, only to be given the cholcolate pudding in error. Based on some of the earlier favourable reviews, something has clearly changed. Based on our personal experience, we would describe this restaurant as average, bordering upon pretentious, and very over-priced in terms of the quality of what was actually presented.

We are from auckland and use to nice meals, so was very surprised to see a great menu and food with flair in Tauranga.We had an entree of seafood which was absolutly wonderfull.
And dessert with french chocolate and deepfried icecream.beautifull place.thanks

I think the other reviews have been a bit harsh. Harbourside is a good restaurant and we eat there most weeks. There were some teething problems initially with new management but these have largely been resolved. The food is well presented and reliable. The setting is unbeatable (over the water)- make sure to get a veranda table. Service can be a little slow but is fine if you plan for a nice leisurely meal.

We took friends from UK to eat here based on past experience. We arrived at 8.30 p.m. We always have mussels for entrees but mussels were “off” (none available but on the menue) Mains were very average ( badly cooked lamb shanks and fish) and again an old favourite,which I hd told friends about, deep fried icecream, was not available. All very embarrassing. We found out later that it was under new management. Won’t be returning.

I cannot speak for the food because I left the restaurant before I had eaten anything.
I ordered 5 different wines from their wine list……….. none of which it turned out they had…………. They did try and pass me off [rudely and quite forcibly] with two wines I had not ordered. By this time I had had enough with them and left having not eaten……….. I was met in the car park by the Receptionist who was taking my registration number and saying I owed them money and that she was going to report me to the police! I had only drunk a glass of tap water.
I went to another restaurant and had a nice meal, the head waiter there said when she had eaten at the Harbourside she also had problems with the wine list.