A friend and I dined here on a friday night. The service was good and friendly. Help full in negotiating the comprehensive menu. I have Italian friends and enjoy good Italian food having also travelled around Italy and enjoyed eating off the tourist traps.
The food here was define and certainly Italian. I had the Venison special and it was cooked to perfection. Top marks to the Chef(s).
I also walked past on Sunday lunch time and it was packed out with people waiting at the bar. This clearly shows that in a short space of time it has become appreciated for its quality, of service, the excellent food and the ambience.
Grazie MoV

Have had a great night out with a few friends. Times for means was so quick so good to not have to wait. my main just fall apart so tender and the potato was the best uve had. My pudding was amazing and so lovely to try new things. Our waiter was so friendly and helpful. Will deffently be coming back

Got a voucher deal for 2 for a 3 course set menu dinner. We booked early and only a handful of people there at that time but it took ages for someone to come over and offer a drinks menu. We then approached a waiter when we wanted to order. That was the only complaint though. The food was fantastic. Paced out well. The lamb shank yum…beef cheek was the best melt in your mouth. The place filled up quickly I can see why. Would definitely go back. A great night.

Happy with the meal. Delicious. Good portion. Service was ok too. The food came at the right time.
Great location with a nice view. Felt comfortable sitting there; not overly noisy even many people were there at that night.

Maybe the restaurant should consider upgrating the bathroom.

Alright food. Terrible service.
Dined here on 24th of Feb which was a Sunday night with a group of 7, some of whom were from overseas. Mentioned when I booked that we had a gluten free diner with us and was assured there were adjustments to menu items that could easily be made for her.
We were served by a waitress from Newcastle who seemed friendly, but as we found out, was a bit of an airhead.
We ordered the antipasto platter as part of our entree, which had components missing, they were replaced when we finally noticed. We were given 5 plates for our entrees when there was 7 diners, and when we passed them out they were dirty. Literally covered in filth and grease.
We asked for two bottles of water to be delivered to our table, almost 25 minutes and another request later, we received one bottle.
When our mains arrived, the gluten free pan-fried fish was on top of a pile of fettuccine… When we complained, we were told by our server that she must have forgotten to mention the gluten free info. That diner then had to wait another 10 minutes while they prepped her another meal, by which time all of us had (awkwardly) finished ours.
The meal was taken off our bill- which was never actually given to us, as our server seemed to think that having a 10 minute long conversation with another small table was more important. We eventually went to the bar to settle our bill and left feeling embarrassed that we had made our guests endure such service.
I have since contacted the management who have assured me that changes are being made to stop this from happening again- I can only hope they do.

Food was delicious, service was good. No complaints, food came really fast.

My wife and i and two friends dined here last Friday for a birthday. It took three attempts to reserve a table initially, once via MenuMania, and twice by phone. The restaurant itself is in a lovely setting in the Wynyard Quarter, lots going on and we were seated outside. We were served by Jim and his service all night was very good. He had good recommendations and was attentive. Emma also gave good recommendations for the dishes. There were two items ordered, a speciality beer and entree dish that were unavailable. Food was very good, delivered quickly, tasty and well cooked, but slightly on the smaller serving size. Overall a nice nite out with good service in a nice setting.

I took my partner here for his birthday using the $75 deal voucher. The food was very good, flavoursome and well prepared and the portion size was perfect. I don’t know I would have been as impressed if we were paying full price, but the prices aren’t steep for dining out – plenty of main course options between $20-25 and drinks are reasonable. The risotto balls, calamari, prawn and crayfish risotto and not-too-sweet chocolate tart were highlights for us.

We had a very friendly and efficient waiter, the food came regularly enough, and we had a lovely table facing the sea. The whole north wharf area is a beautiful location for a meal, though we were sorry we missed the sun (arriving at 6.30pm) and it got quite cold when the breeze picked up later on. The restaurant is fully open to the view – and the weather – so even in summer I’d suggest bringing a warm layer.

My partner and I dined here last Wednesday. We were seated immediately and service was very timely. We had the 5 course summer tasting menu and the food was tasty. We were almost too full to eat desert but the chocolate tart and tiramisu were delicious and irresistible. The view of the Auckland Harbour was the cherry on top.
We have recommended the restaurant to our friends and we will be back.

My friend and I went to Merchants of Venice for dinner on Sunday, 20 Jan 2013 and we used a deal voucher ($75 for a Five-Course Summer Tasting Menu for Two).

The location of the restaurant provided good views and the weather was lovely when we arrived. However, as we progressed throughout the meal, the temperatures dropped noticeably – it would have been a lot more comfortable if the restaurant had heaters around the area.

The first three dishes were selected by the restaurant:
(1) 2 pieces of crostini with sun-dried tomatoes, 2 with Gorgonzola, honey and walnuts
(2) an antipasti selection of cured meat with baked bread, a mix of olives, gherkins, semi dried tomatoes, deep fried risotto balls and calamari
(3) grilled calamari salad with rocket, olives, capsicum

We thought all three dishes were delicious; pity we didn’t like olives though! It would have been nice if we had been given a choice, but it was not a big deal.

My friend ordered prawn and crayfish risotto for his main and tiramisu for his dessert. They were both good, but nothing exceptional. However, we both agreed my “Bianca con Funghi” pizza (White base, mozzarella, mushrooms, free range pork & fennel sausage) and dark chocolate tart were awesomely delicious and definitely the highlights of the meal.

The staff were polite and friendly, but it took a while for the food to get to our table between courses. We didn’t mind as we were having a relaxing dinner, but it could be an issue for people in a rush.

The food was great value for money as we had used a voucher; the usual prices may be a little bit steep but they were very much in line with the prices of all the other restaurants on the Northern Wharf.

The location of this restaurant is excellent when strolling around the Wynyard Quarter. First impressions from the walk way is an attractive and airy place and that drew us to an empty table, not hard there were only about four tables occupied and we were waved to ‘take our pick’. After waiting nine minutes to be offered a menu or acknowledged by one of the three floor staff present we left. If one male member with cobweb hair cut clearing a table, one female polishing cutlery, one male bar staff member arranging glasses has priority over meeting, greeting and offering a menu then we will take the hint. Sorry, we were really looking forward to dining here after the previous reviews.

Three of us stopped for dinner at Merchants of Venice on a balmy Auckland evening. The waiter (Jim) was friendly, helpful and generally charming.
The menu was interesting and the food selected was enjoyed by all. One small criticism of Large Plate selection – would have been great to see a wider selection of Italian dishes. They do eat more than pasta and pizza in Venice!!
One member of the group ordered pizza and it was really excellent – toppings were tasty, base was thin and crunchy as described.
Wine list was adequate, and food and wine were appropriately priced.
A very pleasant evening, the staff (Jim and Niall) added to the over all satisfaction rating. Would strongly recommend MoV for people wanting relaxed, good value, tasty Italian food, served by professional friendly staff.

We were here on New Year’s Eve and the restaurant was packed. We hadn’t booked but they were able to take us on a set menu. Most of the choices were pasta or pizza which is difficult for me as I am gluten intolerant. The waiter (can’t remember his name but he was superb) who served us arrange for something special for me and seemed unfazed and happy to do so.
The meal was slow to come but they kept us informed and we weren’t in a hurry. The waiter was attentive with drinks and as the food was slow gave us a free round. Then after our meal which was delicious he gave us a free shot.
We were very impressed at all aspects of the night and in particular the way they handled the wait for our food which given the circumstances of large groups and the number was to be expected. Congratulations to the owner for hiring great staff and/ or training them.

Popped in for dinner on a Sunday night. Was fairly empty but we were well looked after. The kids demolished their Pasta and said it was “amazing”. The adults had some pizzas which were the best I have had in NZ. Would go back in a flash – pizzas are fantastic!

I gotta say, the whole experience was just quietly brilliant. Arancini balls (4 for $9) were the fave dish of the night by both adults and preschooler. SOOO delish.

Pizza was lovely. Thin, crunchy, flavoursome.
My rocket salad with parmesan was fresh and tasty.

Our waiter, who had an awesome Irish accent was warm and listened thoughtfully to our specific requests. He also immediately produced some fabulous drawing crayons & colouring-in pics (on the back of the Kids Menu) when we arrived. He also gave her a parting gift of marshmallows in an espresso container – awesome!)

Only shortcoming of the night was that they forgot my rocket salad till we asked about it… but it was swiftly and freshly produced within 3 minutes of reminding them.

Craft beer dominated the beer list, of which the Moa was the hit pick. Yum with those Arancini flavours.

The location was tremendous. We sat wharf-side, inside the transparent wind-shelter… so great views.

By the way, the unisex toilets were a plus, as it meant ‘Daddy’ could take daughter to the toilet without any problem while I paid – nice for a change for me!

We went to MoV because we bought a 7 course degustation voucher. Thought we’d give a try with a couple of friends.

Our wait “slave” Craig was brilliant! Attentative and helpful.

We had beautiful food , just the right sized portions that came out at just the right pace. Each course was tasty, moist and flavorful.

A very enjoyable evening shared with a couple of friends, trying out a restaurant we never would have chosen otherwise. We loved it and will Return again. They did an excellent job showcasing their food.

I haven’t been very interested in dining in Wynyard Quarter as it always seemed wind blown and uninteresting, but this restaurant was just great and worth braving the elements.!

I won’t return to that place again!!!! The time took to serve 7 course spring degustation last night was ridiculous. First 4 courses took 2 hours, which was almost half an hour between each one, and the last 3 came within 30 mins. We’ve had a lot experience of degustation menu around Auckland, and we are fairly well educated as to what is a good example of a degustation. And how much time to serve everything even when the restaurant was full. The dishes were tiny. And the portion of spaghetti they served were random, we found that the plate my friend got was only 2/3 of my portion when we both had degustation menu. After spending 2.3 hours in the restaurant we were still hungry when we left. Not to mention the food was barely average, pork belly was dry and lack of taste, fried calamari was soaked in oil and still dripping oil when picked up by forks, and pannacotta hasn’t got creamy flavour. And same green salad served in 3 or 4 different dishes. Service wasn’t attentive, with rudeness and disinterest, and also SLOW.

Went here for lunch for the second time. Food again average, and overpriced at $27 for a plate of gnocchi with gorgonzola sauce. Menu was two pages smaller than 6 months ago, when friends raved about the wild mushroom risotto and polenta with wild hare ragu (both no longer available for lunch, unless as a special). Not surprised that restaurant was empty, though service was friendly and attentive.

Used a Groupy deal for the 7 course Spring degustation last night, and had a lovely evening. Being a Tuesday night, the place was fairly empty, however the waitress was attentive but not overbearing, the food came out with good timing between courses and the food and wine selection were both very tasty. My only criticism, would be that they used this sweet sauce on three of the dishes, in various ways (one was spicier), and it’s maple-like taste did make is a little bit sickly after a while, especially with red meat which would have done better in a red wine or mushroom type sauce. However, overall the food was tasty, and I thought the portions were large for a degustation, unlike some of the comments below (I don’t believe they understood the difference between degustation and standard courses). The pate and the pasta were my favorites – delicious!

My partner and I have eaten here twice and both times were amazing. The first time we went in during a lunch time when they usually only serve pizza, we mentioned that we were hoping for pasta, and the host quickly checked with the chef who was more than happy to make pasta for us. The homemade bread was a great start to the meal, I had the gorgonzola walnut gnocchi and it was FANTASTIC. The second time we went, our starter came out immediately. The special was beef cheek stuffed ravioli (my partner had it and was AMAZING). I’m not the type to order the same thing twice, but I had the gnocchi again because it was so delicious the first time. The mains took a little longer to get to us which we didn’t mind, but because of that they gave us a free tiramisu which was absolutely decadent. We’ll be going back MANY times.

I’d like to start by saying how shocked I am to see negative reviews about this restaurant, particularly about the degustation menus!

I have been to MoV twice, both through vouchers for a 5 course and 7 course degustation, respectively. Both times I have been treated to brilliant service and divine food despite the restaurant being extremely busy. I can safely say that any ‘small’ portions are solely due to the nature of a degustation menu, and that I would like to see anyone finish a 7 course meal with full-sized servings of the amazing food that I have eaten there.

The attention to detail by wait staff is amazing, and plates are cleared as soon as the table has finished eating. Our waiter, Niall, was truly fantastic when I was there most recently on Friday night. My family and I went for the 7 course degustation for my father’s birthday and we spent the night laughing and joking with Niall. He was a pleasure to have as a waiter and by the end of the night his cheeky sense of humour had left us wanting to take him home with us!

Any ‘issues’ surrounding the time it takes to serve such a menu are, in my mind, rubbish. With such a huge amount of food it is necessary for each course to take a while to come out, and in fact my family and I asked for a course to take longer than usual as we were feeling so full. The atmosphere and style of dining that you get with a degustation menu feels very authentic, and is a lovely social experience.

Merchant of Venice is by far one of my favourite restaurants in Wynard Quarter, and I will definitely be bringing my friends and family back for the great food, and excellent service.

I had read the reviews, there were good and bad ones, but went ahead and purchased a voucher deal. I was travelling up to Auckland and wanted to take a friend out to a nice place for dinner, he also knows his fine dinning and hoped this place worked out. Sent an email to the resturaunt booking a table. had a call shortly after, letting me know the time I was booked in for, a very pleasent person to talk to
Arrived on a windy night, the restaurant had a cosy feel to it and was nice and warm. We had booked in for the 7 course degustation, the first course took a good 25 minutes after being seated. I did start to wonder if we would be there for hours getting through the courses, next courses starting coming through in a nice flow. Every thing we had was devine, just yummy, the 6th course I struggled to get through, makes me wonder why there is a comment in here that states. I was still hungry after the degustaion and brought Mc d’s on the way home, (must be big eaters). I enjoyed the evening, the staff were very pleasant and would go back again. Thank you for a lovely meal

Me and three of my friends went to Merchants of Venice on a Monday night. We ordered and bottle of Hinton Hill Pinor Noir and I liked it. Recommended. The food arrived just soon after we finished our entree (try the Arancini). All our mains were pasta. Absolutely try the Gnocchi. The Gorgonzola cheese sauce in it was heaven.

Only negative thing I found was that there was only one waiter on the floor (maybe because it was Monday) and he was just running around. However he was very friendly. Maybe management should take note and put one more considering the price of food.

However overall it was a good experience. 4 stars.

We decided to come back to MOV because previous times we felt most welcome where we were greeted by name by our favourite waitress “the Queenslander” is the nickname my wife and I gave her, she is definitely the best by far! We were always encouraged to try new items and was always given exceptional service. This time around was quite the opposite to what we had previously encounted at MOV. We entered the restaurant of chaos so it seemed but not unusual for a Sunday lunch. We sat ourselves inside and waited quite sometime before a waitress noticed us, when she came to our table, there was no greeting or smile and slammed our menus on the table and walked away, we weren’t told about daily specials or recommendations. When she came back she asked for our order, we were stunned and shocked with her rudeness that we asked if our favourite waitress was working and if she could serve us? She abruptly told us she no longer worked there (which is a absolute shame) and repeated the question again, we asked her for some recommendations and her reply was “I don’t know what you feel like”, I thought was quite rude, my wife and I went with some salads which are new to the lunch menu and are amazing! The food is always amazing and the service previous to Sunday was fantastic but sadly have to say that I definitely won’t be returning if we faced with the waitress from Sunday. I really think management needs to rethink their current team because the experience was appalling.

We decided to come here for our office lunch on a week day. Having read all the reviews we almost gave up to go somewhere else. However, we decided to follow it through and give it a chance and we’re glad we did.
We ordered pretty much all the appetizers, the soft shell crab and beef carpaccio was amazing. All the mains we ordered were just the right proportion, fresh, and tasty. Highly recommend the calamari, mushroom risotto and snapper. To finish off, we all had different desserts, the chocolate tart and the semifreddo was the best out of the bunch.
We feel they have listened And taken on board the criticism, and have really improved on their services. The waiters were attentive, and knowledgeable and extremely friendly.
Overall, we would definitely go back again with the experience we’ve had, and would suggest others not to simply dismiss it for the bad comments it has had

Do not dine at this restaurant if you have somewhere to be later in the day!! We sat down at 1pm we waited for 23min for someone to come and take our order. I had to get up and go find someone. The restaurant was less than half full. Service was bad, unfriendly faces and condescending tones. Was not warm, friendly and inviting as you would expect when you sit down with your family prepared to spend up and enjoy yourself. The food eventually came out 1 hour after being seated, along with our glasses of water that you usually receive when you first arrive. The meals were nothing special. The pizza was ok, the gnocchi was average but a far from a satisfying meal. The kids spaghetti bolgnaise meal had barely a tablespoon of mince, basically just a plate of spaghetti. Extremely disappointing especially when the manager debated the time issue. After an argument they took the drinks off the bill. This was no consolation for the neglectful service and well below average meals. I Would not return and would absolutely not recommend anyone to dine at this restaurant.

Having read recent reviews for this restaurant we were not sure what to expect. We had the 6 course degustation menu (deal voucher). The restaurant was fairly full with a welcoming ambiance and nice lighting.We found the food delicious – each course was varied and beautifully cooked and presented. The service was excellent with no prolonged wait at any stage and we did not feel rushed either. Having just returned from Italy we found the food very authentic and true to its origins. We would certainly not hesitate to go back and are keen to try the a la carte menu. Definitely recommended.

I recently went here to try the 6 course degustation menu on a Sunday night. The meal was average at best and was full of ups and downs. It started off well with a nice cocktail and was followed by an average seafood first course (the prawns were over salted, but other things on the plate were ok). I really enjoyed the next pasta course, which while it was quite quite plain (olive oil, black pepper and Parmesan), was made with good quality ingredients and reminded me of how pasta was like in Italy. The fish course was average in taste and a little on the small side. The venison was disappointing. It tasted OK, but looked terrible on the plate and was literally a spoon full of sauce with a couple of 1 cm cubes meat. Dessert was a chocolate souffle which again was average, but without it I would have left there super hungry. Nice staff, nice location, but because I thought the food was extremely over priced for what I got, I will not be back.

By far the most disappointing restaurant experience I’ve ever had. Tried the 6 course degustation. When the 1st dish came out we were happy and it was quite nice and were looking forward to what else we were served up. However, from that point on the dinner was terrible. The taste of the remaining 5 courses was average, but it was the absolutely pathetic size or the dishes that literally made us LOL. Having tried several degustation around Auckland we are fairly well educated as to what is a good example of a degustation. This was not. The dishes were the size of canapes. That’s it. 5 canapes and 1 cocktail for dinner!!!! wtf!!! I don’t think so. And all for $320 for 4 people!!!! We were sooooo hungry when we left, the next stop was Wendys for a burger. Unreal. Avoid this place at all cost!!!! 1/10

Well a few weeks ago we went to the Merchants of Venice to celebrate my husbands 50th Birthday.
We were sat quickly and served . We had bought a grab a deal Degustation Meal, which was fantastic small plates of food with delightful dishes that looked fab and tasted so nice, from the cocktail to the desert the meal was very very good, the best pasta I have ever tasted, everything was great and the desert was out of this world.
the staff were very friendly and helpful ten out of ten, we will be back soon. many thanks !

A large group of us dined here on Thursday night – it was a voucher deal so we were not expecting miracles but were very disappointed. It was a 6 course degustation dinner but the meals took forever to arrive. We waited an hour and a half for the first food – 2 prawns and 2 baby mussels. The portion sizes were tiny – my husband’s fish was smaller than 1 fish finger. The food was okay – nothing to write home about. The service was friendly enough but the waiting was ridiculous. We didn’t get out of there until 11pm, from a 7pm start, and could have stopped at Mc’Ds on the way home – if it wasn’t so late! Would definitely never go back.

Went last night with a group of 5, we had a deal voucher for the degusation menu. Overall, service was terrible! Waited at least half an hour for the wine menu and at least half an hour between courses. By the time the main courses arrived we were almost falling asleep.

The place was impossible to find the entrance and we ended up sitting by the door which didn’t close properly. I had to get up over 7 times during the evening to shut it and eventually ended up locking the door because it was so annoying.

Despite this, the food was excellent but they really need to lift their game with the service.

9 of us all had really yummy food last Friday and great service. Polenta was rated as the best ever tasted, and gnochettis done with either boar, hare or lamb were also a hit. Pizzas and gnocchi were great too

A group of friends and I had lunch here on Saturday afternoon and though it was nearly full on the patio, we were lucky enough to get a table with a view right underneath a heater.
I recommend you try the Pizza’s, they have a woodfired oven and do the thin bases just like those you get in Rome. One of my friends pasta’s gave me food envy with pretty edible flowers and she said it was ‘soooo good!’. Our waitress was really friendly and knew her stuff and though they were busy our food and drinks arrived quickly. What a great spot for lunch, a stunning view of the ocean and even with a cool breeze blowing the patio was sheltered and the heaters kept us warm, thanks MoV we loved it and will be back again soon!

After a little apprehension given the varying reviews we had read of Merchants of Venice my wife and I decided to book a table and try it for ourselves as it is one of the few we haven’t tried along the new wharf.
With the rain coming down we were glad it was one of the closest restaurants to the car park, and when we arrived we were warmly greeted and had our soaked coats taken by the maitre d who then took us to our table and through the menu.
The menu is certainly substantial with plenty of tempting options but we opted to follow our waiters recommendation and go with the burrata as a shared entree, wow! the creamy, gooey centre of that cheese was just amazing and worked so well with the ham and tomato we devoured it!
For our mains I had the beef cheek special, I have had this type of dish several times and was not disappointed by the chefs interpretation at Merchants of Venice, indeed it was probably the best version I have ever had, beautifully tender and the gnocchi was so soft and fluffy, a perfect accompaniment to the cheek and jus.
My wife had the Polenta with a lamb ragout which she said was devine, the polenta was described as ‘wet’ on the menu which is great for us because we like t almost running off the plate! it’s a simple style they serve but perfectly seasoned which sets off the ragout nicely. I can’t recall the names of the wines we were recommended but they were both Italian and though they were varieties I probably wouldn’t normally try, they worked very well with our meals and as they say, when in Rome…
We have now tried most of the restaurants on North Wharf and would say that the food and service at Merchants is considerably better than the other places along this new strip and we will certainly be back again soon.
As for some of the other reviews on this restaurant, well if you like good Italian food and have an idea of how it should taste I would suggest you do what weMore did and just go and try it for yourself it was up there with the best I’ve had and I think many people will be happy if they discover this little gem on North Wharf, Salute Merchants!

Went in for dinner on a quiet Monday night and we were one of three couples in the entire place. Despite this, the service was so slow that I was close to walking out. I ordered the gnocchi with gorgonzola and walnuts which was mushy and gluggy and tasted like a glorified mac n cheese. My partner ordered the lamb with proscuitto which was overcooked and dry. The only nice thing we had was the Peroni on tap which thankfully made the meals go down easier. For the price you pay for the meals ($95.50 total for two meals, side salad and jug of beer) we expected much better than what we received. At places like this, you should be paying such prices for the service just as much as the food and unfortunately, both were lacking. With so many beautiful food places right next door, MoV need to up their game.

Went for coffee and dessert..

Service was unbelievably SLOW..

When or order arrived the coffee was burnt and needed 3-4sugars to even try and make it drinkable. An this was the second coffee after sending the first back.

The dessert was average and nothing that special.

The waiter was very apologetic and this made up for the experience in part.

I am very confused as to how this restaurant scored 4 stars… I went with a group of friends for dinner on the long weekend just gone and was extremely disappointed. The food that was served looked and tasted awful. I ordered a seafood pizza and it looked as if the kitchen had run out of ingredients- definitely not worth the $26. I would not recommend anyone waste their time and money here- there are plenty of other great restaurants in the CBD!

Service was brilliant
Made booking on line and MoV followed up with call.
Menu was more than adequate and waiter made offer to embellish meals as required.
Ambiance was perfect although we were a little cold upon arrival and warmed up during the meal.
Waiters and Staff exceed expectations. We will come again

I was with a party of four that thought this menu looked great for brunch last Sat after flying up from Wellington for a weekend of shows in Auckland. The service was terrible! We were seated at 10:45 ordered our juices then as they arrived ordered our meals – all before 11:00. By 11:30 we were wondering just how long it took to cook four breakfasts and asked how long – we were told we were next – the meals arrived at 11:45! In between other than my asking the question of how long did we get any other attention. Shortly after the meals arrived I was asked did we want anything else and I said yes four juices on the house for having waiting so long – she looked surprised when I explained but they did arrive and thank you were on the house. When I went to pay (and the bill had one to many mains on it) I asked what had happened with our order and basically got told they put it in and then it was up to the kitchen front of house has no view of the kitchens sequencing – no apology. While the menu looks great until they can sort out the service I won’t be back. I simple apology would have worked and I won’t be writing this review.

First problem they ran out of the wine we ordered, secondly the beans were recommended to have with the lamb at an extra cost yet they were included with the salmon at no extra cost. The beans were ordered but forgotten and when reminded were delivered when the meal was nearly finished with no apology for forgetting them. We asked for salt and pepper and had to remind them again for the pepper. We asked for another wine glass and ended up after 5 minutes helping ourselves from another table. Unfortunately a car alarm right next to our table went on for over an hour and they said they were trying to sort it and didn’t as the owner finally turned up after we paid our bill. The maitre’D never came near us and when we went to pay the bill an arrogant waitress was more interested in advising us of the philisophies of life than apologising and/or sympathising with the service and unfortunate experience we suffered with the car alarm. The waitresses attitudes both serving at the table and at the till leave a lot to be desired – their rudeness and disinterest should be addressed!

Love this place!

My dad and I thought we would try something new, we ended up sitting at the bar for about 6 hours, as we didn’t want to leave!
The food was exquisite, I had the most perfect piece of fish I had probably ever had from a restaurant, I’m in the hospitality business so that’s saying a lot.
The staff are awesome, very friendly, and accommodating.
Can’t wait to go back.

First of all thanks for making our meal fantastic.

Ate there on Saturday night, was very busy which was really nice to see, the ambiance was just what we were looking for.

But then the food, wow that was delicious, Our table ordered for entre, suppli romana, the calamari ripieni and the mozzerrella burrata, ine was the Suppli, and I have never eaten theses yummy treat since I was in Rome(well I have been in places who think they have suppli but got it wrong), they were just like in Rome, and nicely presented, my friend is big fan of calamari and she loved her entree, I pincked a piece coz it looked yummy too, even the mozzerella looked lovely, and friend was showing a smile.

I ordered the Risotto all wild mushroom, and mmmmm, the truffle was delicious, my friedns ordered, the Hare papperdelle, and Gnochetti alla crecia, and I tried all there were so tasty and full of flavour. We had a beautiful dessert, the profitteroles were the best, and the marsala wine made them just right, My friend wanted another casatta, but was too full.

The food was really good size, and I definately be going back next time I eat out, I have finally found myself a restaurant i can go to that is authentic Italian.

Thanks Chef that was an awesome meal, and thanks to rest of MoVs for making our girl’s night out the best.

Been here the second time, they changed menu recently. The food was excellent executed my first time here, this time were superb.
A wonderful selection which took a long time to deliberate over as pretty much everything appealed to me. My final choice was Petti di pollo Napoli, and the Cassata Siciliana for dessert. I was in gastronomic heaven. Few course including our choice are the chef signature dish. To me a modern Italian cuisine more then a traditional. Thanks for that!!
We where one of the first table to arrive just after 6pm. Our early booking was a blessing as the restaurant was packed and getting quite stuffy and noisy by 7:30.
The staff were pleasant, attentive and unobtrusive. The food presentation was excellent. But nothing can surpass the quality and taste of the food itself. Top marks to the chef and kitchen staff!

After 3 days of eating at fabulous places around Auckland this was a big disappointment. Slow, 20 minutes to get a coffee and over an hour for breakfast. When I asked for our food I was told it was always going to be 3/4 hr, waiter certainly didn’t tell us that when we arrived. Comedy of errors with coffee when it did arrive, incorrect order then delivered twice. Food clearly had been forgotten and was rushed through – toasted ciabatta was in fact cold untoasted sliced white loaf – nondescript origin. Pork and fennel sausage tasted more like a sizzler from a packet and overcooked. Meal was offered free of charge, I wouldn’t of paid for it anyway.

We are a group of Italians who returned to Auckland after a few years. couple weeks ago we discovered Merchants of Vernice, Italian food as his best. We have been here a few times already, the funny thing is that I just discovered that the chef of merchants of Vernice was the chef from our favorite Italian restaurant that closed Few Years Ago, and like us he returned in Auckland recently.

Fantastico

We had dinner last Tuesday at Merchants of Venice; we had the semolina roman gnocchi, the eye fillet with wild mushrooms and truffle, Both DIVINE, also as entree with the Rotolo of pasta and perfectly cooked prawns, zucchini and saffron risotto. To us Merchants of Venice was a truly modern Italian food experience

The service was awesome. We had a lovely waitress who took the time to explain to us the menu. However, we did not enjoy all the dishes. My sons risotto tasted of chlorine! I did make mention of this but left soon after. The steak dish was cooked to perfection and was the highlight of the 8 different dishes we all had. MOV is not a restaurant we would visit again. A disappointment considering the wonderful reviews on here but food lacking in taste and not moderately priced for portion sizes.

Definitely wouldn’t recommend for large groups due to the unbelievably slow service – went as part of a group of 23 and we only had one waiter attending to us (despite the fact that there was virtually no-one else in there) so obviously it took ages for him just to take our order! We eventually received our mains about 90 minutes after arriving (we didn’t have a starter).

The food itself was pleasant and of good quality, and the menu was certainly extensive, but most people in the group were disappointed by the small portion sizes. My dessert was actually larger than my main!

This is one of the best Italian food I have eaten lately. We had pizza, calamari, mozzarella, antipasto.. It was all excellent and of great quality. I particularly loved the bruschette with capisicum and the calamari on rocket salad.. Food presentation was pleasing to the eye, and the taste of everything was great. The quality of the ingredients used is clearly very high.

The coffee was also excellent and all was rightly priced.

I will recommend to friends I will certainly be back.

This restaurant is a smash, we were greeted with warm and friendly staff members, we were seated over looking the harbour views which was superior. the menu was easy to read and has such a huge variety. We had the Bianca Pizza which was divine, good size portions for one or two people, the kids menu was simple with a few ranges that they could choose from, Home made pasta went down as a treat leaving our son wanting more, i must say our son is a fussy eater. This place has alot to offer from water to top of the range wine, we also had a cup of tea just to top this experience off and it was delicious. i rate this place very high in my books and we will definitely visit it again…..

I enjoyed the atmosphere, real friendly staff, excellent food, the wood fire pizzas are delicious and the home made pasta was a smash with our son. The seating arrangements were excellent and the view was brilliant…..couldn’t be better….HIGHLY RECOMMEND…..The music was great with abit of modern and classic sounds.

Great spot that could only be backed up by good service and really nice food. Gorgeous Saltimbocco with a fabulously tasty Roman Gnocchi….oh my goodness. We were warned that meals take 20minutres….I like that…so ordered the bread and dips all made on the premises. Probably the only wee gripe was that the bread was a wee bit stodgy..oh no. I do love great service and it didn’t disappoint…I’m still dreaming of Roman Gnocchi with sage butter.

The service was friendly and the food was great. They make their own pasta, which is good to see, and the steak dishes were cooked beautifully. There’s a great selection on the menu with some really interesting dishes. The food is good value.

On the down side the chairs are too low for the tables and the meals were slow to arrive. We would have stayed for desert and coffee but we expected another long wait so we paid up and left.

I’m likely to go back but next time I will order bread and dips to start.

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I have been back to this restaurant since writing the above and the food was just as good as the first time plus the service was excellent.

Friendly Staff, good food.
Nice to see a good Italian Restaurant in the city, and fantastic views with a great atmosphere.
Hope they keep it up for the tourists that a around, as well as us Aucklanders.

Wow!! The food was absouletly amazing, only went for lunch and had the most divine gnocchi in gorgonzola and Walnuts, had a beautiful memory of Italy my friend is vegetarian, and said he was really impressed with the spinach and ricotta dish, can’t remember what it was called. Beautifully presented. I saw pizza go to one table, and wow just like they do in italy. I think I found my new dining spot, will be back next week for sure. Thank you for such beautiful food.

Had a great lunch yesterday in the sun, great staff, lovely food – I had the Mozerella salad – the mozerella was the best I had ever tasted.

And a lovely Rose – the place was full and buzzing. I will be back with friends for sure.

The staff were busy but that did not stop them from making sure we had the best experience

So glad we have some new fresh restaurants in AKL.

For a place that’s only been open since Friday I’d say they are doing a fantastic job. Doesn’t appear to have any of the glitches the other restaurants in the wharf had on opening. Staff were friendly and professional. Service was excellent. We had a sharing antipasti platter which was more than enough for 2 and perfect for lunch. The menu is vast and I could see from other tables that portions were big. The table next to us had cocktails which looked lovely but we stuck to the plum and peppermint teas.
Definitely recommend it here – a restaurant that stands out from the crowd.

We had a table of four last night, I would say you wouldn’t believe that it was their first night, they tried so hard. A very good first night.
We look forward to seeing the full menu once all the settling in process is sorted.

We thought everyone else was having a good time.

Tony

We had a most enjoyable evening at Merchants of Venice. Apparently it was their first night, so we expected that there could be challenges. We got a surprise with most attentive wait people and noting their full menu was not yet available, that their blackboard menu was very satisfying.
The music complemented the occasion and our time there went by most enjoyably.

Opening night wasn’t perhaps the best time to have a booking, but the restaurant promised a lot, looking at their menu and the location. It underdelivered.

Food was at best bland, at worst terrible. There’s a major problem with the new pipes tainting the water supply too, but that’ll iron out over time. Unfortunately too late for the vegetables and tap water in the meantime. Stick to the grill.

Service was attentive, and polite, but slow.