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7 hours ago
Was a bit miffed by the situation we incurred. My partner rang earlier in the day to make a booking as the voucher instructed us to do, but was told on the phone that it was not busy and we would not need to book. Then we turned up and got told by our waitress that we couldn’t dine with vouchers as we did not have a booking! After telling the waitress that we had tried to book, she went off to ask and came back saying “we will allow you to dine today as we are not busy” which started the night off a bit sour, was not the best response seeing as how the error was on their part…. But the service the rest of the night was good. Had the ribs and the black cherry chicken with the kumara mash which were both delicious, but the steak was just average. I would come back for the food, but I would definitely book no matter what they said…
2 days ago
Pity more havent written reviews for this place. A lovely little pub (once you find it – go up Durham st west from Queen turn to right just before end of lane a Wilsons carpark on one side and a Tournament opp).
Staff very friendly and attentive. Food was great. Very tasty and FINALLY a Chef who can cook spare ribs 
Tender and grilled with just the right amount of sauce. Salad and burger also full of flavour. Thanks guys for a great lunch.
5 days ago
Dropped into the Macs bar after work on Thursday night. It was fairly busy and they had a guy playing on a guitar, I was very happy to see that they now have pizzas. Although they only seemed to have a few available, the waiter said there will be more available next month. Make sure you try them out.
6 days ago
Went here with a voucher. Very good value for money. Even without the voucher the meal is well worth it. Platters excellent. Recommended
10 days ago
“Atmosphere plus great food, great staff and great beers !!”” Went the first time to Brewery on a friend’s recommendation one month ago. Clearly a place where the locals like to hang out. Since I have been here many times so felt it was about time I placed a review! Last time, went on a Saturday night, there was a good buzz as usual. Good band as well to dance! Excellent food, a good new menu to match with their very unique home brew beers (Custom 69, my favorite, an Indian pale). Tried the veggie platter, to share with my boyfriend. Yummy yummy (full of colour and flavour), then tried their special of the day, a slow cooked lamb shank casserole (with lamb consommé jelly). Was very tasty and with a nice presentation for a “pub food”, really really surprise! I’m generally crazy with sweet and desert… I was in paradise! Tried the caramel, chocolate and peppermint tart, now just want to go back at the brewery for this desert! Matched that with a Black Rose (stout plenty of body and roasty malt flavours).Yummmmmm! Would definitely recommend for a group of friends, cool place to chill with good ol’ buddies, for dinner, snack or just beers !!!
10 days ago
Firstly, let me say the beer selection here is great and the service good, it’s just a shame the meals aren’t up to scratch! I ordered the gourmet burger (seasoned chicken breast, bacon, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, brie and plum sauce) with fries expecting something fresh, grilled and delicious, but what came out was a small chicken breast seasoned like it should have been grilled but it was deep fried (and tasted it!), two pieces of stale bread, bacon so deep fried it was unbendable and a pile of tasteless chips. Not exactly gourmet! My partner ordered the drunken steak which was cooked exactly to his liking and very tender, but smothered in so much sauce you couldn’t taste the meat (normally he is a sauce monger..) to their credit the sauce was very nice. I couldn’t finish my meal despite still being hungry as it was so greasy, and even my partner couldn’t finish my chips due to the same reason which is saying something! If you’re after big greasy pub meals then this will be your cup of tea, but for $22 odd a meal, I would have expected better quality food, Mad Dogs and Englishmen and the British Isle Inn do bistro pub dining really well, just a shame Cardrona wasn’t on par.
12 days ago
Absolutely fantastic. The food was really great. I will definitely be going back for more. The ribs and the calamari were sure winners. The lamb shanks were not up to the standard and taste of our other meals. Looking forward to taking friends over as we are all big rib fans. Very generous portions and fantastic service from the staff.
12 days ago
I went there for dinner yesterday with friends. We used our vouchers without any problems. The food was great: we shared a variety of entrees and a couple of pizzas, together with the teriyaki beef salad amongst us. Also, the service from our waitress was fantastic – she was friendly, cheerful and most helpful. Definitely recommended.
12 days ago
I had the $10 lunch – Beef and Guinness pie- which was good value, plus the selection of beers is very good – Black Sheep and Epic Zythos in bottles for me. Friendly and speedy staff, but do get in early on a Friday lunchtime if you want to get a soft seat on the sofa, as the bar gets busy!
15 days ago
Ate at the Brew bar last week. Had been eating in restaurants for two weeks straight and found the food at The Brew Bar better than most. I ordered the Pork Loin and really enjoyed it. Good value for money – Will recommend and be back !! Thanks
17 days ago
Went to this bar tonight with a daily do voucher. Excellent value for money. Staff very good. Will be back. Highly recommended. Kath
19 days ago
This is the kind of place where in the evening, you’d come to have a casual drink, and end up ordering food too, as it’s got a great menu for that. There is plenty of seating out the front, and that’s best when the sun’s beating down, earlier in the day, when it IS a great spot to head to for a pizza lunch. On my most recent occasion, I was a bit late for the sun, so I sat indoors for my coffee and chocolate cake with ice cream. Cake was pretty good, I would’ve liked more raspberry coulis or maybe choc sauce to moisten it up a bit more. Icecream by Kapiti is always a winner though. Coffee was satisfactory. The ambience for dining indoors picks up markedly after 5 PM when the halogen lights come on softly showing up the wooden floors and wooden barwork. Staff at the bar are helpful and efficient. It’s a good place for a social, casual pub-quality bite and a drink.
24 days ago
My partner, his parents and me popped in for lunch. My god talk about portion size!!!! I couldn’t eat it all!!! In fact none of us could!!! I had the Cock & Bull platter. So good and not too fatty. Took the leftovers home and had it for tea… The waiteress was very good, making sure we were happy. Will definatly be going back… after not eating all day.
27 days ago
Had heard great stuff about this place and was looking forward to dining here – but was let down severely. It took a while for the wait staff to take our orders, and when they did the guy got the order wrong TWICE. First he brought ginger mojito instead of ginger beer – our friend does not drink and this was not cool. Then it was a beef burrito when one of us ordered chicken burrito – pretty different meats i would’ve thought! The drinks menu isn’t also that great, and they won’t make anything unless it’s on the menu – at least seemed to be the way for us. Also disappointing was the lack of condiments – namely the different types of salsa (i.e. sauce) that burritos and quesadillas are served with in Mexico. Our meals came with just guacamole and sour cream – in of themselves great, but not the real Mexican classics. I was told this was one of the more ‘authentic’ Mexican places around, but just like the stickers of cacti and sombreros on the windows, Toro Bar is yet another sub-par wannabe that is capitalising on its novelty, not its quality.
30 days ago
A waitress that texts on the job & rolls her eyes when u have a request! A mistake with meals, 4 of us had finished our meals before the last 2 people got theirs! The bill came & all items charged for twice! How long to sort this out? Twenty minutes, & oh still not right. Ask to speak to a manager, yes, interested? NO! Rude? YES. Going back the zookeeper? Definately NOT!!!
33 days ago
We ate at this place now for the third time. Already the second last experience was not too great. The food is very nice and we enjoyed everything we had. For Starters we usually have the bread selection and so far we tried the sports burger, fish’n’ chips, chicken pot and bangers and mash. I must admit the fish’n'chips were nice, but they are just as good as in all the surrounding pubs and restaurants and of course they all call their own the ‘best in the viaduct’. However, the service in both last visits was rather disappointing. The second time we came to eat with a voucher and the waiter at the bar did not understand the value of the voucher and took quite long to put the order through and came to double check the order twice. Last time, 4 days ago, it took just as long to put the order through and although ordering a coke with NO ice, it was full with ice cubes! Also, the most surprising moment was when we received the bread, especially ordered as a Starter, and two seconds later we got our mains. We started with the bread and shuffled the mains to the side and by the time we ate them they had room temperature. Coming from a catering background and experience in hospitality, I cannot understand how this could happen. Thus, the food is good, but the service is rather disappointing.
North Island
