The margaritas are not to be missed, especially on Tuesday, when you get a free taco…read more The tacos are great also. We had the appetizer of the jalapeño poppers, oh my goodness, were they ever delicious, with the slaw that comes with, I'd get those again.

Lovely decor in this trendy tapas joint/bar…read more We had 2x croquettas, 2x tacos (vege), and the jackfruit quesadilla! The jackfruit was good - the tortijja was a little over-done, and better paired with the sauce that came with the croquettas. I don't know what the sauce that came with it was meant to be. Crocquettes were fantastic, and the tacos great, although were also a little charred. Quick n easy going place though. Good pricing, and quite enjoyed their personal touches on the hot sauces.

Food was so good I couldn't even take a picture because it was gone so fast. Their cocktails are…read moredifferent and fun combined with delicious. The staff have really fun and hopefully comfortable uniforms and are eager to help. The building is literally an old government building ( As per the name ) and it's beautifully renovated with large windows to take in the beautiful trees and scenery. Totally need to stop here if you're visiting. Probably my favorite meal and drinks so far!

Beautiful meal and ambience. We selected three small plates and some foccacia. It was good.read more

A lovely evening spent here with my laptop on their wifi as I've just arrived in Christchurch and…read moretrying to figure out what's next. Friendly bartender who pulled me a delicious cold beer. Lots of options for drinks and food, seats inside and outside and even upstairs. Quiet, cool, comfortable. [Review 365 of 2024 - 18 in New Zealand - 21398 overall]

Dog-friendly, solid outdoor patio, and right by the trolley line so you get to see the…read moredinner-trolley-thing drive by. Focused more on beer than wine, and the food is good enough to say it's better than average, but not so much that you might actually rave about it. Calamari strips and fried chicken were both decent enough deep fried items, and the seafood chowder was good enough to hit the spot on an evening rapidly turning cool. Service was refreshingly honest (out of mussels due to a local shortage) and I think that really sealed the rating as 4* rather than 3*.

An upscale, luxurious restaurant celebrating some Asian fusion ingredients and flavors. It's…read moreprobably a special occasions type of restaurant, though we viewed it more as a welcome meal on our first day off the plane in NZ. If you're having trouble determining what to get, their "Trust the King" tasting menu is a perfect choice. The "Royal" for 100 NZD nets you their best hits plus a dessert as a bonus. With the amount of courses you are given, this ended up being such an incredible value versus ordering all separately. After a final tally, it honestly felt like a highway robbery! Here's what our table received along with expected NZD: Small plate samplers (2): Natural oyster w/ nashi pear, Smoked salmon w/ spinach leaf, galangal, chili jam, and salmon roe Small Shared Plates (2): Wild Venison Carpaccio topped w/ nahm dtok, EVOO, and spicy sesame (32 NZD); Moong dal in mixed seed salad, avocado, and fresh lime (22 NZD) Larger Shared Plates (2): Marinated yellow fin tuna w/ chilli and mandarin, coconut salad (38 NZD); Crispy Pressed Half Duck in caramelized mandarin sauce (62 NZD) Dessert: Lemongrass panna cotta, lime granita, mint (18 NZD) It was a harmonic interplay between different Asian flavors, more Thai heavy than others, and even the local ingredients such as the raw venison entering the foray. They did ask if there was anything we didn't like before serving the meal to which I never thought to mention my aversion to overly spicy food (I was thinking of exotic foods I dislike). And, lo and behold, a lot of options were definitely on the spicier end such as the spicy sesame/ nahm dtok sauce which topped the carpaccio and abundance of red chili shavings in the marinated yellow fin tuna. On the bright side, it did require me slow down which enabled me to truly relish my food. Most everything was delicious even the duck with joyfully crispy skins and dipped in a sweet honey glace (though ever so slightly on dry side in the middle). King of Snake also houses the Monarch Cocktail Bar, to which I ordered a 'Paper Crane' (King of Snake Gin, apple soju, elderflower liquer, sake; 23 NZD) to pair with my meal. A buzzy, floral, and effervescent drink to really lend to the comforting meal.

Nicest Restaurant we've been to in a long while: upscale atmosphere, exceptionally nice ambiance…read morew:super helpful staff. We shared delicious plates and wine. would recommend the prawn dumplings, blue cod, tenderloin steak bites and curry pumpkin. We thought the curry pumpkin was the best!

This place was very busy on a Saturday, but we managed to get a table in the bar by at 6.15pm…read more Not being hugely hungry so early in the evening, we opted for 3 small plates - courgette hummus, salmon ceviche and house falafel. All delicious. I particularly like the seeded biscuits that came with the hummus. We washed that down with a nice Sauvignon, leaving just enough room for a passion fruit mousse {vegan, GF, DF}. A lovely meal, only marred by the ever-increasing volume from neighbouring groups, which by 7.15 had reached the shouting stage, to the point that any music being played was totally redundant! So yes, l lovely food, but try to get a table in the restaurant, not the bar!

Overall the ambience and service were good and the food was generally fine. The one issue was with…read morethe Gurnard main course, which came with corn fritters. The fish was absolutely fantastic. The corn fritters on the other hand should never have been served. They were burned black, and one taste was enough to inform that they were not meant to be that way. Three stars because I informed the server when our plates were picked up that while the fish was great, the fritters were burnt and inedible - server promised to "inform the kitchen". On paying the bill I was thanked for my candidness in sharing my comments. But I was still charged full price for all the items on my bill. There was no accommodation for serving me effectively a $43 main course that was less than two-thirds edible. An unfortunate showing for what looked to be a promising restaurant.

Very elegant and nice warm wooden interior, love all the plants and natural light!…read more Service was also great, waiter explained the menu and was very attentive in answering questions and refilling water Plating of food was beautiful! Great flavor profiles and ingredients felt high quality. The saffron cauliflower was perfectly warm and hearty. The cucumber salad was creamy and refreshing. And the lamb shoulder was sooo super tender, no knife even needed! The whipped labneh cream and zaatar flavoring paired so well w the lamb. Great meal, felt full and very satisfied after :)

Great vibes, loved the food, loved the idea behind "we don't do individual plates, only shared"…read more Great drinks. Lovely people too.

To celebrate my 39th birthday, I found this restaurant called Orleans here in Christchurch, New…read moreZealand. I did enjoy cajun and creole soul food from the USA, so it was a perfect dining option. Plus, it was a couple of blocks from the hotel. Turning 39 years overseas was interesting, since the time zone difference in the USA was a day earlier, so it allowed me to celebrate twice. With that said, I arrived here at the Orleans restaurant and bar around 8pm on a brisk Monday evening in mid September 2018. I thought initially that the restaurant itself was closed, since there was construction going on the opposite side of the street, not realizing that the restaurant was on the other side. To my relief, I was okay and entered the restaurant. I almost had cut my losses and tried to find somewhere else in walking distance, but thankful that I had found the restaurant. During my visit here to the Orleans restaurant, it was typically Monday night in the city. I guess I came in when the dinner rush was largely over and found a group of people finishing up and leaving, letting me having the entire restaurant and bar to myself. The ambiance here was very casual and basically what you'd find in a bar setting. The overall experience here at Orleans restaurant and bar was nice and quiet. Kind of like the casual attitude of the place and didn't like the loud noises when coming to such places. Maybe I'm getting old and like quiet places. Either way, Orleans was nice and cozy. I dig the decor and the service was nice, friendly, and fast, even for a place that was slowing down for the night. They told me they were closing at 9pm, but the yelp page said till 12 midnight. Probably need to change it sooner or later. With that said, celebrating a birthday here with southern comfort food was nice and definitely one to remember. While I was dining alone, it was nice and pleasant. Orleans restaurant and bar is located at 89 Litchfield Street in the heart of downtown Christchurch, New Zealand. They offer live music, but during the night I was there, there was no live music. Probably on the weekends or something. They accept major credit cards, usually Visa, which are usually a great thing for us tourist folk who live on the plastic. Not sure about parking, although street parking is your best bet. I'm not from Christchurch, but I walked it here during my holiday in mid September 2018. Hotel was nearby and I had a craving for New Orleans type of cuisine. I'm sure Christchurch's public transportation can get you here too. There's always uber, which is nice. I ended up spending an hour here, enjoying my meal and soaking up the fact that I am not 38 anymore. It's kind of disappointing, but that's life. For my meal, I ended up getting a po boy sandwich, which is basically standard for any southern style delight. Along with that, i ordered some curly fries, which ended up being some sort of regular fries curled up and spiced up to taste differently from your Burger King type fries. I finished it up with an order of sweet ice tea. I should have gotten liquor, but I figured I'll celebrate with that later on. The po boy itself was good and tasteful. It was delicious and harmoniously hit the spot after a long day of travel from Sydney, Australia. The fries were surprisingly epic and the sweet tea was interesting. With the restaurant closing earlier than I thought, I opted to get dessert elsewhere. Prices here were okay. Their menu was surprisingly and shockingly limited, but I guess that's how it is sometimes. Although the food ordered and the ambiance was pretty good, I thought for an place that served Cajun / Creole USA cuisine should have more items. 3.5 stars for the overall experience. 4.0 stars for the ambiance and the food. 3.5 stars for the service. Support local! C+

It's no longer here. I came all the way from a cruise terminal excited about the menu and it's not…read morehere.

Twenty Seven Steps - what a spot! Intimate space in a lovely location with great service, expansive…read morewine selection and they are happy to make you a tasty mocktail that suits your palate. Now... the food. Epic. Seasonal. Simple. Divine. I started with their marinated tomato salad which was fresh and flavorful. Entree was the steak with potato, onion rings and veggies - absolutely incredible. Naturally I had to save room for dessert and landed on the vanilla crème brûlée (though all the options sounded amazing). It came with fresh fruit and pistachio biscotti and was a great way to round out the meal. I would come back here again and again and again. Bravo!!

Very quaint bistro in Christchurch. The food, service, wine, and atmosphere were top notch. It's…read morelocated in a very hip area of the city, too. I would not hesitate to go back there some day.