Okay, loved the vibe in this classy cocktail bar/ dinner restaurant. It's very chic, reminded me of the bars in New York. I just came here for drinks after dinner. The place was amazing, the service was good. My martini was nothing short of perfect. 100% will recommend. I do believe you will need a reservation in case you do dinner here. read more

Vine Eatery & Bar - Martini - Tapas Bars Near Me - Taupo, WKO

Wow. I thought our meal in Wellington at Charley Noble was wonderful, but our experience here was even better. They had a female singer with a cool voice and a male guitarist. Nice touch! Jamie was an awesome server. We loved everything she recommended--house salad/sliced beet salad with goat cheese, candied pecans and balsamic vinegar glaze/pasta with beef ragout, Madeira sauce, carrots, celery, Parmesan cheese and herbs/steak with mashed potatoes, stewed tomatoes and beef sauce/chocolate lava cake with caramel sauce and yuzu sorbet. Jamie kept our water glasses refilled and was very attentive. What a relaxing dinner in this pretty town. read more

Vine Eatery & Bar - Tapas Bars Near Me - Taupo, WKO

Such a fun dinner with my husband and his cousin. The restaurant is an interesting balance of sleek, a bit posh, and ruggedly industrial. Warm and inviting, open and spacious. We did several shared plates and everything was delicious and satisfying. And the drinks were perfection. read more

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The food was tasty, but the portions were quite small. We had to order 2 of the Caprese Salads. The garlic shrimp was like 5 pieces. There was a fireplace, which was nice to thaw near, but there was no heat in the rest of the place. read more

Mmmm. Not my fav meal in Taupo. Nice bar and ambiance. Lovely to sit outside on the late sun or inside in the stylish restaurant. Martinis were reasonable. However the food not memorable. Fish & prawn wontons overcooked. Pâté nice and cam with generous helping of bread. Char grilled beef tough and missing the horseradish sauce. Vegetables with tamarind aioli a nice thought but reality was deep fried crispy not sure what vegetables and a straight aioli- sort of an overdone pakora spiced. Ok but not amazing. read more

My wife and I visited Vine again this being our third... and last! The service and presentation are of good quality, however, the portion sizes seem to have diminished to almost child size portions and the prices are still for full mains. Today, I ordered the Market fish meal with rice but received rice with two of the tiniest pieces of fish on top. My wife ordered Pork main and received three OK pieces of pork rolls with only three slices of potato. We were not at all satisfied with the meals sizes and expressed our dissatisfaction to the counter staff upon payment but only because they asked. One of them suggested that they will try better next time; needless to say I told him that there will be no next time. There are a great selection of eateries in Taupo so our next visit will be another eatery for sure.Thank you for the service, at least. read more

This place was recommended to us so we gave it a try. Huge disappointment. The wine we ordered had a horrible fault - smelled of burnt rubber and tasted horrible. The Somme/manager argued with us that the wine was ok. After a lot of arguing he finally decided it might be bad and replaced it with a new bottle. The food was very late - had the check on it twice. When it finally arrived two of the dishes were the wrong items. The plates that did arrive were not good. Another observation was the kitchen staff were arguing and it looked like chaos. Don't waste your time - there are so many other choices in town. read more

Service was top tier - however, eye fillet ordered medium rare came out blue .... twice. Ambience, service, options were all great - however, the flavor of the fillet and ability to cook to order were sorely lacking. Noodle amount in pappardelle was also quite sparse. read more

Small-plate tapas-style dining, plus traditional size mains. Large wife and cocktail selection. Two of us shared a small salad, bruschetta with sun-dried tomatoes, brie, and prosciutto, smoked lamb and thyme croquettes, garlic prawns, and chocolate lava cake with passionfruit ice cream. Bruschetta, prawns, and croquettes all came with four pieces plus microgreens. All were nicely cooked. The croquettes were at once crispy and creamy. The salad was a good value. The cake plate was garnished with three small does of raspberry sauce and I would have preferred more. I love passionfruit but wasn't sure how I would like it married with chocolate - I needn't have worried, it was a lovely combo. We didn't have a reservation but were seated instantly at 545pm at the one empty table on a winter Friday evening. They even had a high chair for our toddler. I enjoyed a sparkling Sauvignon Blanc that was tasty but lost its bubbles quickly while we were waiting for our food. The Moscow mule was nice and limey without overpowering ginger beer. I'd knock a portion of a star off for a few things: - in winter, the tables next to the door can be chilly - Moscow Mule served in a glass, not a copper mule cup - longish wait for our food, but understandable on a hopping Friday evening which would perhaps round to 4.5 stars. read more

Vine Eatery & Bar - Chocolate lava cake - Tapas Bars Near Me - Taupo, WKO

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Good service and food.This place is upmarket in beautiful town of Taupo. Booking recommended

We got a variety of dishes here and everything was tasty. The dishes came out super fast even though it was busy. I would gripe that the music was a touch loud such that we had to move tables, but partway through there was a live musician who was great. Mildly pricey but the food was interesting and high quality and the staff was attentive. read more

Visited here on our end of year trip and had a great night. This place is fun, romantic, trendy, while providing great service and great food. The Hilton hotel referred us here and helped us with a reservation. Inside area is really neat and relaxing - like being in a rain forest feeling. We had a very professional waiter Michael (M). He promptly waited on us and provided 110% great service all night. Honestly one of our favorite places in NZ. Enjoyed a Chardonnay (Petane) and their locally brewed Lakeman Pilsner. Normally wouldnt call out the beer but it was great and was served in the Big Foot labeled glass - super cool. Created thoughts of having that glass slip into the wife's pocketbook... HAHA - just kidding. We asked the manager if we could buy the glass and he said he didn't have enough as people kept stealing them - go figure. He gave us directions to the brewery so we could buy one. ** Thanks Mr. Manager but their brewery isn't built and/or open the public yet. Tourist beware - lol. We drove 25 miles round trip only to find a farm with a trailer on it - near the suggested address. Back to food - Tried two recommended appetizers - Scallops and the Goat Wontons - both were mouth watering and delicious. For entrees, we enjoyed Salmon and their Wild Venison Special. Being from the states, both were incredible. PS Mr. Manager - "I'll Be Back!!!" read more

Service and environment 5 stars Food 3.5 stars The fig salad I ordered was really oily. And there wasn't enough lettuce! It was mostly toppings instead of salad (so I guess you get your money's worth?). The prosciutto bruschetta was amazing though--probably the best part of my meal. It was refreshing! The Apple crumble cheesecake was also surprisingly delicious!! Overall, it was an average experience...not anything to write home about. read more

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Excellent venue for a lazy afternoon after hiking to Huka Falls, the Huka Honey Hive, and wandering the Saturday morning markets and art show!! Service with a Kiwi smile helps add to the ambiance! read more

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We were really looking forward to checking this place out. Walked by several times in the couple of days we were in Taupo. Checked it out on Yelp ( of course). All the making for a great foodie experience... Wrong. Sat outside on a beautiful summer night. Our waiter was obviously New. That's ok if you at least put a little effort in serving your customer... we had one drink and one tapas in 1 1/2 hours. Water filled once after requesting it. It is a holiday weekend but they weren't even that busy. By the time we left it was mostly empty. Ended up cancelling the rest of our order after nothing coming for almost one hour. People next to us came after and had food delivered before we finally left. So very disappointed. I'm sure the food is good. Very sad to not get to try the dishes we ordered. So bummed. read more

Vine Eatery & Bar - Tapas Bars Near Me - Taupo, WKO

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We wound up at Vine for a late night dinner. We got some drinks and then ate the French onion soup and a Caesar salad. Both were amazingly delicious! read more

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Great food to split between friends! We ordered the potatoes bravas, mussels in a cream sauce, fish soup, bruschetta, garlic butter shrimp, green beans sautéed with almonds, and portobello mushrooms with macadamia nuts. I recommend any of these I mention. read more

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Excellent small plates/tapas options. Everything was fabulous. We had the fig & walnut salad, the scallop &a chorizo risotto, the green beans, and the garlic mashed potatoes. The Hawke's Bay Kingston Cider is also quite good and recommended. For desert we had the Portuguese cream with mulled plums. read more

Vine Eatery & Bar - Portuguese cream with mulled plums - Tapas Bars Near Me - Taupo, WKO

We both really enjoyed what we ordered the scallop risotto and the salmon were excellent. I ordered the large size and it was enough but barely and I am not a big eater. Seems like a trendy place and I imagine that is part of the upvotes. It is a solid 4.5 so rounding down in that in my opinion it is overrated. read more

Other reviews weren't wrong! Was a bit apprehensive at first when it took approx. 20 minutes for our order to even get taken...but it was well worth the wait! My partner and I had the mushrooms, the black pudding, duck and lamb back strap. Followed by a Belgian chocolate torte and Molten cake. All was beautiful. Lovely service, lovely ambience, lovely food. All in all a lovely night. Fancy enough to make for a special night out but not pretentious to make you feel uncomfortable. My partner and I had 4 mains and 2 desserts between us, I was left satisfied while the boyf could have probably kept grazing. Just great. read more

Vine Eatery & Bar - Chocolate & Caramel Lava Cake and Belgian Chocolate Torte. Yum! - Tapas Bars Near Me - Taupo, WKO

Had dinner there with our OAT group last night. The shared plates of bruschetta, calamari and salad were inventive and tasty. My main of grass-fed skirt steak sous vide with garlic mashed potatoes and a variety of green veggies was fabulous, and the folks who had tuna, pork and vegan mains were very happy as well. Our deserts of 3 small flavors of mango sorbet, coconut panna cotta, and lemon soufflé were light and delectable. The setting is airy, light and inviting. Our server, a woman from Argentina, was lovely. A wonderful dinner indeed read more

We chose to eat outside since it was such a beautiful day. It's tapas so the portions are small but we did the platter for two which was absolutely delicious and beautiful in presentation. It's slightly on the pricey side but well worth it! read more

This was the best meal I have ever had in my life. The wine was all amazing, and the food was exceptional. We also had the garlic prawns, steamed mussels, croquettes, lamb, venison, and garlic mash. Everything was amazing. The service was excellent. Not cheap by any means, but everything was excellent and tasty. We split these dishes, 3-4 glasses of wine, and dessert between two people and it was $146NZD. It is a tapas place, so if you have a larger group, you will want to order much more than we did and split the bill! read more

An outstanding tapas offering done with a good Portuguese touch. Can't do any better then a dinner here. Tom S read more

Great place for superb food great hospitality excellent menu with shared plates or individual serves. Many thanks to the chef who coped supremely with dietary needs on an individual basis. We shared a scallop mornay ( best scallops I have eaten for a long time) both had the fish of the day and the creme brûlée and lemon soufflé were excellent with great presentation. Would have no hesitation in returning on another trip read more

The best place in Taupo to have Peroni Italian beer and food. Great outdoor and indoor. Best service. Its a must go to location when in Taupo. Very friendly staff member read more

Vine Eatery & Bar - Tapas Bars Near Me - Taupo, WKO

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The tapas are great as with the wine but the service was average because it was slow however the killer is the music- we wanted a relaxing evening and the music was way toooo loud and just not the relaxing style read more

I arrived in Taupo with less than my load, thanks to Air New Zealand. I needed a few bits to start my holiday, considering that I was going tramping on the Tongariro Crossing in the cold and wind. Not to mention the fact that it was now Thursday evening and I'd been confined in the same clothing since Tuesday at 5AM (NZ time). Needless to say, I was a tad stressed. My Brompton folding bike did arrive with and I soon made my way into town along the lake to the Vine Eatery. Which was, in a word, BRILLIANT! It had been recommended by a couple of winemaker friends. Further, I was told to ask for Baxter or Ian. Thank you Di! Baxter, a very amiable gentleman, came round. We had a chat about food and wine, which actually lasted all evening. I suggested to Baxter to choose both drink and food to pair it with. The very capable chef Reggie dished out some truly marvelous fare. It all began with Baxter's brilliant choice of a pale ale from Lakeman. Beautiful!! A very nice bread, Hawaiian black salt and olive oil arrived. I went at it! Then an amazing Nautilus Cuvée Brut NV! Paired beautifully with sautéed figs w/walnuts, wild rocket, jamon Serrano. An oven baked salmon, hazelnut crust, wasabi cream atop asparagus and risotto cake (Whoa!) came next with a fine Pinot Gris. An aubergine ragout was paired with a Villa Maria Single Vineyard Viognier 2010. The best Viognier that I've ever had. Then there's the Greystone Waipara Pinot Noir 2012 paired with mushrooms. Oh yeah!! The wine, the mushrooms? I didn't where one began and the other one ended. Womderful! Venison meatballs paired with Elephant Hill Hawkes Bay Syrah 2012 were both brilliant!! A Siefrieds late harvested Riesling from Nelson paired very nicely with a beautiful, light, fruit filled dessert. A plate of wonderful cheeses from north of Auckland. A bleu, a Brie albeit excellent and an aged Gouda were all paired with Mazuran's (NZ) port wine from Auckland. A truly unforgettable wine & dining experience! I would definitely make a detour to dine here again!! read more

Service was THE WORST! Food was pretty good, but after an hour wait and only getting one appitizer I'm done.

Staff are awesome, great drinks menu and very good tapas. Love the smoked tomato pasta.

Great small plates, wine, and loved the atmosphere. The restaurant design and decor was very modern and open. Would recommend to anyone in the area looking for a relaxing meal. read more

Yummy, yummy seafood tapas, lamb salad and flounder main. Our order got lost but the manager made it right. She rushed it out and hooked us up w multiple amazing desserts. Top it off with tasty Cab Merlot Hawkes Bay blend. Definitely would go back. Thank you, Lee! read more

Vine Eatery and Bar was simply amazing! Service was quick, very friendly staff and a great atmosphere! I loved every part of Vine and will definatly return! read more

We were excited to try this restaurant as it was on a list recommended by a local and we were really looking for some good lamb to eat while we are in New Zealand. Although the restaurant decorum was of high standard, we were sadly unsatisfied with the main courses. I got the lamb shank (which was overpriced for what was delivered) and my girlfriend got the sirloin. The presentation was lovely and it looked like it should of been appetizing, but eating it we quickly realized it was lacking any real flavor. We had to add salt immediately and we're disappointed that even the sides could not add to the dish what was obviously missing. The wine selection was good and the cheese plate after our mains was delectable. Highly recommend the croquettes. Overall, a good dining experience, but one that could have been excellent with some slight rework and better understanding of how a steak and lamb shank should be prepared to maximize flavor. read more

Great food, awesome location, great food! The restaurant is very nicely decorated. We had the beef ragout pasta and the risotto and both were mouthwatering! Great Italian spot in Taupo! Host was kind and the service was also grea read more

My husband and I were wowed! Excellent menu, great service and an amazing ambience. The trout was incredible and the pork belly unbelievable. Portions were exta generous. Great wine selection and we loved the "wine wall" read more

We lucked into The Vine Eatery thanks to Yelp and the fact they looked so inviting from the street. Busy but we got a table immediately. We shared venison meatballs in tomato sauce, a special of spicy black pudding from a Wellington butcher served with cos lettuce smoked pears and aioli, and snapper ( market fish of the day) served with orange buerre blanc and a little rocket salad. You never know how much skill lies behind the words but this was all absolutely delicious and remarkably well priced, including the wine. We wished we were hungrier! Go there. read more