Manakau Lodge — Hotel in North Island

I was with a family birthday dinner on Saturday night,20 of us. Though the food was OK even good the lack of serving staff was very poor. When you accept a booking of 20 you need to increase your staff to cope with all the orders.||One of our tables had to wait over an hour to have there order taken and then 3/4 of another hour to get there food, very poor. Our waitress took one tables orders one table at a time and as we were the first table to order she then didn't take the other tables orders until we had gotten our first course and nearly our second course.|| I have worked in the service industry for over 20 years and know this is not the way to deal with a large party of people, not sure where or if any waiting training has been done with the staff. This needs to improve if your going to take large group booking and for them not to have to wait 1 1/2 hours to get there order taken or even any food. More waiting staff is needed and training on service also.||Nearly forgot to mention, that when I went to pay the prices I was charged differed to the ones on our blackboard menu we had ordered from. I was over charged and asked for a refund. This is simple restaurant practice, get your prices right. Staff training is...

My family & I had a short but delightful stay, like a journey back on time. The owner was very lovely and made us feel at home immediately (many thanks!).

Loving history, we appreciated hearing about the history of the hotel and seeing photos of the original Victorian Wooden Hotel, which sadly burnt down in 1918 or 1919. However, that said, the hotel was rebuilt in 1920 in a sturdy post Edwardian, early Art Deco stucco style. Over the years, there have been many additions to it.

Our stay was enjoyable and we hope to visit again. The beds were comfortable, tastefully decorated, and furnishings in Edwardian & Art Deco comforts.

The common rooms were clean and tidy with plenty of areas to relax, play games, etc.

There is a general store & two restaurants/takeaway and a Fruit & Veg market premise across the highway, which is a short walk or drive away. Just be very careful crossing the rail tracks & road!

The beach is nearby too. It's a great location, just off the highway. There is a bit of traffic noise, so if that bothers you, bring earplugs.

This hotel offers self-catering for functions also, with great...

Thought we would try somewhere local that we hadn't been to before. The Manakau Hotel is a lovely looking hotel and we always meant to try it. It was a hot night so we sat in the covered in area between the inside and the garden. It could have been a nice atmosphere but was spoilt by a dirty floor and windows and dried leaves lying around. My partner ordered the Steak and chips and I ordered the Roast of the day which was pork. The roast was average, not sure if the meat was cooked on the premises but tasted like the Deli bought meat. My partner had a good steak but the chips were hard, overdone and had been cooked in fishy tasting oil so he wasn't able to eat them. The waitress was really nice, apologised about the fishy oil but didn't offer any replacement or compensation of any sort. Not somewhere we will be...