Wharf One — Restaurant in Northern Territory

Our experience at this restaurant was terrible from start to finish. We visited for a joint birthday celebration, choosing it because of a promotional offer advertised on their social media, which was supposed to run until February 29, 2025. The promotion promised that birthday celebrants would get a free main meal if they brought three guests and could prove their birthday with ID. We confirmed this directly with the owner, who assured us it applied if all conditions were met. However, when we tried to use the promotion, we were told it didn’t apply for various reasons. The manager/owner gave multiple excuses, first claiming the promotion was only valid for one person per table, despite being told otherwise by another owner. Then, he said the promotion ended in January, contradicting their repeated social media posts. Next, he claimed the promotion didn’t apply because some birthday celebrants had ordered smaller, cheaper plates instead of mains. This didn’t make sense—why not honor the free meal for a cheaper option if available? After much back and forth, the manager reluctantly agreed to give only two out of three birthday celebrants their free meals. He insisted on collecting the bill while half our group was still eating cake, which felt like an attempt to rush us and maximize profit. Additionally, the staff forgot about the birthday cake we brought. They unexpectedly brought out a random chocolate tart and began singing happy birthday while some of us were still eating. When we asked about our cake, they seemed confused and had to look for it. They brought it out with lit candles while we were unprepared, disrupting the moment. The food itself was mediocre at best—bland and unremarkable. The service was awful, with only one waitress covering the entire indoor seating area while the manager/owner and bartender tried to handle everything. We asked another staff member to take a drink order, but she said she couldn’t, promising to pass it on to the overwhelmed waitress. It was clear they were understaffed, which led to poor service. To make matters worse, one of our guests couldn’t eat her chicken burger because it was undercooked and pink. She was breastfeeding, so this was a serious concern. The waitress got the manager involved, and they insisted this was a common issue and that the chicken was cooked properly. They offered to replace the burger, but when the new meal came, they charged her for both the undercooked burger and a kids’ pasta dish, even though the manager had promised to replace the meal. No one had told us the kids' pasta wasn’t free, and we hadn’t been informed of any additional charges. When we raised the issue, the manager said he would remove the charge for the ginger beer, as if that somehow made up for the other mistakes. If undercooked chicken is a common issue, the restaurant should address it, perhaps by changing their cooking method from sous vide to grilling to prevent such problems. The restaurant needs serious improvements in customer service, menu quality, and training. Word of mouth in a small town like Darwin spreads quickly, and after this experience, we won’t be returning. We’ll also share our experience with others. If you advertise promotions, you should honor them and not mislead customers with false promises. As of now, the promotion is still posted on their social media for February, despite the manager claiming it ended in January. Appalled to...

Rating: (0-5)

I recently had the unfortunate experience of dining at what can only be described as a disappointingly lackluster restaurant. From the moment I walked in, I had an inkling that this dining experience would not live up to my expectations.

The restaurant's façade exuded an air of neglect and disinterest. The glass on the exterior was smudged, and the overall appearance was far from inviting. It was evident that no effort had been made to create a pleasant atmosphere for guests.

Once inside, I was met with apathetic and inattentive staff. They seemed disinterested in providing any sort of warm welcome or helpful guidance. I was left to navigate the poorly organized seating arrangement on my own, feeling like an afterthought rather than a valued guest.

The menu, unfortunately, was anything but impressive. It offered a limited variety of uninspired dishes, lacking any exciting or innovative options. I opted for a classic market fish dish, hoping for at least some level of comfort in familiarity. However, when the dish arrived, it was evident that even the basics were beyond the restaurant's capabilities. The market fish was overcooked and lacked seasoning, resulting in a bland and unappetising plate that left much to be desired.

What disappointed me the most was the obvious lack of care put into the preparation of the food. The dishes lacked any finesse or attention to volume. It was evident that shortcuts were taken, resulting in a subpar dining experience. The lack of quality ingredients and poor execution showcased a clear lack of passion from the kitchen staff.

To top it all off, the wine selection was severely lacking. The limited choices available were of poor quality, and the overall lack of options left me with a feeling of disappointment. It was clear that no effort had been made to curate a comprehensive and enjoyable wine list.

Overall, my dining experience at this establishment was incredibly underwhelming. The lack of care put into the ambiance, menu, food preparation, and service was painfully apparent. I would not recommend this restaurant to anyone seeking a pleasurable dining experience. Save your time and money by seeking out other options that prioritise quality and customer...

We had an absolute 💯 awful 😖 experience at this restaurant last night. We all left feeling very angry and insulted and woke up the next day still feeling furious. Thought we were going to one of the better restaurants in Darwin only to be left wishing we went through McDonald's drive thru. You don't go out to dinner and pay alot of money to be left feeling completely jipped. The seafood FEAST $160, you'd think the word FEAST would mean you get a good amount of food. For $160 this FEAST (For an ant 🐜) consisted of layer one - some blended crab meat, dry (not chilled, room temperature) some cracker biscuits, lettuce, 2 x tiny chunks of salmon. Layer two, 4 x room temperature almost plastic feeling very unfresh little octopus, 2 x tuna bite slivers, 2 x tiny scallops and lots of lettuce. Layer three, 6 x small defrosted very unfresh room temperature prawns and 2 x cold calamari rings that were like rubber. Paying $160 you'd expect such small portions of seafood to be top notch quality, far from it. The "feast" also included a plate of whole fish that was so full of brittle bones it was hard to eat, bit like brim the fish you use for bait in fishing. Having told the restaurant how disappointed 😞 we were they said all they can do is offer us a free dessert, "it will be an amazing dessert a selection of all our best ones". I saw some nice looking desserts coming out so thought this could be ok. Never have we felt more insulted I swear the restaurant were having a laugh. The dessert they bought out looked and tasted like left over cakes from a function two or three nights prior. Absolutely disgusted in this insult. Why offer us a dessert as a buffer to our terrible main meal then deliver us little cake squares that felt alot like they were leftovers from a function. It was gluten free dried out crumbly small squares of chocolate cake (none of us are gluten free) and squares of small cheesecakes - tasted like it had been left in the fridge uncovered for 2 days. We don't go out for dinner much. This was supposed to be a very special treat that has instead left us feeling insulted and completely dissatisfied...