De Fontein Belgian Beer Café — Restaurant in Ōrākei

The setting is rustic , typical Belgian Beer Cafe with awesome terrace and views of Mission Bay here in Auckland, Aoetearoa. The SERVICE STAFF are attentive if not busy. I have been there a few times (4-5) as I live locally and visitors just love going to Mission Bay, it's vibrant and the De Fontein Beer Cafe has flair. If they are busy, service suffers terrible and they become unresponsive to customers needs. As for BOOKINGS of a table (if no covid-19 restrictions), they tell you must be 10 people or more otherwise no bookings- but on two occasion they happily had table booked for 'mates' with less than 10. Hmm.😟. [ ✍🏻see response of owner- this has now been fixed- great] The PRICE/ FOOD of items except for the beer is high eg: Belgian sausage (2 pieces) with gravy and French Fries served on a plate are $21 NZD- autch. The Seafood Platter large $65 NZD and sadly it was really average, lots of fried stuff and a lump of smoked salmon in the middle. Nothing to write home about. On this occasion the food was average at it's best. [ ✍🏻 I went again a few days later- see add on. different menu choices and food was much better ] Go there for the atmosphere, have a beer downstairs in the bar and if you go before 7pm (from 5pm) every day they have a special at heavily discounted price, eg: Mondays is mussel port at half price. In the bar only). [✍🏻update: Today I went again due to request from visitors and we went @ lunch time. The service was again very good and friendly, (it awas relatively quiet) and todays food was good; price to value ratio met with good portions sizes and yummy muscle pot, great kids meal. The grilled muscle however were greasy and not tasty. Yet the steamed mussels were great, so was the caesar salad with fried calamari and the kids pizza met every expectations of our 4 year old girl. Good portion size and nicely done. (obviously they make their own pizza) ( Food see pics below) It would rate at a 3 to 4 out of 5 overall. I'll go again soon, being a local and enjoy trying out my local eateries- support local. 😀. Ernst [I just saw the reply from the owner- great to see they actual check and take the time to reply....

The service was unequivocally abysmal—among the most appalling I have encountered in New Zealand. Upon taking a seat with friends for a casual drink, I was promptly approached by a waiter to place my order. I requested a simple Bourbon and Coke—a rudimentary, two-ingredient beverage—yet inexplicably endured a staggering 20-minute wait. When my drink failed to materialize, I resorted to flagging down another waiter to reorder. At long last, my modest request arrived a full 30 minutes into my visit.

Hoping to circumvent further inefficiencies, I took the initiative to order directly at the bar for my second drink, naïvely assuming this would expedite the process. How gravely mistaken I was. For five interminable minutes, I stood unattended as three employees indulged in a private conversation, entirely oblivious to my presence. Eventually, a different waiter acknowledged me and assured me that my drink would be brought to my table. I returned to my seat, expecting prompt service, only to be met with yet another delay. Frustrated, I returned to the bar, only to discover my drink languishing unattended on the counter—neglected and abandoned by the very staff entrusted with its delivery.

To be clear, the venue itself is spectacular, with an enviable location and a reputation for excellent food. However, the substandard service casts an unfortunate shadow over its potential. The sheer indifference displayed by the waitstaff suggests a dire lack of oversight, and I strongly urge the owner to implement rigorous quality control measures. A restaurant’s success hinges not only on its ambiance and cuisine but also on the attentiveness and professionalism of its staff—an aspect in which this establishment is sorely deficient. If corrective action is not taken, the reputation of this otherwise promising venue will undoubtedly...

Had mussels supposedly cooked in a creamy Garlic & White wine broth! I specifically asked waitress to tell kitchen that i want my mussels properly tossed in that sauce and she said she will advise kitchen to do so. Product arrived barely warm with a couple of blobs of thick white sauce on top garlic or wine flavour was not there at all! Chips also not hot just barely warm. I called waitress and showed her my bland tasting and dried up mussels and she said “i did tell the kitchen to toss mussels in the sauce” I responded well would it be possible to have a bit of sauce and she said no problems. Excessive amount of Luke warm Sauce arrived about 400mls and waitress added a few more dollars to my account, I asked her are you going to charge me ?? Her response was yes i could not believe It and told her to take the cold sauce back to kitchen, I did not bother to eat the rest of my overcooked tasteless and cold mussel's . The manager came then and asked any problems, i explained and his response was thats how we do them and nobody else is complaining. All i can say absolutely no “Emotional intelligence” or pride or understanding to see this as an opportunity to improve his product he must have seen the product did not look right?!? I left most of my mussels and paid in full . I could have sent them back but management with that kind of attitude does not deserve another try…. Please note, menu descriptions it is not factual to what was served and his arrogant attitude did not help, the least he could have offered to redo the dish! Please note on photo the dry color of the mussels they have been precooked and sitting around to get to that consistency and definitely not cooked in a tasty broth ….Hoodwinked all the way….service was friendly and the new management is not an improvement to this...