Zane Grey's Restaurant and Bar — Restaurant in Bay of Islands-Whangaroa Community

Came for birthday dinner- One of the worst “fancy” dinning experiences that We will always remember and laugh about.

Service -all the staff were friendly.

It didn’t start off so great when we weren’t given cutlery/dishes to eat our entree and then after we asked, we weren’t given the right cutlery/dishes. We struggled a bit with what we were given.

Our waiter made sure my dessert had a birthday decoration on it which was sweet!

2.View- beautiful! We caught the sunset and it was stunning!

3.Aquarium- something special and fun to look at.

Food- just horrible…

$6 per piece of oyster, and they were frozen oysters. I understand that sometimes produce just can’t be sourced everyday, especially after COVID but at least let us know upfront that you have no fresh oysters…. There was no warning when we ordered. I spat out the ones I ate because they tasted so bland and chewy. When we raised it as an issue, the waiter just smiled and said “oh yeah they were frozen.. was the lemon and the sauce not able to cover that up?” There was no attempt to address the issue. Also the sauce wasn’t great either but if they were fresh oysters then it wouldn’t have mattered…. This was a huge disappointment and bad oysters residue taste doesn’t just go away. Terrible start to the meal..

-chicken: this is a personal no no. The chicken we were served had the same texture as if it was raw… we believe it was cooked. It looked cooked but it felt raw when we bit into it. It felt like we were biting into crunchy fibrous flesh. Won’t pretend like we have eaten raw chicken before but the way it felt in our mouth was similar to the feeling you get when you cut into thick raw chicken breast… I couldn’t bring myself to eat it.

fish main wasn’t bad. Not great, but after the gross oysters then “raw” chicken breast, I just felt lucky my husband switched his food with my chicken breast.

-seafood chowder was brilliant.

drinks- not bad, very ordinary but priced as if there were going to be fancy cocktails.

-food options on the menu were very very limited.

We didn’t make a fuss about anything because we know it’s not been easy since COVID and also it’s not like they were going to do anything about it.

Price- I think way overpriced for what we were served. It’s in a nice location with the view and the aquarium and so it’s charging at a fancy upmarket restaurant rate but unfortunately both its food and drinks were huge disappointments.

Parking wasn’t too easy but then we found paid public parking...

For a business in such a prime waterfront location, we expected a high-quality meal and excellent service—but unfortunately, this wasn’t the case.

Upon entering the fine dining side of the restaurant to request a table, we were directed to go around to the other side, without being informed that it was essentially a separate business with a completely different menu.

The menu itself was very limited and didn’t cater well to different dietary needs. Two members of our group had no real choice due to restrictions and had to settle for options they wouldn’t normally choose.

The outdoor deck area was shockingly unkempt—food and drink spills everywhere, straws stuck between wooden planks, and chairs scattered haphazardly. Staff didn’t greet us or address the mess, which detracted significantly from the experience.

As for the food: The “Angus beef burger” was a frozen patty that tasted microwaved. The ceviche was overwhelmed by coconut cream, completely masking any other flavours. The accompanying fried bread was stale and seemed to have been refried, only making it worse. The fish in the fish and chips had an odd chemical aftertaste, and the salad was drowned in an overly sweet dressing, rendering it inedible. Across the board, the chips were bland and overcooked.

We spent over $170 for four meals and five non-alcoholic drinks, which included a 15% public holiday surcharge we were aware of and willing to pay. Unfortunately, the quality of the food and overall experience did not justify the cost.

It was incredibly disappointing, especially as every other meal we had in Russell and Paihia was exceptional. This restaurant desperately needs a deep clean, better attention to service, and a serious menu overhaul.

People don’t mind paying for great food and a great experience—this...

We are in Paihia for the weekend, celebrating my parents 50th wedding anniversary. We went into Zane Grey this morning around 10.45am to have brunch. There was another group of about 16ppl but noone else.

I asked the front of house lady that there are 14 of us, if they can accommodate us. At first she suggested we sit in separate tables, and I requested if we could put together some tables. She then reluctantly got the waiter to help pull some tables together atleast for the adults, whilst the kids still sat on a separate table. Reminder again that there was already a large group of european people that they clearly arranged to they could sit together.

It was 11am and we went up to ask if we could order something from the lunch menu (which started from 11.30). Again the same lady was very condescending and made a face about having to go ask the kitchen...and unsurprisingly, the answer was a flat no.

The restaurant was empty except for us and the other group, and the sheer coldness and condescending attitude was just unbelievable.

At this point, it was clear that this place did not want our business, so we drank the coffees we'd paid for and left.

Ive been to Paihia many times and often visited this place with my husband (who is white) and never felt this racist attitude. This time, my husband wasn't with us, and the attitude was completely different.

Incredibly disappointing and made what was supposed to be a lovely family brunch to be just a waste of...