The Laboratory — Restaurant in Canterbury

We have frequented The Laboratory on numerous occasions, however our visit last night to enjoy a Fathers Day feast with my son fell really short of previous experiences. Service was poor, and the food matched it. After we had ordered drinks from the bar and took them to the table pointed out to us by the waiter, we sat waiting for someone to attend to us. After about 10 minutes my son went to the counter and asked for some menus. There was only one available at the counter. The waitress finally came over with two menus. (There was 3 of us and meant we had to share). We noticed that all the tables around us, still had menus on their tables after they had already had food delivered. Eventually, after we ordered our food, it confirmed why they didn't have enough; waiters did not collect them after taking orders and left them on tables for the entire meal. Food was poor, chips came first, hot and piping, (these were good), however that's where it went down-hill. Spare ribs were overcooked and dry and the Fried Tandoori Chicken was also very poor with a chalky, dusty, powdery coating that wasn't enjoyable to eat. We ordered the "special" pizza off the chalk board..... the only thing special about it was that it wasn't actually on the original menu. There was nothing generally wrong with it, but nothing special either. 2 slices actually had no topping... just a slight smear of tomato sauce. At the end of the meal the waiter cleared plates whilst one of us was still eating, the sauce for the fried chicken was cleared away with the empty chip container, so there was nothing to dip the final chicken pieces in, and drink glasses were removed with drink still in, leaving my wife to grab the glass back. Finally, when paying for the meal at the counter, the waiter went through the items we had ordered, and had added 3 extra drinks we hadn't ordered or drank. We queried this and another waiter had to clear the items off our bill. Unfortunately this has soured our view of what we thought was a high class venue. There is more competition in the town now, so a little training of staff may...

This is was not a great experience for me my husband and son. My husband's and my mains which cost approx $27 were awful. My tofu burger had enormous mushy tofu chunks with a slimy dressing. The tofu needed to be fried and perhaps had soy sauce added during the frying. I had two bites and then I left it on my plate and couldn't eat the chips. My husband had a lamb shoulder bowl which looked really poor again. Presentation was non existent. Meat, and a bit of hummus and vegetables clumped around the plate. And not generous at all. My son's pork burger seemed ok. We paid about $90 for food and $40 for drinks. To top it all off the matre de was rude. He didn't have enough staff on and he pointedly told me to sit down for 1 1/2 minutes and I would be served. And then after ten minutes he came over and said what would you like to order, and we had been talking, so we picked up the menus again to order and he said, Oh, you are not ready I will come back! The way he said this was so rude again. This gentleman needs to take a day off and look after his well being. Unfortunately none of us had pizza as I know the pizzas are good. But that will be the last time we go to the Laboratory. I am not a complaining person generally but I had to review this. The kitchen and service, needs to lift it's game in this...

exceptional place, excellent staff. We booked for 7 of our family for a christmas lunch, requesting the outside courtyard area. Promptly seated by the friendly staff, with menus to choose what we wanted for lunch.

Meals promptly ordered, great service, excellent vibe. Christmas is always such a busy time of year, it was wonderful to have a lovely place to relax, connect, enjoy great food with a lovely cozy backdrop of christmas. All staff were super friendly, helpful and quick to help or offer tips on what to order. What was also really great to see was how the staff communicated and treated with each other, working so well as a team during this busy time.,

My family and I had a memorable lunch, we're local (ish), living not too far away in the Selwyn District area so it's great to see such a level of hospitality and culinary delight in our own backyard. Oooh and great selection of beers, ciders,...