Strange Bandit by Luciano — Restaurant in Christchurch

18th June 2019 - This is a café that is located near the Wairakei Road. It is quite visible from Roydvale Avenue. This business has been operating for some time and it services the local businesses.

Anyway, the interior layout is well set up with multiple standard dining tables and chairs. It is also well lit and it feels very cosy.

The menu is very straightforward and is not overwhelming (which is a good thing) with choices but rather nicely balanced. They also sell alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks🍷🍺🍹🥃🥛 such as coffee and tea ☕🍵.

I’ve ordered a latte in a glass, and Eggs Your Way; consists four pieces of triangle-shaped bread, two free range eggs and I was given a butter spread. You are given the option to choose what bread you like to eat and how your eggs are cooked. I like sunnyside up 🍳🍞🥚😋. The eggs were cooked to perfection (yummy) and the bread was nicely toasted (i.e. No burnt marks). I only wish the eggs were bigger as to satisfy my hunger.

Overall, it was a good experience and recommend to try their food. 👍👍☺️😊

Good portion sizes.

This is a child-friendly restaurant.

This is a licensed (🍻🍸🍷🍾🍹🍺) Café. There is a small outdoor area.

There is onsite parking 🅿 but need to make sure to park in the right spot. Otherwise, your car will be tow away 😅.

They accept cash and EFTPOS including credit card payments (Paywave payments are available, for those who want to know).

Would I go back? Yes 😀. Well worth a try and you will not be disappointed.

Food: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5. It was delish and yummy 😋. Ambience: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5. Relax and cosy. Price: ⭐⭐⭐ out of 5. Reasonable pricing compared to other Café in Christchurch. Customer service: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5. ...

Sadly disappointed. I was excited by the reviews, and drove especially to Strange Bandit on a sunny Sunday.

Ordered a Vienna and instead of fresh liquid cream it came with canned whipped cream - something I’d expect from a gas station cafe, and not a prime cafe that really cares about coffee.

Ordered scrambled eggs with rye bread, and was surprised to find a tiny serving of egg swamped by two giant slices of rather plain looking sponge-like bread. Again, the quality felt like something from Denny’s rather than something artisan. And at least Denny’s would be generous with the eggs.

To top it off both staff I engaged with were short with me, making zero effort at pleasantness. Probably overworked and perhaps under a tough manager - I get it and I’m sorry you’re having a bad day - but I’m not the enemy. I’m the customer who won’t be coming back. It really makes a huge difference to the customer experience (and takes no more of your time OR energy) if you take a breath, look the customer in the eye, and try for a smile. You’ll feel better for it to, cos a smile is contagious.

The other customers were lovely though, and I had at least four smiles from them (all strangers) while waiting in the queue, or finding a table.

Won’t be coming back, and won’t be...

I was so excited to try this café, but I ended up really disappointed. I ordered Fried Chicken “Double” Waffle. The staff served me chicken without the waffles. I told him what I ordered and reiterated that I wanted the double waffle. He came back and asked again if I wanted the single or the double—at this point, I wasn’t even sure if he was really listening to me/us.

He then informed us that my order would take 8 minutes, which was fine by me. We also asked for small plates for the tacos, but the server never came back.

My boyfriend’s family had already finished their meals, and my order still hadn’t arrived.

Finally, when my food did arrive, I was shocked bec it looked nothing like the pictures from other people’s reviews (see photo below. Unless they changed the recipe since then??? Idk). For someone with a sweet tooth, this was very, very sweet. The waffles were soaked in sauce, and I couldn’t taste anything besides the overwhelming sweetness. The waffles were even sweeter than my chocolate milkshake.

I might never...