The Lane — Restaurant in Christchurch

I visited the restaurant for the second time last night, but it was my friend's first visit. On my initial visit, I had breakfast and ordered hot pancakes. During that visit, I noticed that on Wednesdays, the restaurant offers a beer and burger special for $28, and I was quite pleased with the quality of the food. Since my friend and I hadn't seen each other in quite some time, we thought it would be a great opportunity to go there together.

Unfortunately, after our experience last night, we do not plan to return to the restaurant and cannot recommend it to others. We were left with a very negative impression due to the way one of the staff members (whom we believe was the manager) treated us. Shortly after being seated, my friend and I were excited to catch up with each other. She took her phone out and remarked on how nice the restaurant looked, intending to take a photo. We were seated near the kitchen area, at a table for two.

As my friend attempted to take a photo of the kitchen area, the manager walked into her shot and approached us, raising her voice and stating that taking photos was not allowed. We were both taken aback and confused by her reaction. My friend responded, "Oh, really? Okay." The manager continued in a firm and raised voice, emphasising that we needed to ask for permission before taking photos. Eventually, my friend deleted the photo. However, the way we were treated left us feeling shocked and wanting to leave.

We understand and respect people's privacy when it comes to taking photos and videos, particularly in this era of social media. However, my friend had no intention of invading anyone's privacy. She simply wanted to capture the ambiance of the place, and the manager unexpectedly walked into the frame and proceeded to confront us. Let's be realistic, if the photo were to be shared on a social media platform like Instagram, there wouldn't be any recognisable individuals in it. Most people aim for an aesthetic or even use editing tools to remove unwanted objects from their photos. We acknowledge that this wasn't the point the manager was trying to make. However, there are better ways to communicate such matters. For instance:

"Excuse me, due to the privacy of others in the restaurant, we kindly request that you avoid capturing anyone in your photos. Could you please delete that photo?" or "Hey, sorry, due to the privacy of other people in this restaurant, please try not to include anyone in your photo. Would you mind deleting that photo?"

The manager's approach, on the other hand, involved standing over us, raising her voice, and making a scene that was audible to nearby tables. It left us feeling embarrassed and disheartened. We are not children who are still learning the rules of restaurants and social etiquette. It would have been more appropriate to address us as adults. Once again, I reiterate that my friend was simply trying to take a photo of the restaurant itself, and you happened to walk into the frame.

Regarding the food, I would rate it 8 out of 10. However, the service, particularly the incident with the manager, was highly...

As a stuff at Novotel I took my family to the lane for my sister’s birthday. The staff there from dinner (there were only two staffs working that night in the restaurant, a young lady and man) they were so lovely. The service was amazing & they were very understanding. The way they both served us was super professional even though we were the loudest there (sorry lol) celebrating my sister but they made us feel comfortable in the environment. I gave the guy staff instructions for my sister’s cake and he listened and did exactly that. Thankyou to both of the staff for making my sister and family feel welcomed and special! Thankyou for my sister’s dinner. The cocktails looked so presentable and it tasted good!

Shout out to Han and the lovely lady receptionist who wears glasses, black hair for looking after us and welcoming us with open arms and welcoming us with such beautiful service they were so amazing & thankyou for keeping my sister’s cake safe. Definitely going back to the lane and definitely staying at Sudima hotel more. Room was so amazing! My family loved the whole experience! Made our experience esp my sister’s...

Have dined here a few times now and the service is always amazing, such a good vibe. The food had been really good with the menu items we had enjoyed in the past, however today we ordered the burgers and they were terrible, i'm sad to say. We ate them because you know, we were hungry and had places to be, but the patty was SO dry, the bread slightly stale, the sauce just not.a pleasant flavour and just WAY too sloppy to eat as a burger is intended. Really disappointing. Just wanted to leave this review so maybe they can improve this dish, because as I said the other things we have tried in the past...