The Village Cafe & Bar — Restaurant in Martinborough Community

Very disappointing. Not recommended going. It may have been very good in the past, but it no longer is today. Food took a very long time to arrive and it wasn’t even that great. We ordered the chicken burger, big kiddie breakfast and the egg peregrine. There were a lot of people coming in to have lunch, presumably due to their reputation in the past.They did inform all of us upon ordering that the food will take 50mins to arrive and drinks will take 25mins to arrive. We still went ahead with it as we weren’t that hungry yet and could wait for 50mins. Everyone in the queue (including two big group behind us) also went ahead and ordered with the expectation that the food will come within the hour. However that was not the case at all! After an hour, none of us have even gotten our food yet. Not even the other patrons. The two big groups also hasn’t received any of their orders yet. So you have an almost full restaurant with lots of hungry patrons sitting and waiting patiently for their food. All these while, the staff didn’t give us any updates and they didn’t seem apologetic. After another 30-45mins, no one has yet gotten their food (only their drinks), the once long queue to order now became a queue for refunds. One by one, the patrons stood up from their table and join the queue to get their refund. The patrons were even advising other tables to also do the same as it was that bad. There was a table next to us who had a simple order of just two eggs on toast, but yet they haven’t received it. Eventually the restaurant emptied out leaving just our table and another and we eventually got our food. I firmly believe that the reason why we got our food was because everyone else left, otherwise we would’ve had to wait until dinner time. And all these while, they did not even apologise or offer any compensation such as a complimentary drink or snack to keep us going.

The food arrived one at a time (even though we ordered two chicken burgers, they still came individually). You would think they would prepare and serve an entire table’s order together. My chicken burger was very disappointing, there was not much chicken. Just two round small pieces of chicken. The overall dish was just sad.

Other than that the setting of the restaurant was nice. Large tables and lots of seating both inside and outside.

They really need to change their ways asap otherwise I wouldn’t be surprised that they will have to close...

I'm going to start with my initial experience upon arrival and then further discuss my experience e and finally finish with the food today, ill separate each section by paragraph for those that wish to skip ahead:

Atmosphere and Setting: My initial observation was that we had entered a beautiful wine barn, the wood gave it a nice warm feeling and the atmosphere was gentle and open, although it was crowded it was quite quiet. Everyone seemed very friendly, but where were the staff? We weren't greated by anyone and just made our way to an empty table, when I say empty I mean no customers but dishes left on the table, this was not a rare occurrence, I guess they were very busy, we chose a quiet spot at the back with the least amount of dishes, after moving the dishes to the edge of the table we made ourselves comfortable and perused the menu, luckily they had a few vegan options. After about 15 minutes the staff noticed our presence and removed the dishes from the previous customers, I won't lie, I was conflicted, I felt that I probably could have removed the dishes myself but social anxiety kicked in.

The Meal: I ordered a "Big Veggie Breakkie" and removed the eggs, sweet now its vegan. They did offer a Vegan Hash, but it felt kind of boring. The wine serving was extremely generous, I might have left a bit tipsy, not complaining at all. The breakkie had an assortment of choices for bread, I chose the sourdough, the portobello came in a moderate size, not too big and not too small, the tomato was huge! As for the taste; the beans were wonderful, you could taste the homemade sauce, amazing, the hashbrown tasted home made as well, had a gorgeous texture, crunchy and soft, really went well with the beans, the sourdough was the highlight, absolutely marvelous.

I won't lie, initially I started this experience thinking ill gave a terrible experience, however after ordering the meals arrived hastily and tasted devine.

Do I recommend the Village Cafe & Bar to vegans?

Yes, if you're happy with the options. Come down,...

I popped in to the Village Cafe today to grab a takeaway coffee. We were visiting from Wellington on Wellington Anniversary weekend. I saw the sign saying there was a 15% surcharge. I understand some businesses charging this extra fee for covering additional expenses, although many don't these days which generally creates greater goodwill from customers and businesses avoid that awful "cashing in on public holidays" label. However, ordering a takeaway latte I wasn't expected for the $6 charge. I said to the young lady at the counter that it seemed very expensive for a takeaway coffee and that I have never paid that much for a take out coffee. She pointed at the 15% surcharge sign, shrugged, then pointed at the take away cups and said that I "had to pay for the cup" and "I don't know how they work these things out". I have lived in both London and Sydney and have never had to pay $6 for a basic take out coffee. I think it is essentially ripping off of customers and I was absolutely put out by the young girl's lack of a decent logical intelligent response and lack of justified reasoning behind the ridiculous amount I was to pay. I also think it is a very sad state of affairs that places like the Village Cafe get away with charging this. "Cashing" in on a Wellington Anniversary weekend to make extra cash is OK if you are having a sit down meal, but come on guys, charging extra for take away coffee is way over the top. I always go to the Village Cafe when in Martinborough but will now be looking elsewhere for my...