Central Fire Station Bistro — Restaurant in Napier

My wife and I decided to come here (above other tried and tested restaurants in Napier) to celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary. Getting out for a meal without our 3 young kids is a rare thing, so we were excited to have an evening out to ourselves. The evening started well. We got there at 5:30pm and the restaurant was virtually empty. The restaurants decor is pretty cool, and we started with a glass of champagne each to celebrate our anniversary. Unfortunately that's where our dining experience peaked. The chairs we were sitting on had more personality than the waiter that was looking after us. There was no greetings or pleasantries, and he spoke so quietly we struggled to hear what he was trying to communicate to us. He took our order of a shared dish from the menu, but we received the wrong dish, and when we brought this to the waiters attention he told us he didn't know how he had gotten our order wrong as the blue cheese platter he gave us wasn't even listed on the menu he had provided. He offered to resolve the issue, but we had already started eating it, so we decided to finish it. My wife wanted to taste 2 wines to see which one she was going to order for her main course. When she told the same waiter she wanted to taste them both so she could decide which one to order, he told her one of the wines wasn't available so that should make her decision a lot easier. He returned a few minutes later to tell us they actually did have both wines available after all. We ordered a main course each with a side dish, but the mains were served without the side. My wifes 'market fish' was so overpowered by all the lemon in it, she couldn't taste the fish or anything else. Every mouthful was like biting into a lemon. My Gnocchi was good, but I didn't eat it as I was waiting for the side dish. We waited patiently for our side to be served, but it never came. We finally waved down the manager who had to order our side dish again. When the side dish finally arrived, our main dishes were almost cold and our enthusiasm for the food was gone. There was no offer to provide us with fresh mains to go with our fresh hot side dish. To top it off, when the waiter came back to ask how everything was, we tried to explain why we weren't happy with our dining experience, so he turned his back on us and walked away mid conversation, leaving us both sitting there gobsmacked. That was the last straw for us. One isolated mistake could have been overlooked, but after the wrong info about the wines, the 2 messed up courses, and his rude demeanour, we were both left feeling extremely underwhelmed and annoyed. We got up and left having drank 1 glass of champagne each and sharing the wrong entree. We didn't eat our cold mains or drink our wine. We walked up to Mister D's restaurant, who provided us with a complimentary glass of champagne each to celebrate our anniversary, and provided us with the level of service you expect to receive when dining out. As we had already partially eaten, we didn't order more main courses, opting to share a couple of smaller entrees instead. Our evening ended pleasantly as a result, but we went home without having had a full meal, and feeling somewhat deflated from our experience at Central Fire Station. 1 star for the decor in the restaurant, and 1 star for the managers efforts to resolve the situation, which included not making us pay for what we had consumed. Either we got the waiter on a really off day, or he just wasn't up to the job. We could probably go back tomorrow and have a great experience, but these opportunities are few and far between for us, so going back to Central Fire Station wont be...

This was our first visit to Central Fire Station as we have tended to favor nearby Havelock North restaurants. We were seated by a large window overlooking the park which was a lovely spot. We started with an order of the fresh baked sourdough bread which was served warm. The two slices provided were a bit underwhelming for $5.50, but the bread itself was tasty. There are only four mains to choose from and we both ordered the ravioli dish. It was good, but not a great value at $42, especially when compared with fish or meat dishes of similar price. We had a side salad which was also nice. A glass of wine each and our total was $140 for the night. The overall meal was fine, but I would definitely rate Craggy Range higher given the comparable price points. The only turnoff was when paying for the meal the machine asked if we would like to leave a tip. Really? Does the restaurant not pay its waitstaff a living wage? In the united states waitstaff are paid less than minimum wage and rely on tips to make up the difference. New Zealand employees are paid a minimum wage which is why it is not customary to leave a tip as their wage is included in the cost of the meal. So the waitstaff at Central Fire have it made… they earn a living wage AND have their hand out for tips. This is the first instance where I have seen this happen and I do hope that it is not a trend. While the food was fine it was the request for a tip that left a foul taste...

This has been a restaurant that I've been wanting to dine at for a while, but just never seem to quite get to. Went with 4 work colleagues to celebrate the longest night of the year. Felt spoilt from the moment we walked in; temperature, lighting and background sounds all just right. The venue felt like it was carefully looked after and well maintained. Service was very good, one incorrect order was amended efficiently, with zero fuss and a polite apology from the manager, even though it was as much our fault as the person taking the order (5/5 for this). It would be nice to see another staff member on the floor to allow the team more time to be themselves and interact with patrons and add those little touches, like pouring wine by the glass at the table rather than at the bar, placing napkins in laps etc. Food was exceptional, as you would expect when paying c.$30.00 for a starter and c.$50 for a main in regional New Zealand. Clearly a lot of love, passion and time has gone into the prep and menu design. Nice to see a kitchen equipped with a menu and staff to cope with more than half of the tables sitting in relatively short order. Would love to see a dégustation option added to the menu in future. It was a treat, not inexpensive, but very worthwhile. Well...