Origami Napier — Restaurant in Napier

REVIEW UPDATE

I wanted to leave an update to my review after trying out more of their menu and their high tea experience. Their desserts remain top notch, although there hasn’t been anything new in their line up. I will probably stop going here since i’ve tried them all.

I’ve tried their Miso Ramen and considering this is a recommended dish, it’s probably one of the worst ramens i’ve had in new zealand. It just tastes off and very unauthentic and the toppings are mediocre.

High Tea was good, it’s nice to be able to try an assortment of their desserts. The only problem is they dont really ask for any dietary requirements and half of the spread is seafood, which my company cannot eat. They did not enjoy the high tea apart from the sweets, we had to order additional food since they were still hungry and sweets dont really make for a complete lunch. The jasmine tea tasted watered down, by the time it steeped enough to taste like anything, it was all out.

The more we went back, the more i got disappointed with origami.

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We found out about Origami when a friend recommended their beautiful looking desserts to us and they did not disappoint. Desserts looked amazing and tasted amazing! Each bite had multiple layers of flavours. Came back today for dinner and the food was spot on - especially their side dishes. Best part is they are very affordable! The only critique i can give is that it’s a bit hot in there, not ideal when you have leather seats and serving hot broth, and theres no music playing at all. Overall great Japanese food, would definitely come back, I’d love to try their High Tea one...

Went with a larger booking for a work night out, were promptly seated and the orders taken. The entrees were delivered and orders taken. The food was exceptional, both presentation and taste. We couldn't fault anything about the food but meals were delivered to the wrong person and weren't explained when delivered. Ordered another round of drinks and after about 15 minutes asked how long the drinks would be, were told that they couldn't make them as the bar person was too busy with other tables, a fair comment as we were ordering a lot of cocktails but put a damper on the meal. We waited for the dessert menu to be given to us but were then advised that we had to order from the display. Placed our orders but only half of the table received their desserts, after 30 minutes asked what had happened to the rest of the desserts only to told they had all been served. Turned out that miscommunication between staff had resulted in only half of them being served. It turned into a bit of a mission to sort the remainder out as takeaways. Overall the food made up for the service and the manager and staff could not have been more apologetic about our experience. Feel the staff just need more training and systems in place, they seemed to be struggling and a bit out of their depth. We would definitely return as we were a big group which does place pressure on the staff. Well done to everyone, you tried your best and your attitude to the issues was good. The manager certainly did her best. Overall still an enjoyable evening....

We have eaten at Origami and enjoyed the experience on three previous occasions. One of these was with friends who seriously enjoy good food and wine. On this occasion, we took along two very expensive bottles of wonderful wine and had a great evening. I think we paid corkage which is fine and expected. Last week we checked with the restaurant about bringing our own wine for a special evening and they said it was okay. So last night was my wife’s and my 40th wedding anniversary. We took along a very serious bottle of wine that we had saved for 20 years to enjoy with the Asian fusion food that Origami serve. But we were advised by the waitress that we could not bring our own wine. I protested explaining that we had done so previously and had also got approval for this occasion However, she was adamant so we purchased a red wine from their selection of three red wines. I regret going there to celebrate our major milestone anniversary and in hindsight I wish we had walked out and gone somewhere else that would have been more supportive of our special celebration. The waitresses story that their liquor licence does not allow BYO is nonsense however, she was very professional and was only doing her job. Due to this disappointing evening we are unlikely to go back but that shouldn’t detract from the fact that their food is quite good, service is generally very good and the...