Hardy St Eatery — Restaurant in Nelson

Hmmm. This was an interesting experience.

Aesthetically, I love the place with the cosy yet minimal design of the eatery and the ability to watch all that is going on in the kitchen. It really helps build a nice atmosphere that I could definitely recommend to design students for inspiration.

The food was good as well. I blame myself for not having prior knowledge that a ‘Reuben Sandwich’ doesn’t operate the same way as a regular sandwich - due to its lack of the second slice of bread - but it was enjoyable nonetheless. The coffee served prior was nice as well.

My issue is with the service.

Starting off well, it got progressively worse. I entered the eatery with three others - one that purchased food, one who entered and then left after deciding the food was priced out of their budget, and one who didn’t purchase anything. Those two who stayed were both treated the same and offered water as a refreshment. Later on, the rest of my friends caught up with us and brought with them food. Now I can understand having a policy that restricts bringing in food from outside as it doesn’t look good for the business. But when you do not make that known to a potential new customer, and then proceed to make them uncomfortable using physical contact, it raises some issues ethically (tapping my teenage female friends on the shoulder vs. using the more appropriate method, “Excuse me Ms...”). Further inconsistencies arise as in that exact situation, my male friend who also had outside food, was not addressed in anyway. He was later addressed but impolitely, “Hey buddy, it’s rude to bring in food from another restaurant.” I don’t remember it being common eatery etiquette to belittle adults using such terms and was quite shocked. He was also, and brought up the theory that an older person would most definitely not be treated the same way.

I would not expect any of this to affect the service being displayed to me, the paying customer. I suggested to my friends that they should leave as to not upset the ‘hosts’ any longer and they did so. I neared the end of my sandwich and was feeling parched. I noticed that the man who must be the manager or owner, was going round and filling everyone’s glasses up to the brim. I waited for him to come round to my table and do the same but he didn’t. I was puzzled. Did I not have a glass that needed to be filled? I don’t know what could’ve been the reason: could’ve been the fact that my friends had somehow upset him, could’ve been that he simply forgot. But there was something about the way that he interacted with the chef - who I can clearly see due to the brilliant design choice, who made direct eye contact with me - that made it feel like a personal choice, rather than a professional decision.

I helped myself to multiple glasses of the water that I should’ve been served, made sure that I thanked the chef more than...

A fabulous way to start your day awaits you at The Hardy Street Eatery in Nelson.

Winter sunshine streaming through the broad windows onto Hardy Street, the aroma of fresh coffee brewing, the morning paper, the bustle of the kitchen, a warm fire and the mouth-watering waft of breakfast to come…A new day begins.

The Hardy Street Eatery is a new venture for globe-trotting Master-Chef James Rutherford, who has spent much of his 38 years travelling the world preparing food for Tokyoites, rich and famous super-yachties, Londoners and more recently Wellingtonians. On his travels, he has gleaned a great understanding of food; flavours, nutrition, style and how to prepare and serve it in a creative and innovative fashion.

“Our philosophy at Hardy St is to create an atmosphere similar to enjoying a meal at home – serving creative, seasonal and approachable food from a regularly changing menu with damn good booze and coffee.” James Rutherford

Open at 7:30 a.m. for breakfast, the eatery has a range of options to fuel the day, I chose simple bacon and eggs, with a little homemade “buttery” kimchi on the side. Rutherford is mad-keen on fermenting foods and has several opportunities to sample his efforts on the menu.

The kitchen is open and much of the food preparation and plating is easily visible from the restaurant. Rutherford is completely at ease with this and his vast experience in the galley is evident as he calmly and efficiently prepares the orders and delivers the fare.

The cheerful waiting staff deliver the meals easily and efficiently as the restaurant is open, easily negotiated and spacious. The decor classic, clean and stylish. Alfresco dining on sunny street-side tables is also on offer and will undoubtedly be popular in the warmer months.

The menu features locally sourced ingredients from regional suppliers who specialise in quality produce. Rutherford recognises the quality of New Zealand produce and uses his global culinary experience to turn it into quality meals with international flavour and style.

The food was superb, simple, beautifully presented, tasty and reasonably priced. Rutherford is a name well know to Nelsonisans and James Rutherford will be splitting atoms and making culinary bombs for the people to savour.

I enjoyed the meal and the eatery experience so much, I went back for lunch...

I stopped in at Hardy Street Cafe for brunch after some serious selection from the best Google reviews and pictures. The environment was clean, open and spacious. It seemed like a wonderful place to just chill and relax. I ordered a flat white and the buttermilk pancakes with maple syrup and bacon. Just as I was beginning to get annoyed at the wait time, the food arrived. My first thought was that it looked exceptionally plain, as compared to other cafes, the food was true to the description, no additional accompaniments. I have to admit, given my hunger and disposition, I was a little disappointed and skeptical that this place was really as good as the reviews made it out to be. However, the first bite of food made it ABRUPTLY CLEAR that this was the most BEAUTIFUL, DELICIOUS, BREATHTAKING pancakes I could have ever recieved. The pancakes were picturesque - prettier than in any picture, movie, or add. They were soft and pillowy, dripping with a beautiful dollop of glistening butter, underneath a nest of perfectly fried bacon. The combination of the soft, gorgeous pancakes, maple syrup, bacon and butter was INCREDIBLE. words cannot describe how this meal will live on in my mind as the new gold standard of pancakes and bacon. In all my years, nothing has ever come close to the perfection I experienced at Hardy...