Hotties Beachfront Eatery — Restaurant in North Island

A Hidden Gem at Hot Water Beach – Hotties is a Must-Visit!

We stumbled upon Hotties on our first day at Hot Water Beach, and it quickly became the highlight of our trip! The name gave us a laugh (sounds more like a strip club than a restaurant), but from the moment we walked in, we knew we’d found something special.

The warm welcome started with Pauline, the owner, who opened the bar for us while we waited for our bartender—her son, Anton. And let me tell you, Anton is a tequila artist. He crafted an incredible margarita with a sea salt and chili rim, and when we told him about Mexican martinis, he surprised us the next day with a round of them!

The food was absolutely divine. The fresh sourdough bread was perfection, and the caprese salad tasted like summer. We had a pan-fried snapper with pineapple and red pepper, served alongside rich au gratin potatoes—every bite was incredible. Anton even gave us a local tip: head to the beach at low tide (9:30 p.m.) for a soak under the stars. Pure magic.

We loved it so much, we came back for Bruce’s birthday dinner, booking the best table with an ocean view. Anton had our Mexican martinis waiting, and Mark (Pauline’s husband) recommended a fantastic wine to pair with our meal. We savored the salmon salad, prawn linguine, and snapper, all while watching surfers ride the waves as the sun set over the hills.

And just when we thought it couldn’t get better, Pauline’s homemade peach pie à la mode arrived. Flaky, warm, and bursting with flavor, it was the perfect ending to an unforgettable meal—a dessert not to be missed!

We thought we came to experience Hot Water Beach, but the real gem was the family-run Hotties. Incredible food, heartfelt hospitality, and unforgettable memories—this is the kind of place you never forget. A must-visit if you’re...

We went there for dinner after a hot day on the beach. Food was ok but the guy called Mark was not very nice and made us feel very unwelcomed. First he kicked me out when I finished my cookies and drink bought from their take away window at 4:30pm. I just went away to throw out rubbish and came back to my sleeping baby in the stroller by the table and found Mark has flipped the chair by the table to not allow me to sit back down. That's fine as I wanted to have a walk around anyway. But that's very rude of him to do that. When I asked if they open for dinner he said yes but only available from 5:30pm. He also said I needed to book for dinner otherwise there might not be anything available. I didn't book with him as there are 7 of us so I was not sure if others would want to dine there. Anyway we did go there for dinner around 6:15pm as kids were hungry. When I went and asked for a table for 7, there was no one in the restaurant. He asked how many kids and I said 4 adults and 3 kids. He said that's ok but we have to sit outside. I didn't ask why as I thought the tables inside were reserved. But the tables inside has been empty from we walked in until we left. I didn't understand why we have to sit outside. Maybe because we have 3 kids so it would be too noisy for them inside? We felt cold outside as there was no sun out their back. My friend asked for pan fry john dory but he doesnt like butter so asked if they can cook it in cooking oil instead of butter. Mark said he's not sure if chef can cook it in oil so he needed to ask. What kind of chef can't cook john dory in oil and have to cook in butter??? Very very disappointed. Food was way too overpriced for its quality. Avoid going there if customer service...

PUSHY AMERICAN OWNER STRIKES AGAIN:

TLDR: I myself am American. Don’t come here the owner is SO RUDE. You’ll spend the rest of the day thinking of all the things you should have said to tell him off.

Wow! This was so bad I don’t even know where to start. The rude man/owner who has was mentioned in the other reviews managed to ruin our dinner. Disclaimer, I AM AMERICAN, but not stupid and I know when one of us is just being rude. I can sum it in 2 points.

1. waiting to be sat, we hear who I assume to be the owner (based on his unchecked arrogance) arguing rudely with a woman. He took on a demeaning voice and calling her honey… briefly overheard him complaining about how much he has to pay immigrant labor at his restaurant… shocking. feels off, but we’re starving so we go ahead anyway.

2. moving on, we are sat down by the owner who then asks us what we would like to drink. Context me and my partner drove here and cannot drink ( like most people) he then told us HE’LL HAVE TO MOVE US AWAY FROM THE NICE VIEW IF WE DON’T WANT TO DRINK AND SPEND IT UP!!!!!! Genuinely thought he was joking but he was FULLY SERIOUS. Spoiler alert, we ended up spending loads for a small portions of mediocre food… shocker.

Ps: my skin was burnt and I asked if we could put up the umbrella, man said no because the sun was “about to set” (in FOUR HOURS) He probably thought it would ruin the aesthetic in...