11th Avenue by Frank's — Restaurant in South Island

I didn’t want to write this negative review because earlier we had been to Eater by Franks and were very happy with the food, but the waiter at 11th Ave by Franks really left us annoyed so here we go. We came in for dinner on a Sunday night. We ordered the risotto with truffle, the green curry, the lamb curry and a pizza. Both curries lacked so much flavour, especially the green curry. It was honestly a bit of a joke. Veggies were fresh and abundant but that’s the only positive about this dish. The lamb curry had zero umpf, it was just bland. The risotto tasted nice but the chicken was grey due to not being seared before, just boiled, and the risotto was more like a soup. Don’t put risotto on the menu if you don’t know how to cook it properly. But what pissed me off the most was the pizza. It tasted absolutely delicious, that wasn’t the problem, it was the way the waiter (French guy) took the order. Our kids wanted ham and cheese but there was only a ham cheese mushroom option or salami and cheese. On Sunday nights, certain pizzas were in special, $23. I asked if they could swap the salami for ham but that seemed too complicated so I said go with the ham cheese mushroom option but cancel the mushrooms. When I went up to pay I was charged full price for the pizza. I walked back in and asked why and the French waiter said I had ordered a pizza that wasn’t on the specials list! So despite asking if they could swap the salami for ham (which apparently was impossible) I had to pay full price for a pizza with 3 toppings even though I asked to not have the mushrooms added! Because of this minor thing we will not be going back to 11th nor to Eatery....

So asked for three coffees and the young lady repeated three coffees back to me then I ordered a little bit of food. Piece of cake sat down at the table coffees didn’t arrive the girl was having photos taken for Instagram by a friend I kept watching then went over and asked. Hey I ordered a couple of coffees. I haven’t received them yet. Was told you didn’t order coffees from me nor did you pay for these coffees. I said that was the first thing I said to you and you repeated the coffee order back to me. The coffees were then made and paid for and as I was leaving the restaurant with my now takeaway coffees we now were push for time I was chastise and scolded by the French manager for not being polite enough to the person who had not made my order no apology. “fantastic service”Well I guess I won’t be coming back to this establishment again, which she was happy with. So I think that a little customer training is in order and maybe staff should spend a little less time taking photos for Instagram and social media and a bit more customer focused on the people who are actually spending money in the business but it’s just my opinion. What does that matter they obviously don’t need my money or...

Visited Saturday 10th May - Dinner

Would have been great if they had signage to indicate non locals where the entrance was, and that there are two separate entrances (though both can lead to the main dining area) for bar and dining areas

Ordered the BT Blue Cod fish and Steak & Chips, along with the Panhead Supercharger beer and a glass of Terra Sancta Lola Pino Gris

The steak was amazing, succulent, juicy, cooked to perfection (medium rare) and the chips and salad were a good combination to complete this meal

I would dare say, much better than a lot of semi formal dining establishments that offer steaks

The BT Blue Cod fish were very tasty and fresh, as the pan seared with all the herbs and spices makes this dish really great

Service was good and as expected

Though reservation was required on their site, it is not required - we were placed to be seated near the main doors that open whenever customers or staff go in or out, not that great when it's cold and...