Alpine Parrot Cafe and Bar — Restaurant in South Island

Yesterday, while driving to Christchurch, I stopped at the business across the road. Today, after returning to Arthur’s Pass on the TranzAlpine Train and completing a 5-hour hike, I decided to support this place instead. I wish I hadn’t.

The café was empty, yet every table was dirty—covered in dishes, food stains, and sticky surfaces. Two songs were playing on a loop, which added to the neglected vibe. You’d think with so few customers the staff would have time to clean, but clearly not.

I wandered around for five minutes before someone finally emerged from the back and tossed me a laminated menu that had definitely seen better days. Without much of a greeting, they just said, “You need to pay at the counter.”

I ordered fish and chips with a Coke Zero. The food arrived in decent time, but the fish was burnt and clearly frozen—the batter was so bad I had to peel it off. No one came out to check how the food was or offer anything else.

During my meal, five other people walked in and promptly left, including a family of four. A group of three came in hoping for a beer (understandable, given “Bar” is in the name and beer taps are visible), but were told they couldn’t be served alcohol because of a “new manager.”

All in all, not a great experience. I really wanted to support a local business, but unfortunately this one didn’t seem to care much about making a good impression. I...

Paid $71 for takeaway meal for 2 people. We got a beef burger, and fish (both came big a small side of chips), and two bottles of coke. Beef burger tasted like a frozen patty, and wasn't that pleasant. Fish was definitely frozen, and the two pieces we got were very small. Chips were a bit bland and lacking seasoning and crunch.

We turned up just before 6:30 (aka dinner time), to find that they couldn't serve us dine in. To be fair, their listing on Google does say they close at 7pm, but this feels like a strange decision given most of their customers will be traveller's just passing through, expecting to find a place to eat in Arthur's Pass at dinner time.

Also have to note that they don't serve alcohol, and the only drinks available seemed to be bottled ones from the fridge.

Overall, food was poor, price was too high, and service was lacking. Recommend stopping by literally anywhere else if you can (perhaps the...

First NZ diner to disappoint on our 2 week holiday. We ordered Buttermilk pancakes ($25) and were served 3 tiny store bought pancakes, heated in griddle with whipped cream. We expected a plate of freshly made pancakes. Another one was toast with Avocado. Again, the store bought Guacamole was used on the toast, that too a thin layer like a jam. Paying $14 for that was a total waste. We expected fresh avocado on toast.

Totally not worth the prices. Would not recommend to visit here until the improvements...