Hook Wānaka - Lake to Plate — Restaurant in South Island

Having grown up in New Zealand, where King (Chinook) salmon is practically a national treasure, I can confidently say this was the worst “salmon” I’ve ever encountered in my life.

Let’s start with the bright spots: the fishing part was genuinely fun, the beers were crisp and refreshing, and the pizza was surprisingly decent. Unfortunately, that’s where the positives end.

Now, onto the salmon. The first bite hit me like a plot twist in a horror movie—I almost gagged. It had the earthy, murky aftertaste of something that had spent its life snacking on pond sludge or sewer scraps. Not exactly the clean, delicate flavor you’d expect from salmon raised in pristine New Zealand waters. The texture? Sinuous, chewy, and utterly un-salmon-like, leaving fibrous remnants stuck between my teeth like a bad breakup you can’t shake off. If anything, it tasted more like trout that had gone rogue.

And then there’s the sashimi. Imagine my surprise when the “salmon-themed” restaurant didn’t even offer soy sauce. Instead, they presented us with thin slices of “salmon” drizzled in a sweet, sticky glaze and a mountain of wasabi fit to obliterate your sinuses. As for the smoked salmon—well, let’s just say it had the smoky depth of a wet matchstick. It was bland, with a hint of that muddy, carp-like taste, reminiscent of something you might encounter on a Year 6 school camp menu: edible, but only if you’re truly desperate.

Three hours later, the mere memory of that meal still has my stomach turning. So, do yourself a favor—fish for the experience (and release it by paying a $100 fine), drink the beer, and maybe order a pizza. But whatever you do, don’t eat the salmon.

Photos of what we did not finish (nor had any desire to takeaway)...

Great concept and excellent experience - juts a few minor tweaks needed

First off, the concept is brilliant and the owners have done an excellent job in creating a beautiful area and restaurant. It even has a sandpit for the kids while you enjoy a wine and wait for the Salmon to be prepared.

We hired two rods ($5 each) and it took roughly 30 minutes to catch a fish which felt about right. We choose the shallow end of the main pond so the experience would drag out a little for the kids.

Unlike some other posters we felt the Hook team were very transparent on pricing. They displayed the average fish weight and the market price per KG so there were no surprises.

One area that can catch you out is getting a table inside the main restaurant. Its a pretty small space and catching the fish is really only half of the experience. If we were to go back we would reserve a table in advance but as first timers this really caught us out!

If we are nitpicking, it would be nice to have a couple more options for preparing the caught salmon. Yes, there are options on the main menu but the 'appeal' of Hook is in eating the salmon you personally catch! That said the food was excellent so no complaints there.

Another minor thing was the staff seemed a little inexperience when it came to food service and the bar was incredibly slow to take drink orders.

This place is great, just make a reservation first or be prepared to sit in an uncovered table - great in summer I would imagine.

Looking forward to seeing this business develop over the...

What an AWESOME experience! 10 stars!!! MUST DO! But they don't take reservations for fishing...the sign we saw said 11a-4:30p, but I'm guessing that could change with the amount of traffic & the weather. You may want to call ahead.

The staff were so helpful & kind... From the gentleman who helped us with our pole/fishing instructions to the young man at the bar who was quite knowledgeable about the various beers on tap to the gal who was cleaning/restocking the tables... Everyone seemed genuinely glad we were there, happy to answer any questions we had & seemed to be enjoying their work! Such a delight!

We'd stopped thru a similar place a couple hours north of here, just to watch & check it out. After seeing that... And coming here, we can honestly say Hook is leaps & bounds better than that place! Hook's grounds are beautiful! We were instructed to fish in the south pond and there were 6 families fishing with room for many more. We caught our salmon in about 20 minutes, some seemed to get theirs faster.... Others longer! Ours was just over 1kg & we chose to have it hot smoked to enjoy on site. We enjoyed a cold beverage at one of the many tables available & watched others come back with their catch while we waited about 20min for our food. (We were told it'd be about 30 min!). It was delicious - and so fun to think we'd just caught it!

If you're considering this experience... Just do it! You...