Pavilion Bar & Kitchens — Restaurant in South Island

We had brunch at the Pavillions. There were five of us. On the positive side the decor and atmosphere were great.

Three of us had bacon and eggs, which were good, although one serving arrived around 20 minutes before the others. We were told this was due to miscommunication with the kitchen. The other two of us ordered a muffin and a banana bread, but these didn't come out until after the three of us had finished our hot meals! And when they did come out they were cold, not heated. We ended up taking them away.

Coffees were fine, although two of us asked for sugar sachets only to be given artificial sweeteners.

Overall the service was disappointing. It was not as though the place was terribly busy or they were understaffed - there were plenty of staff milling about. When we asked about progress the staff were apologetic but no offer to put things right.

Maybe we should have asked for a partial refund, but I don't think we should have had to. And by then we needed to leave.

I realise this is a new business but please improve your service. I hope this review can help you improve, because it has...

Beautiful and welcoming place that you instantly want to come back to! The food is on the slightly pricier side, but it’s absolutely worth it—sauces and dough are made in-house and you can really taste the effort and quality. The attention to detail, from the service to the furniture and overall vibe, shows that a lot of love and thought went into this place. A big shoutout to our amazing waiter Mark—friendly, knowledgeable and made our experience even better. The whole team was lovely, and despite being newly opened, everything ran smoothly like they’d been doing it for years. This is not fast food—it’s honest, well-crafted food done right. I really hope the team continues with the same passion and care. It’s not an easy industry, but you’re off to a great start! Also—huge respect for the house vodka from Ukraine....

So much potential, but ultimately disappointing. The venue itself has a great atmosphere and the coffee was lovely, but the overall experience fell short. It felt like the place had “all the gear but no idea” plenty of staff were present, yet many seemed unsure of their roles. Tables around us were left dirty for long periods, and despite being seen multiple times by staff, we weren’t approached or spoken to for at least 15–20 minutes after being seated. It gave the impression of poor management and a lack of staff training.

As for the food, we ordered the Eggs Benedict and the breakfast roll. Unfortunately, all the eggs had undercooked, runny whites, which was disappointing.

There’s a lot of potential here, but better training and stronger leadership are...