Waiheke Distilling Co — Restaurant in Waiheke

I was part of a group of four people who visited Waiheke Distilling Co on 4th July 2024. We had a superb time with Julian and his team. We arrived early for a tour and tasting which we had rebooked. We were welcomed and served almost immediately with our choice of drink. We sat outside and enjoyed what must be among the most special environments in the whole country. The views across the water to the islands and then beyond to The Coromandel were supreme. Small boats leaving white trails in their wake. Staff coming from the gardens loaded with botanicals for our selection later in the experience. It was all so perfect. We loved the gin that we were served at this point in the day and really enjoyed the interaction with Julian and his team. All of our questions were answered clearly and with obvious knowledge and love for the process of distilling. It was around about this point that we discovered our mistake - we thought we had come to Waiheke's new Whisky Distillery and, as Julian continued to talk we realised that we were at the wrong place. It was our fault, we had booked with Julian. By now we were in love with everything that was happening. We laughed and asked questions. The whole team at the distillery joined in the fun. It was like being at home at Christmas with your family. We eventually got to see the still and ask even more questions before going back outside into the sunshine and enjoying the platters. There is no doubt that we will return here again one day. This must be one of the best experiences that you can enjoy on Waiheke and maybe in New Zealand. The gin is genuinely excellent but the atmosphere and relaxed fun that Julian and his team brought to our day will lone be remembered. Thank you Julian. We will be...

If visiting with a group of friends it's worth noting that the ony way you can split the bill is to split it evenly between you, I mean how ridiculous. It's not even stated on their web-site so I suspect they made up this rule on the spot because they didn't want the hassle. Because of that, I won't be visiting with friends again. The Hostess wasn't very welcoming either, she seemed very stressed and flustered and was generally lacking in customer service skills, told my friend she was the most difficult customer she'd had all day when she tried to negotiate everyone paying for what they had (I mean how rude). To be fair though, we thought we had a booking but didn't and there were a fair few of us, she tried to turn us away but the explorer bus that dropped us off was an hour away from it's next round, so not sure what we would have done - sat on the driveway in the rain for an hour instead of spending $500 at their establishment? The gin cocktail I had was very nice though, can't fault...

Came back for a sunny Sunday sesh after first visiting last winter (from Australia) and had a wonderful time. It is just such a magical venue, and one you won’t find anywhere else. Loved spreading out on the beanbags as the sun went down. The views are the best on Waiheke - as of course is the gin! Bought a bottle of the Spirit of Waiheke to bring back home because it was too good to pass up: so light and citrusy.

Special shoutout to the staff. who are just the kindest and loveliest we have ever come across. They make you feel so warm and welcome. It is such a well managed and well run distillery from top to bottom. Can’t wait to come back next time we...