Tomo Bar & Eatery — Restaurant in Waikato

This place seemed off from the get go when my wife and I walked in. We felt judged hard(part of it seemed to be for being tourists, part of it for being young [mid 20s] and part of it seemed to be from being American's, couldn't tell you for sure). We were asked to leave before we even could pick up a menu or find a seat because we looked too young and when we tried presenting an ID, our driver's license's weren't accepted, only our passports which were back at the hotel. Upon returning with our passports (only because we looked at the menu online and wanted something specific they had) we tried to let it go and move on only to find out the menu on the website was incorrect and completely different from what they actually offered (which we would have seen had we been given more than 5 seconds in the place the first time). When I walked up to ask about it, I was greeted with an abrubt, "What do you want" as the man tried to take my order. I asked about the menu issue (as politely as I could when being talked at instead of talking with). The staff said it was always like that and again asked if I wanted anything to eat as if I was a waste of his time. Turns out I was, but at his own fault, since my wife and I left and went to HUHU's across the road to be treated as a customer should be. Couldn't tell you about the quality of the food, but with how they treated us, it could've been the best meal I ever ate and I still wouldn't go back. I do not recommend wasting your time...

I ordered the Seafood Chowder and a Kopiko Bay Pinot Gris which paired very nicely. I’ve had some pretty average seafood chowders in my time. This was not one. There was ample seafood, including, prawns, shrimp, mussels and melt in the mouth fish & scallops. I struggled to finish it. It was delicious – one of the best I’ve had even though not close at all to the coast. I only read the reviews for the stone grill after I’d been. Next time I’m back in Waitomo – I shall try the grill.

One of the surprises of this venue was the great customer service. I am a solo traveller, and I quite enjoy people watching & people listening. I was seated between the main entrance & the bar. On the customers entering, the barman greeted everyone and made a concerted effort to ask where people were from and if they were enjoying their time in New Zealand and what activity they had been up to that day. Some of the other reviews mention whom I think is the same barman offering them great customer service. I heard him offering it to EVERYONE who walked in and out the door and I was only there for about 45m-1hr. He is an asset to your business and it makes a change from a polite but usually...

Just now, something quite upsetting happened—your staff was extremely rude and scared my daughter to the point of tears.

We were lining up, and a very kind customer who was already seated offered to share their table with us. As we began to walk in, a staff member at the bar suddenly shouted at us not to go further. We explained that we were going to share a table, but he bluntly refused without offering any explanation. His tone was harsh, expressionless, and completely unprofessional.

My daughter was so frightened by the encounter that she cried after we left. This kind of behaviour is frankly disgusting. What are we supposed to do—get into an argument with your staff?

Is there anyone in charge who actually monitors this? Please seriously consider improving your staff training. If you have some peculiar house rules that you expect customers to follow, make them clear at the entrance—or better yet, have someone politely communicate them, instead of barking orders at people with a stone face.

This is...