Eating Out In Queenstown

For a such a compact town, there are so many options for eating out in Queenstown. Set out below are some of the places I visited – all prices are in NZ$ with the conversion being $1=50pence.

Tanoshi Teppan Sake Bar

Tucked off one of the main roads, Tanoshi is an intimate venue with booths and high stools inside and a couple of tables outside. Their menu of Japanese tapas and teppan grill dishes certainly caught my eye.

We were recommended 2 dishes per person to share but the food looked so good, we ended up having 5. We chose the following dishes:

• Gyu Tataki: Seared rib eye served rare with roast garlic flakes ($16)
• Banbangli: Tender chicken with mung beans and sesame ($15)
• Tonkatsu: Crispy fried pork with smoked sauce ($15)
• Gyoza: Pork dumplings ($15)
• Yaki Udon: stir fried ginger pork udon noddles ($16)

The menu also makes clear when vegetarian and gluten free options are available.

The standout dishes were the Tataki (perfectly seared with added punch from the garlic and spring onion) Banbangli (the shredded chicken and flavours from the sesame worked a treat) and the Gyoza (packed with filling and lightly crispy).

We were impressed with the quality of food and service at Tanoshi, which definitely should be added to your list for eating out in Queenstown.

Sal’s Pizza

Sal’s Pizza hit the spot after a little birthday hangover! We visited the branch on Shotover Street but there is another opening up right by the harbour. Salvatore Leo (Sal) was born in Southern Italy but moved to New York in the 1950s. In late 2009, Sal opened his first pizza restaurant in Auckland with help from his son and all ingredients are imported to New Zealand from New York.

Expect big NYC slices of pizza, half pizzas or whole pizzas. There are several awesome combo deals – we had the 2 slices of pizza, 3 garlic knot twists and a coke for just $17. Served in a takeaway pizza box, we sat down by the harbour to enjoy our treats. The Buffalo Pizza with Breaded Free Range Chicken Breast, Blue Cheese & Classic Buffalo Sauce is a must!

Fergburger / Ferg Gelato

Ah, Fergburger. It seemed like all of the articles of ‘things to do in Queenstown’ and ‘eating out in Queenstown’ recommended a Fergburger. They basically said it was a Queenstown institution so I felt sufficient pressured into trying one!

Based on Shotover Street, Fergburger has been serving Queenstown since 2000 and are open from 8am – 5am. Yes, 21 hours of burger lovin’! We queued at midday for around 10 minutes and then waited another 10 minutes for our burger. We had the Ferg Deluxe ($15.5) with prime NZ beef, streaky bacon, cheddar cheese, sweet dill pickle, lettuce, tomato, red onion, aioli & tomato relish with a side of fries with BBQ sauce ($4.9).

The first thing that struck me about the burger was its size. It was much bigger than I expected and very filling. The flavour combinations worked well together but it just didn’t hit the spot like some of the best burgers in London do. I hate I am now a burger snob but when you have tasted some of the best, there is no looking back!

It is still a good burger at a reasonable price for its size – everyone is different so it’s definitely worth adding to the list for eating out in Queenstown. Fergburger also have a huge selection of other burgers including ones with grilled chicken tenderloins, slow roasted pork belly, ribeye steak and deer. Of course, there are also vegetarian options focusing on tofu or falafel.

Ferburger has also spread the love with Ferg Bakery and Mrs Ferg Gelato. We tried the latter with a white chocolate gelato and blueberry sorbet, which was fantastic.

Attiqa Lounge

Attiqa is a lounge bar serving Mediterranean tapas dishes on its first floor and a small open air sundeck on the second floor. We booked our dinner through First Table which offers 50% off the first table of the night. Usually the timings for a First Table dinner are 5.30pm / 6pm but Attiqa’s first table was 8pm which suited us well.

There is a large selection of tapas dishes (including separate vegan tapas) sides and sharing dishes. We opted for the following:

• Grilled prawns and pork belly with green olive tapenade ($9)
• Ham and cheese croquettes, smoked paprika dressing ($15)
• Pinchos selection of beef, chicken and fish ($18)
• Moroccan chicken , tzatziki ($16)
• Lamb koftas, tzatziki ($19)
• Bread and dips ($10)
• Chocolate Fondue

The bread was DELICIOUS – the foccacia was amazing. We also rated the prawns and pork belly. We were happy with the food being half price and enjoyed having a relaxed, informal meal with a spritz.

The Bakery

If you are looking for a quick bite to eat in Queenstown, the Bakery has your breakfast and lunch sorted. With reasonably priced pastries, muffins, pies, sandwiches and more, there is something for everyone. The sausage roll ($3.9) was packed with filling with a crispy pastry. There are also a selection of hot drinks and cold drinks, including smoothies.