Some beautiful dishes & excellent cocktails 🍸 This place is, however, a difficult mix of relaxed & posh - expensive yet lacking in the comfort & service I would expect for the price. You should book a table in the dining room for proper table service. The pub area for cocktails is decent for drinks & snacks. The service is ok but when busy you can endure long waits. The decor is nice - it’s colonial in character. The cocktails are on the sweet side for my liking in general, but the bartender is a gem if you approach her with preferences. Extremely knowledgeable in wine also. I would come here regularly if the prices were lower or the service, seating & amenities were impeccable.

Amazing vibe, friendly staff and the space doesn’t feel cramped. Great wine selection and the cucumber dish was amazing!

I have some mixed feelings about this restaurant that I would like to express. Let's start with the positive aspects: Pros: - The restaurant provides a pleasant environment and offers a memorable experience. I particularly enjoyed the nostalgic vibes and the well-executed decorations. - The staff members were satisfactory, although they could improve in terms of proactively informing customers about the daily specials that are not listed on the menu. Now, moving on to the negatives: Cons: - Despite the appealing presentation, the taste of the food did not live up to my expectations. It seemed more appetizing than it actually turned out to be. - The mushrooms dish, in particular, had a rancid taste which was quite disappointing. - The burger was average, lacking any exceptional flavors or distinguishing features. - Even the water had a strange fishy taste, which made me question whether it was due to the water source or the glasses not being adequately cleaned. Overall, while the restaurant had its positive aspects, the underwhelming taste of the food and the presence of some unsatisfactory elements left me somewhat disappointed.

Love the fit out. It’s very shabby chic and has a welcoming vibe. The menu confused me a little. This is a pub with a bistro menu that’s designed to share. So, sharing plates with bistro-like options? We picked a few options to share, the best of which was the focaccia with goat’s cheese. You can have the focaccia with a few different options and the duck parfait also caught my eye. I selected the squid, as I’d read a few good reviews, but it was a little flabby and the sauce lacked a bite. The neighbouring table ordered the wagyu rump with fries and that looked really good. Might need to come back for that and the duck parfait. The service was great to begin, patiently explaining the menu and promptly bringing our drinks. While we were eating, though, it was a bit overzealous. Every time we finished a dish, the plate was promptly whisked away. It felt like they were watching us eat. If you lived nearby, this would make a good local. If they loosened up the menu a little, I’d definitely be back.

𝐇𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐥 𝐏𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐛𝐲 Indulging in a mouthwatering feast of flavors! 🍽️✨ From the fluffy, thick focaccia bread to the refreshing cucumber salad, everything went perfect together! The crispy prawn toast was a highlight, with the zing of the wasabi mayo. Every bite was a delightful explosion of taste. 🌿🍤🎃 * Focaccia with Babaganoush x Line caught kahawai rillettes * Cucumber stracciatella, dill * Prawn toast, sesame, wasabi mayo * Pumpkin, garlic labneh, chili oil, pepita dukkah * Shoestring fries $$$

Really enjoyed our light lunch last Sunday. Food was very good, well priced and staff friendly and professional. Defs be back.

Delicious food and drinks in a hip and classy environment. The focaccia bread is dynamite! The grilled dishes were all be very tasty. The pumpkin is a sleeper and deserves more attention. All perfectly seasoned. Service was on point. Came here around 3pm on a Friday and it was already bustling with patrons sipping on drinks. Very cool spot to have drinks and/or a bite to eat.

Not as good as the first visit but still nice. Ravioli lacked seasoning and taste, wish places put salt on the tables instead of having to flag down the waiter for some. Yorkshire pudding were burnt which was disappointing, pork was nice though as was the mushrooms and foccacia. Didn't enjoy the outdoor area with the smokers.

Focaccia with salmon was great, Yorkshire pudding was excellent and the scotch egg was bang on. The fish, however, was salty af. I had to peel the skin off and set it aside as it was barely edible. The dessert was nice too, but nothing to get excited about. The sticky date pudding is great for the gram but not as great as my gran’s. I found the sauce to be good but the pudding itself lacked flavour. The chocolate mousse was also underwhelming but not bad, I still enjoyed it. Overall I’d say they’re a great addition to Ponsonby.

Sirloin was one of the best. Great vibes and top notch service. Exceeded expectations

So vintage and cozy place!! Foods soo delicious 😋 💗

Hotel Ponsonby is the spot you can trust for great food, an upbeat ambience, and excellent service. My mates are convinced the focaccia here is the best in Auckland. I'm a big fan of the g&t on tap. Highly recommend you get the stracciatella with chilli oil and cucumbers. It's the perfect balance of kick and crunch and richness.

Best food, great coconut margaritas and amazing service 🤩

We came by for an earlyish dinner around 1700. We didn't book but was able to get a table. The menu looked quite interesting with quite a large selection of items. We grabbed a few items to share. The chicken liver parfait came with a nice stack of focaccia. The flavour of the parfait and the focaccia also came with salted butter. I also quite enjoyed the fried bread layered with caramelised onions. The kina tagliatelle was quite interesting as it was salty and creamy. the duck breast was cooked quite well and the cabbage with it was delicious. The spice flavour of the spiced lamb was really nice. It had a nice range of flavour and a nice chariness to it. We got the sticky toffee pudding for dessert and that was quite rich and tasty. The food here is really good. It did get a bit loud as it filled up and the place was full when we left. It is a nice option for tasty meals.

Gnocchi was out of this world and so was the service. Amazing staff that went out of their way to make our dining experience memorable! One of the floor staff saw that I was struggling with the strong sunshine and offered me his sunglasses- so amazing!

Usual hangout. Love there vibe, outdoor seating is amazing on a good weather day. But inside is pretty cozy too. In summer afternoons or winter nights inside is preferable. Overall in evenings it gets quite busy so be patient with your orders. Staff is helpful and friendly

Great cocktails, warm, cozy & upscale atmosphere. Lovely interiors, makes for cute couple pictures lol

I usually really like the food here but tonight was very disappointing. We ordered two of the beef roast meals. The beef was fatty, tough and cold. The yorkshire pudding was cold and hard and everything else was bland. We mentioned this to the waitress and she seemed very disinterested.

Went here on Sunday for a late lunch, both me and my friend ordered the chicken schnitzel. Mine came out and was raw in the middle, we called over the waiter and he low key gaslit us and said thigh is supposed to be pink. This was legit raw, he did take it back to the kitchen and make a new one but wasn’t very nice about it. My friend who didn’t send his back in now super sick. So disappointed as Hotel Ponsonby used to be such a good spot, but raw chicken isn’t acceptable.

Spent a lovely evening at Hotel Ponsonby. Loved the vibe and the food! We had the focaccia with salmon mousse (4/5), trevally (3/5), Tempura prawn(5/5), Sirloin steak (5/5) and Truffle fries (5/5). Highly recommend the tempura prawn literally I can have it everyday! And the sirloin steak was cooked perfectly well, rich, tender and full of flavour. And I must shout out to the truffle fries which was legit the best ever.

Fantastic food highly recommended the delicious summer roast dinner. I am looking forward to trying the winter roast dinner, which I have been informed by the staff, This will include a yorkshire pudding. I visited the hotel Ponsonby twice and had great experience both times. Great atmosphere, beautiful decor with great service and a excellent selection of drinks. I love the outside area