New Zealand Herald

Reviews for CAC Bar & Eatery

by g r.
7th January 2013

Went there a week ago for dinner with the Mrs. The decor was outstanding and well balanced with ambient lighting and spaciousness in between tables.

Drinks were reasonably priced and service was outstanding. We were given our space and at the same time, when recommendations were requested by the wait staff, she ( waitress with circular piercing on her nose ) was more than happy to indulge us with what was what on the menu.

We ordered the risotto balls ( medium ) for staters and found it to be delightful.

My main was the pork belly whilst the Mrs. ordered the gnocchi.

Both were brilliantly presented in terms of plating and well balanced in terms of flavour. Decent portions. Pork belly was slightly tough. But apart from that, it was an awesome night dining out.

Would def go back again.

by Ash T.
11th November 2012

Great tapas, service and evening thanks. The live jazz was appreciated as well.

by Kate B.
16th July 2012

I have been going to CAC since it is opened. It is great that they have kept up the good service and food. They have kept the favs but brought in some new things which is good for oldies like me who like to have something new to try.
Since opening the only thing that has changed for the worse is that the music isn’t as cool, they don’t have the amazing array of plates anymore (I noticed standard white plates are replacing the old and new mish mash that used to work so well). A bit disappointing you don’t get bottomless bread anymore, you have to pay if you want more now. Feel the new ownership has cut back a bit too much.

by Karen R.
11th May 2012

It was a very rainy night, and I popped into the cosy C.A.C., For some dessert and a cup of tea with my friend. The staff were excellent. A very welcoming waitress and other staff were all fantastic. Upstairs the ambience was excellent.

I had the RICOTTA FRITTERS w. rhubarb & raspberry preserve for 11 dollars. The flavours were lovely.

by Alex L.
21st April 2012

I’ve been driving past this restaurant for years and keep saying we’ll try it one day… Well, today was that day. Saturday lunch. At first we thought the place was empty but decided to walk up the stairs (a very trendy fit-out in a great historic building…I want to live in it!). A pleasant suspended mezzanine floor scattered with rich rugs, cute marble tables and comfy chairs opened out before us. Most tables were full of happy diners. Slightly off-putting was the stinky smell of the deep fryers…better venilation needed. This is the only reason why I didn’t give 5 stars to this deserving restaurant. However, once we sat down the smell seemed less evident. We ordered a medium portion of the risotto balls and the 12 hour cooked lamb. Both were outstanding. Yes, this is not a cheap place to eat, but as an experienced cook, I know these dishes take many hours to prepare and I think are well worth the money. Lovely flavours of well seasoned food. If I were to comment at all negatively about the food, it would be to suggest they increase the quantity of the side servings (chickpeas) in this case. This wouldn’t cost the restaurant much and would keep the punters happy. The lamb is meltingly succulent. Highly recommend you try this dish. I will definitely be back to work my way through this menu

by Lynn C.
5th April 2012

What a pleasant surprise to dine at this neighbourhood tapa bar. Cool live music downstairs set the scene. The waiter was a little inexperienced however the food was a delightful surprise packed with flavour and well priced.
I wish we had this bar in Newmarket.. It is a a great local eatery serving excellent food.

by Pilldoc 3.
12th February 2012

After posting a not so glowing review of our evening at CAC Bar on this website, to my amazement I received an almost instant response from non other than the owner of the establishment. She was very concerned and apologetic with regards to our evening and took the criticism to heart, promising to speak with staff and address our concerns. I must admit that I had planned on not returning to this particular eatery, but after receiving this concerned correspondence from them I feel going back and giving it another go may just be the proper thing to do. For customer concers, I rate them 5 star. Thanks Tina!

by Cukier
12th February 2012

Great location, beautiful building and designed very well for comfort and privacy, but that won’t fill your tummy. It will however empty your wallet, that is if you want to feel like you actually had something to eat and or drink. Come on now, $16.95 for a drink? Really? There were 4 of us so we tried 4 different drinks. The bar got confused as they have two drinks almost identical in name. When we asked for it to be replaced it took them 10 minutes to bring a new one which wouldn’t be long if they were busy, but they weren’t. Also gave 4 different dishes a try. Risotto balls ended being rolled rice balls with a gob of cheese in the middle, deep fried so long that they were like ball bearings and would jump off the plate when you tried to spear them with your fork. Served with an unglamorous dollop of mayo on the side. My three companions raved about the spinach gnocchi but I didn’t get to taste it as one of them had 2 whole gnocchi and there were only 4 on the plate – and only $20. The 12hour lamb was interesting. Kind of like pulled pork only then mushed together into a square patty with a few garbanzo beans on the side. The paella was decent with a nice assortment of prawns, mussels and squid. Just that it was a noodle paella and the noodles were a bit over cooked. Bread was complimentary, brought to the table about 10 minutes after the food, cold as if right from the fridge and nothing served to spread on it. Yummm!
We refrained from ordering a second round of dishes and were amazed that we still managed to spend $140. I have to say that our waitress that took the orders and explained the menu was great. The waiter who delivered was another story. Any time we had a question regarding our drinks or food his standard replay was, “I don’t know, I just started this job”. My suggestion – if you want to have people coming back to your establishment, train your staff before you let them out on the floor to service your most important asset; your customers.

by Briar P.
29th May 2011

Was the usual cook away when we were there?
Drinks were good. Great old building.
The 5 tapas dishes we ordered were very disappointing. Rabbit was swimming in a watery pea stew. The paella was a mess of left overs and the pork belly – had they run out? It was barely 3 small mouthfuls. I have to say that the eggplant was quite nice though. We and didn’t bother ordering any more dishes even though we were still quite hungry.

by David B.
12th April 2011

It is a great old building and we love the dinning atmosphere upstairs. They have one of the best small plate menus in Auckland.

Things you can not go past are the Risotto Balls, Pork and Wild Rabbit.

They have a wide range of wine served by friendly staff.

by han
9th March 2010

Hands down my favourite restaurant in New Zealand. the service and food is super fast, the quality is nothing short of AMAZING and the venue is incredible. Its definitely not the cheapest restaurant in Auckland but I can pretty much guarantee that you wont be disappointed. Have been there many times and taken new people each time, they all still rave about this place. (don’t forget to try the risotto balls)

by julia
21st August 2009

Very nice place, warm, food are special, the owner were very friendly

by colin
4th July 2009

the venue itself is worth the trip- lovely old stone building with wooden beams inside. Lively bar area downstairs with excellent little jazzy band on the night I went. Upstairs was more private, warm and cosy. Food was tapas which is a sociable way to try lots of dishes; the hot goats cheese dish was to die for, melted in the mouth. Carefully chosen wine list served in decent sized glasses-hurray! Will def visit again.

by JC X.
26th June 2009

I’m suprised no one has reviewed this restaurant yet! The menu is based on tapas so it’s great for sharing as you can try a bit of everything. The prawn dish with haloumi was amazing and we tried a braised chicken and artichoke special which was suprisingly DELICIOUS. The interiors are very welcoming and so are the owners – I am definitely going back =)

Write Review