New Zealand Herald

Reviews for Secret Garden Buffet Restaurant

by Raj S.
28th April 2013

This business is a MenuMania SponsorOne of the Business' Favourite Reviews

The view of the sea is exceptional with a choice to sit indoors or outdoors topped with tastefully prepared seafood dishes made it an outstanding experience for us in a group of 5 last weekend.

Perfect ambiance, great service, nicely laid out tables and the restaurant manager coming to us twice to check if everything was to our liking. I think this outing was worth the money and time spent.

We came out satisfied and will surely visit again. Highly recommended.

by Don C.
24th April 2013

I’ve been to this restaurant a few times. Some people mentioned bad experience about lunch. I only had dinners there so not sure about lunches but for dinners, there is nothing to complain.
There was plenty of food and many different kinds of dishes. I heard the head chef used to work for 5 star hotel so no doubt food was great and had awesome view from balcony. Thanks to the lovely lady manager and friendly staff for great service as well. Highly recommended.

by Shaun R.
11th April 2013

We went to dinner here as a family about two months ago and the place is amazing!!
So good that the whole lot of us are going back on Sunday!!
My personal favourite was the tasty hot dishes from the spicy prawns to the fresh grill where you select your selection of meats to be cooked right there in front of you!!!
Other members of the family raved about the fresh sashimi sliced in front of you from a chef who used to cook for Michael Jackson.
The perfect end to the meal was their delicious plum tea.

Service was very very good. They went well out of their way to make sure we were all very happy!!

Highly recommended and can’t wait for Sunday

by Tui M.
16th March 2013

I have been to this place few times. It is nice, fresh food. I cannot say it’s fine dining restaurant or fast food.

Service is great. Food as I said fresh but nothing exceptional. Open kitchen visual is pleasure.

by Reina A.
4th March 2013

This “restaurant” was nothing but a salads bar with a tiny steak, some mini sushis, a bowl of soup and a plate of pasta (both only enough for 1 person). We went there for a team lunch and were very disappointed with this place, we’ve never left a buffet hungry before! If you are not into salad or sushi then there’s not much there for you. Their lunch is definitely not worth the price we paid ($28 a head) so don’t waste your time or money. It just felt stingy which is sad considering how lovely the restaurant’s atmosphere was.

Also I’m not sure where the person “Liv” actually went but the food was far from “exceptional”, and the only dessert that they served us were some orange and watermelon slices.

by Jo W.
25th February 2013

Very meagre offering for buffet lunch. Paid $25. One soup, one paste , 4 bowls of plain raw veges( tomatos, lettuce etc) 6 deli style salad, 2 side dish (glass noodle, Kimchi kebab) 4 sushi platter (vege roll, raw squid, shrimp, fried shrimp roll)

The availability of these dishes were ridiculous, literally one plate of pasta was available to the whole restaurant, when that was gone, it took an hour for them to refill it, after several more customers walked in.

The pasta was delicious and highly commended. The tomato topped with piped cream cheese was stunning. Every other plate was meagre and had an unsuccessful fusion of Korean in it, with no shining flavors. The squid sushi was very unfresh. The ‘main’ was a 1.5cm thick salmon, 5 cm length, 6cm width size piece of overcooked salmon with no real flavor. That was absolutely ridiculous by any standard.

Decor was Bland and uninspiring, View was peaceful and lovely. There were little other customers, perhaps the explanation for the cheap selection of food and stingy mains but not an excuse for $25 meal.

Dessert : Old fruits, Plum Tea, Canned Fruit Salad

Pros : waitress was lovely and very polite + The view of the sea

by Sarah A.
10th February 2013

Location of this place is ok, service is excellent, food is a lil tasty however I had to wait for the cook to keep refilling up their hot plates in order to get more food, it is a buffet but the term buffet meaning that it shouldn’t run out and have customers waiting, I looked at the website and it says they serve oysters but there was none when I went there with my family as we are big seafood lovers, also beverages – they did not serve any cocktails when they had a menu set out on the table for it (that is odd for a Friday night), overall it is pretty average, I had to pay for 3 adults as it was a birthday gift, $58 is a bit too pricey for not such great food, I would have done better else where for that price for an individual meal. This place is recommended for those that love Asian type food, the website completely threw me off, but their customer service overall was superb!

by Kirsten C.
25th January 2013

If you want a 5 star meal topped with a 5 star service, look no further…. Secret Garden has it all!!!
I am positively impressed with my experience tonight. Thank you for the whole team who made our night so memorable. The meals were fresh, tasty and well presented! Well done!
Looking forward to come back in a not distant future.

by Anita P.
24th January 2013

We visited Secret Garden a week ago and was pretty impressed with their hospitality and fare. Staff were hospitable without being intrusive. It was good to see the manager Ray come and introduce himself and make us feel welcome. The food was exquisitely prepared and presented with the crab and chicken salad a hit for me. The range of entrees and hot food offers variety and was all of a high standard. Sadly we missed the deal voucher promotion and had to pay the full price but the food was definitely worth every cent and will certainly be returning sooner rather than later.

by Tiani P.
22nd January 2013

I went here today for lunch and have never been before. The food was very fresh and tasty, and the service from our waitress and the manager was very friendly. I look forward to returning for dinner. Lovely restaurant and location.

by Kent R.
17th January 2013

My wife and I enjoyed a fabulous dinner last night. The staff were friendly and Ray the manager made a point to come and chat with us and make us welcome. All the food was superb and the variety just excellent. We tried nearly all dishes between us and their were so many delights. We were told that up to 20 items on the menu would change fairly regularly so we were encouraged to visit again – We will definitely.

by Trevor B.
15th January 2013

A special place for a special gathering of several generations. The food was well above expectations in choice and quality; the staff were somewhat beautiful as well as charming; Ray was rather helpful…..

by David
9th January 2013

Food variety was ok but definitely overpriced. Very little food left near the end and no staff seemed to care. I understand that from cost perspective the business would not be motivated to bring out more food when not many customers are still going but since we’ve paid the same price as any other customer we deserve to have the same service right? Staff were cold and not too helpful.

by Zoe T.
5th January 2013

Thanks to Secret Garden Buffet Restaurant for making my birthday party an exceptional event! I loved the HUGE variety of food available (seafood, salads, noodles, pasta, sashimi, steak, soup, and more), the scrumptious ice cream, the validated free parking, the seaside views, and the elegant furnishings. The lunch buffet proved to be fantastic value for money. We will definitely be returning for more in the future.

Don’t be put off by how difficult the restaurant is to find – it’s quite deep inside Princes Wharf (near the Hilton Hotel entrance). It’s definitely worth your time to venture in.

We arrived as soon as the lunch service started at 12 noon and there was plenty of food to go around for my group of 14 people.

by Dan
3rd January 2013

We had a all you can eat voucher from a deal site for $35 for this place, it was average, however many of the hot dishes were luke warm at best, and the desert selection was not great. Probably worth the discounted price we paid but would be very disappointed if i had paid full price

by the_lallapalooza
2nd January 2013

Great location! I went there with my mate for lunch buffet and we all thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere, the food and the great service! Fantastic setting for a family get together. Highly recommended for those looking for a decent buffet restaurant in Auckland.

by Serena L.
30th December 2012

We arrived at 1 pm for the lunch buffet, but we were disappointed that there was very little food left and they were not replenishing. The dessert section had only a few pieces of honey melon and some strawberries. They did serve us a small piece of steak, but my daughter did not get a piece because she is under 13, so she did not have much to eat. And they cooked the steak about half an hour early – when we first arrived, before we asked for it. All in all, this is not what I expected after reading the glowing reviews.

by Litea V.
21st December 2012

The first time I went there was the 7th of Dec, it was our Xmas dinner with our night staff. The food it was fantastico, so divine and tasted sensational. The layout of the restaurant was awesome and the service too. Was incredible, I recommend anybody who wants to go for dinner or with groups. Try the Secrect Garden you will never regret it. The manager went beyond expectation and shouted us two bottles of wine for our meal the $58.00 dollars was worth it.

by Gheist
15th December 2012

We had our office Christmas dinner last night with a group of 13 people. The service was exceptional. The manager went above and beyond in ensuring that we were enjoying the buffet and everyone was having a good time.

The spread was delicious and with variety of seafood in all courses was good value for money. Other than the spread and yummy dessert, the staff were nice and all our needs were catered for.

It is an awesome place for having group functions and if there is anything that doesn’t suit the requirements of the group, the manager is flexible.

We had a couple of vegans and they were catered for separately at the same cost. No one felt left out.

Decor is nice and it is definitely a feel good place.

It is not common to receive a good service and good buffet spread at reasonable price and that is what make this restaurant an excellent place to dine.

by Liv W.
13th December 2012

The food here is so exceptionally good. I came for their Lunch Special, which is, unlimited choice from their buffet, which includes an AMAZING range of oriental-fusion salad, sushi & dessert dishes. For your $25, you get all that, PLUS a freshly prepared hot main.

But for my $25, I also got to sit outdoors, sheltered but balmy, and watch the Maritime Museum heritage boat sailing towards me from the Harbour Bridge. Niiiice way to spend a lunchbreak.

My fave salad, out of at least a dozen on offer, was the chicken salad with a hint of curry dressing, which incorporated some delicious zingy flavours with finely chopped kiwifruit and orange. Beautiful.

The platters of sushi were super fresh, with beautifully generous inari, like salmon, and prawn, and lots of styles of exquisitely presented sushi rolls.

After I’d had my fill of salads & sushi, I asked for my main. It came out 10 mins later, searing hot, perfectly cooked – a big hunk of hot salmon accompanied by a delicious sauce. When I exclaimed how perfectly cooked the salmon was, my waiter pointed out the main chef to me, who he said has cooked for Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, and other A-listers at a 6-star hotel. This was clearly evident in the food here.

I then needlessly indulged a range of yummy desserts.
The service was extremely friendly, welcoming and attentive… but not over-bearing.

My sole recommendation is that some attention might be given to a bathroom-makeover.

My top tip if you plan to come here, is to make sure you don’t get lured into one of the other enticing restaurants on the way down the wharf. This one is pretty much the last one in the row – which means it has the best views. Just keep walking till you get all the way down there to the other end. Secret Garden was definitely worth the extra two minute walk past Euro.

by William J.
11th December 2012

I was at the wedding function on Sunday morning and it was really fabulous. The atmosphere, mood, service, table setting everything was just fantastic. I really recommend others to take a visit.

by Richard D.
7th December 2012

It’s a wonderful dining experience with fantastic food and great environment for a buffet. The place has a elegant taste and the service is great. It’s good for any event or parties and I got free parking validation. Great view of the ocean with lots of places to see after dining. It’s highly recommended to anyone.

by Tim B.
5th December 2012

I am glad I found this place!!! Love the variety and selection of Korean and Japanese foods. Fresh sashimi, sushi and fresh oyster!! That’s all I want!!

by Max P.
15th November 2012

Hands down the best buffet I’ve ever been to. Great food, great atmosphere, welcoming staff and this it lived up to all my expectations of a premium buffet.

Thumbs up and the well deserved 5 star.

by Hayden
12th November 2012

I can’t remember the last time I ate this much!
I went with my family for dinner a few days ago and I absolutely enjoyed it. I loved the wide variety of food especially the BBQ meat the chef cooked in front of me and the dessert was another highlight for me.

I personally found the price reasonable for the high quality meal and service and I would definitely recommend it to anyone.

by mab
24th October 2012

Despite their website promising primium (sic) buffet, unfortunately this was a disaster. Hugely overpriced, badly cooked food and impersonal service. If they do not drastically improve the quality of especially the food I predict this place will be gone within 12 months (just like the previous occupants, The Koreans).

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