Review Criterion Hotel - Oamaru

Great classic cocktails in a fabulous old building. Food was pretty good. We had the tapas, the chicken and salas was amazing but the vegetarian pasta and pork was pretty average. Staff were really nice and helpful. Atmosphere was nice and quiet.

Absolutely amazing food and great atmosphere. The tapas menu is delicious with so many different options. Loved the black doris plum cider too. So impressed, I think it’s the best restaurant in oamaru! 10/10 Definitely recommend!

A friend suggests trying dinner at Criterion as they used to live in Oamaru. It was a lovely night to have dinner at Criterion. The service and food are great. We ordered 3 dashes for the night. The Mixed gill was eye catching and tasty, all the meat cooked perfectly. On the menu It said for 2 people, it can be for 3 people as well. Unfortunately, we ran out of time to try dessert, but we will come back to try some.

Spent a few nights in Oamaru recently. Planned to visit a few restaurants but ended up back at the Criterion every night - the food is just that good! The staff are so friendly and welcoming and their house Black Dorris Plum cider goes down a treat. 10/10 service and 10/10 delicious food. Will definitely be back!

Change your plans to visit the Criterion. We arrived in town from Dunedin last night. Called in to the Criterion for a drink with no great expectations (I did say we just came from Dunedin!) So fantastically surprised! Good prices, friendly staff, quality fresh, tasty, tasty food. You must try 3-4 tapas style dishes. Mild spice and every meal a different taste. Spotify loop playing 80s and 90s music that complemented our increasing drinking pleasure. If you don’t like the Criterion, go to Dunedin. You’ll love it there!

Having dined here twice before I knew this would be the perfect venue to have our 100 Years North Otago District Council AA celebration. Katrina was easy to deal with, assisted with menu ideas, and her and the team delivered a top service experience with an amazing high quality cooked meal and an abundance of food for everyone. I highly recommend The Criterion to everyone whether dining with a friend, or as a group. Katrina caters for everyone and her passion for this business is definitely reflected in her service and food. Thank you for a memorable evening for all our staff and Councillors. Look forward to dining with you again soon.

Served by an absolute customer service star - Jacob. It's always the people that make an establishment shine, and Jacob is clearly the Criterion's shining light. Of course the experience wouldn't be what it was without beautiful food. My wife had the Pork Carnitas Taco and I had the Loaded Fries (beef brisket salsa, lime sour cream, mozzarella and aioli - wow!) Go to the Criterion, eat the food, drink the beer (highly recommend the Hazed and Confused cloudy ipa) and be served by great people. Seriously, stop reading this and go there!

We share 10 tapes between 4 of us. Lots of lovely flavours, attentive friendly staff in the heart of the historical part of oamaru. I thought it was really yummy. Thankyou!

I missed the Vegans Welcome sign but they sure are. Enjoyed a glass of vegan friendly wine and my scrumptious vegan veggie stack. (They also cater for the carnivores). Good place.

Stopped to listen to the Foxy Tones..at the criterion. They were fantastic so we had a few drinks and were lucky enough to get a table for 10 in a room to ourselves. The food and service was amazing and so was the entertainment! Highly recommend! Oamaru Jazz festival is a must!

Awesome place to stay and the food was fantastic This place deserves all the praise it can get, the staff from owner Sue and everyone else thanks heaps for a great stay and service Ps their chef is such a delight and only to ready to please the fussiest of diners

Wow would highly recommend to anyone & everyone. Great atmosphere, awesome friendly staff & amazing meal, oh & I can not forget the pudding - YUM. The Southern Man topped the night off. Special thank you to Sue, well done for making the Criterion, the go to place to be. ����

Thank you so much for the meal we won in your Valentine’s day completion, Lovely staff and fabulous meal, we will be back

Had a great day sampling interesting craft beer. Finished off with with a tasty chicken burger in the Snug at the Criterion.

Excelente location with good access to public parking. Lovely staff. The best pork ribs I’ve ever had. The rooms are comfortable and many options for mornings tea!

Recently went to the Criterion on the Monday afternoon of the long weekend in NZ. A local put myself and 6 of my mates from Oz onto the pub.....what a great bloke. Had the best time....the Manager, Sue, is a gem...what a great night ! The drinks and food were excellent. If the steak I had was a woman.....I would have married it ! Big Tick !