Aorangi Peak Restaurant

We had a lovely dinner made more special with gorgeous view and exclusive wine cellars!

This place is under new management. You cannot beat the location you have 360 degree views of Rotorua. The food is pricey and the lunch menu is limited. The salmon I had was delicious. The staff were very friendly and we had some lovely visitors at lunch llamas and a deer. The cheeseboard was quite basic. I would come back in the summer for the view and to sit outside and enjoy a glass of wine

Me and my wife went to Aorangi Peak for dinner to celebrate our first new year’s eve after marriage. We have very fond memories of the place. Seeing the lake and fire works from high above when the clock struck 12 are just some of the things this place can offer. They were serving a set menu and made adjustments to suit our palette as we are vegetarian. They owner himself came to pick us up at the Novotel and the owner’s wife dropped us back to the hotel. Neither of them seemed very hospitable though. The staff was nice and food was super expensive and average tasting. However, we didn’t expect much with regard to taste, there aren’t too many non-Indian vegetarian dishes that Indians would like. This rating is primarily for the ambience. Must visit, just to see how amazing this place is.

On a recent trip to Rotorua with my partner for my birthday we came to Aorangi for dinner. With an 8pm booking we were soon the only ones in the restaurant, which was nice for a change given the occasion. The interior is a breath of fresh air with a unique personality, not to mention the awesome views. Friendly staff. I had the Lamb rack and my partner had Salmon. Lamb was some of the best I have ever had and the Salmon was also very good. However, given the price of the meals I would have liked larger portion sizes. Try their manuka honey craft beer!

The service was fantastic, the food was fantastic, the drink selection could do with a re-vamp as a lot of popular/premium spirits were not there but i still found something to enjoy. We went on a Saturday night & i thought it would be very busy but there was only 1 other table of 5 people while my partner & I dined. 1 other couple arrived as we were leaving around 8pm. The inside has a certain charm, very Gatsby-ish in some parts. Very interesting place but needs more attention to detail with keep things maintained properly, carpet is wearing through & replacing it would lift the place. The food was great but i don't know how long the menu has been the same, quite a few years by the looks. I understand it is under new ownership so i would have though they may have given it a fresh menu - the actual menu's themselves are quite worn, same with drink list. The view is beautiful but we went for a walk around the outside & couldn't help but notice several maintenance issues that really bought the place down - clogged gutters, broken boards, wonky steps etc. It has SO much potential & it is a pity it seem to be getting neglected apart from what comes out of the kitchen.

My husband and i went up to have our 2nd wedding anvisary up there and we went at night time.The view was beautiful and the resturant was amazing.The waitress as i can not remember her name was wonderful.I would recommend to everyone that i know.The food we had was just amazing aa++ to the chef.All we need to do is go up in the day time and i bet that is just as amazing.

Wow, boy has Paul He done some work around this place in the least 12 months! What was once a chalet style regional restaurant that somehow got lucky and was dropped on top of a hill with the most magnificent views has now been landscaped and is truly worthy of wedding venue status with a gorgeous gazebo and a perfect 270 degree backdrop.

This is our second visit to the Peak, and our second dinner here and this one was better than our last.

The complementary Amuse-bouche – a new offering of palate amusements prior to our starters were an admirable attempt – the home baked bread rolls were a little yeasty and flavourless (and would have been better accompanied by a cold falvour-infused butter, rather than warm unsalted); the cold broccoli soup was over seasoned and a bit too adventurous for most; the prawn stuffed with mushroom was a good attempt but completely overpowered by the black truffle stuffing (a citrus or ginger stuffing would have been better). With some small corrections here these offerings could well make a magnificent start to what is sure to be a delightful culinary excursion.

We shared a starter of the Skipper lobster (as did many other diners) and it did not disappoint. Beautifully warmed the soft moist flesh was served in the shell and covered in a delightful pesto, on top of a capsicum puree and accompanied by a cous cous stuffed tomato. This went perfectly with our wines by the glass from an exceptional wine menu that Paul really must be congratulated for – it’s such a delight as a couple to journey through exceptional and different wines by the glass rather than having to order whole bottles.

My main was venison, and despite feeling just a little guilty about eating this meat when the deer roam freely around in the paddock next door, their antlers majestic in the evening light, the dish was a triumph – the perfectly cooked melt in your mouth venison sat on top of a rich velvety savoury chocolate jus aside a vegetable puree which was dotted with delectable onion and mushroom morsels. My partner’s dish of duck two ways was also exceptional – the filo parcel of bananas, raisins and grapes an unusually well matched accompaniment to the perfectly cooked duck. The unexpected platter of mixed vegetable was welcomed. And did I mention the wines by the glass were exceptional? Gosh your NZ Pinots are getting good.

Watching the array of fine looking desserts wafting past us it was hard to make a choice - the Tiramisu looked divine, as did the chocolate fondant cake. Feeling like something a little lighter we chose the Pina Colada dessert and I fear we chose the poorest selection on the menu. It was not very Pina or Colada-ish and was nice, but somewhat bland and very small to share.

Aorangi Peak really is one of Rotorua’s top restaurants. I suspect a better approach for this restaurant is to adopt the ‘2 or 3 course fixed price’ policy rather than a la carte, where a palate cleansing sorbet could also be added between courses and the Amuse-bouche could be refined.

Overall service was a little slow, I suspect due to slowing patronage due to the current economic times making additional staffing difficult whilst keeping the prices in a reasonable affordable range. But Paul was careful to spend time with each diner and give them a personal touch, adding to their experience. But at Aorangi Peak, apart from the incredible food and wine, you come here for the incredible view – and there aren’t enough stars to rate that.

This is a highly recommended restaurant, in fact you must go – it’s imperative.
Restaurants in Rotorua come and go, but this one is a true treasure that needs to be supported, and enjoyed to the full.

We enjoyed a beautiful luncheon with good friends up at Aorangi Peak. The welcome was warm and genuine, the views obviously spectacular, but I the food was the star attraction. We had platters with fresh oyster shots, seared scallops with a beautiful dressing, beautiful beef pieces, lamb ribs. Absolutely delicious. Totally awesome experience

We ate the Stratosfare Restaurant in the evening. Was told to wear smart casual clothing. We turned up and there was people sat around us in sporty clothing etc. The special occasion feeling of this meal went. It's buffet style foods, very very large selection to choose from. All cooked very well, worth it for the cuisine. The views from the top are pretty special too.

Good food, great view. Recommended to have a window seat for the view over the lake and city.

Lovely view, very friendly service. Food was acceptable, with a large variety, but the lamb and beef was a bit tough.. Pricy at 79$ per person.

We had lovely Valentine's day dinner here, lovely sweets, lots of food choices and staff were friendly and helpful. Nice view as well.