The Black Sparrow

Fab night of Jazz, excellent service, nibbles platter & very willing to make cocktails that weren't on the menu. Great night!

30/7/15: Nz film festival. Sandwiched between a brilliant tale of lesbian love and bondage, and an obscure Danish film involving a girl's dream of desert and Viggo whatshisname, we had half an hour for dinner. Given that black sparrow is three metres from our theatre seats it seemed like a logical choice.

We had a glass of red and ordered the fish tacos and squid.

The staff were great (in contrast to the other reviews here which are somewhat dated and my own memory of the place a couple of years back). And even better they asked us to take our theatre seats and would bring the food to us.

We felt slightly spoilt - a strange feeling eating anything but popcorn and Jaffas in a movie! The tacos were good and the squid well cooked with a nice spicy-hot coating of crumbs accompanied by a creamy dip.

The wine - an Argentinian Malbec - was ok but I liked how you could order a glass in two degrees of fill. Either the regulation stingey or filled up generous - the price of the difference I thought was minimal. I get irritated with places that simply moisten the bottom of the glass, which of course requires buying a refill within minutes. If you're taking it into the movie, you don't want it finished by the end of the intro credits. So the generous option is a great idea.

I've often wondered whether I'd go here if I wasn't going to a movie. I usually decide no but I suspect that's purely psychological. The snacks are good, theres a sufficiency of cocktails, and although the wine list isn't encyclopaedic it's ok. Perhaps it's the rather exposed feel to the tables (which are too low) - But generally the atmosphere is pleasant, warm and cosy. Perhaps it's simply that movie theatres are no longer considered to be associated with sophistication and this rubs off onto the bar. It may also be that parking is a slight deterrent. I must confess I didn't even know it had a name apart from "the bar at the embassy" before doing this review.

It must also be hard on staff and staffing having a boom and bust service tailored to movie timetables. Certainly there is often a queue when I go but of course every other movie goer is turning up at the same time. Better to go early I guess.

Overall this is an ok bar, the staff are nice, efficient and friendly, cocktails/wine list is ok and the food is good. Pre-movie it's an obvious place to go. I'd like to give it 3.75, but I'll give it 4 because its present, very low, average rating isn't justified I think.

I didn’t realise this place is actually the ticket counter for the movies! So as we enjoyed our cocktails we also enjoyed that popcorn smell.

Surprisingly cozy venue with simple but nice selection of food and wine and cocktails.

Excellent place to wait for the movies to start.

Great quiet bar where it's super easy to have conversations

A great quiet warm place for a chat.