esplanade restaurant

i always walked by this restaurant and for some reason was never really compelled to go in for a meal...but you will want to go in.... literally the best pizzas!

it's hard to find pizzas with the same quality of ingredients and flavours as you would find in rome, but this place is pretty comparable.

highly recommend.

the staff were very friendly.

atmosphere very relaxing, located right in front of st clair beach with sea views.

going back for lunch tomorrow!

came in to esplanade after a long drive and hungry. a light and airy space with a good view out to sea.

the staff were helpful and attentive. unfortunately the food was not as good as the place itself. we ordered starters of mussels which were the best dish served and arancini which had a bland tomato sauce. it was missing something to make it a tasty dish. for mains we ordered a prosciutto pizza made in their traditional wood fired oven and lasagna. the lasagna was again flavoured too simply with the tomato sauce being a bit wet. the pizza was overloaded with rocket that quickly withered from the heat of the pizza and although there was a decent enough portion of prosciutto it wasn't particularly flavourful.
after missing breakfast that morning i would have expected to be able to appreciate the food more but it just wasn't appetising at all. one of the staff did ask if it was all ok when we swapped dishes to which i replied "it's ok". i then tried the lasagna and realised it wasn't a one off with the starter. the staff member saw we left the plates half empty and after we told her it wasn't good she told the manager, who was standing a table away from us, that we didn't enjoy the dishes but most disappointingly the manager didn't ask if anything was wrong or how the meal was when we paid bill with him moments later.

i was in dunedin for visit. i went to this fantastic place, stopped by for coffee and kept going there. except the grumpy italian waitress, everything was flawless. well done.

absolutely fantastic meal and service. the food was so fresh and beautifully prepared. service was good, attentive without being in your face. thoroughly enjoyed our experience here and would absolutely recommend to others.

we stayed one night in dunedin and ventured to the esplanade restaurant. we ordered the piccanti pizza (tomato, mozzarella, spicy salami) and salsiccia (havoc pork and fennel sausage, mushroom, truffle oil, mozzarella). we were wowed by the friendly customer service, we were seated within 5 minutes of arriving despite there being a long queue. as for the food, the pizzas were one of the best ones i've had. i look back to my dunedin trip with fond memories of the pizza! :)

we are visiting dunedin and was drawn to this restaurant due to the lovely location. my husband ordered pizza which he enjoyed. i ordered the mushroom risotto which was nice but slightly to salty for me but i am sick and i tend to under season food so i am sure most people would really enjoy this meal. we also ordered a bowl of fires which were good and a massive serving, we didn't actually need these as our meals were large enough on their own. we had the caramel pot (i think it was called) after our main meals which was amazing, would rate that a 5! the service was really good, everyone was friendly and helpful. we would come back here again if in dunedin.

went here because of the view only. ordered the ravioli and the presentation is really bad, there was just too much oil, i even left half of it. my friend ordered gnocchi and it looks and tastes much better. ordered the capricciosa pizza and that was good enough. the service was okay but they didn't even greet us when my friend and i entered. i don't think i would recommend this restaurant or even going back here unless i want to eat while having a nice view.

prime location, great service and vibe, no complaints on the food, we had entree main and desert and there was not a crumb left! the pizza bases were thin and cooked perfectly, the desserts were delish, couldn't have asked for more.

we have been here twice for pizza, both times felt rushed and pizza disappointing, lacking topping and the choice to choose your own toppings!

really yummy, good italian food. we ordered two pizza's and two pasta's (gnocchi & ravioli) all of which were delicious. serving sizes for past maybe a little small, but that's what i expected for fine dinning - they never give you enough. beautiful location and friendly staff.

just went in one afternoon after going to the beach, was freezing so hot drinks were in need. we ended up all ordering hot chocolates, and me the special one with cinnamon. all of these were served luke warm which was disappointing. the service itself and the ambience is what i am giving the 3 for. nice location, and decor, just lacking on the drinks part. can't say anything about the food.

we chose this place because of the top notch views of st clair beach. the menu had extensive italian options and a good selection of local and imported beverages. we ordered the lamb papadelle, beef and pork meatballs, spinach ravioli and the seafood pizza. while the papadelle pasta itself was delish, the lamb itself was really fatty tasting and the whole dish was a bit bland. the ravioli was really good however a lot oilier than im used too. meatballs were really good and as was the pizza, great bases. service was a bit slow but as we were in no rush it was fine. personally the view was the best part of the meal.

i took my fiancée and her daughter and daughters partner here for my fiancée's birthday.
when we walked in we were quite excited as the place was nice and inviting with great views of the beach.
we ordered drinks from our italian waitress and i was looking forward to some authentic italian cuisine.
well, what a disappointment.
we got two garlic breads, two pizzas and two bowls of fries to share between all four of us.
the garlic breads, i thought were ok but no one else did. actually, i have to rephrase l that. i thought the bits of the garlic bread that wasn't burnt was ok.
the pizzas were a whole different kettle of fish.
they were undercooked, under - topped, over seasoned and the sparse toppings withe cheese that was on them would fall off at the slightest movement of the slice of pizza.
still, although disappointing, they probably taste good right?
they were disgusting.
the fries and the soda were the only palatable part of the whole meal.
now...here's the kicker! the price for this not overly large, totally disgusting meal?
$104.00!!!

but wait!...there's more! after this meal, i felt violently ill with terrible stomach cramps and diarrhoea! my partner was feeling similar by the next morning.

we, nor our family, nor our friends nor (hopefully) anyone that reads this review - will return here again while the current management and cooking team are there.

cannot fault the service, location or ambience in this place, but....

in the early days after re-opening the food was reliably excellent, simple, tasty, authentic italian.

i'm so sad that in the last 12 months the food has become reliably terrible. and i'm not saying this because i don't 'appreciate authentic italian food'. it has ranged from soggy to burnt and bland to over salted on different occasions. if the old chefs are still there they must have singed their tastebuds.

still hoping for a return to its former glory!

ok, i'm sorry to the rest of the reviewers who gave it such a poor rating. you may have "tried" other italian restaurants in nz or oz or..... wherever but it's never the same as trying it from italy, sicily or malta. these are likely the only 3 places that make them properly. how do i know? that is where i am from and i know my pizza and pasta. p.s. i have travelled and lived in various places in the world. you can be as nifty as you like in the kitchen making your own dough, i don't care it doesn't mean you are of italian culture and trained by a top class pizzaiolo. also pasta should be eaten "al dente" if that is not to your palate then fine, but for heaven sake, don't behave uncultured by calling the pasta "hard".
to someone's comment on chorizo a word that is used flippantly in nz..... it's a spicy sausage either way.

to those of you who appreciate genuine italian cuisine. you need to go. i was in heaven eating the pizza. it made me feel like i was back in the mediterranean!