zealong tea estate

the first time we came here, we were turned down despite there were plenty of empty tables. the lady in the front counter was quite rude too so that put me off for a while from visiting. then, recently since we have some visitors from overseas - we decided to give this place a try again by booking a tour plushightea package. the tour was informative with samples of brewed tea given to us. the tour guide was very friendly and service was great, which is the opposite of what we experienced from the front counter person last time. thehightea was beautifully arranged but taste-wise, it came second - i think the scenery saved everything. price is on thehighside but it is worth experiencing once and always book as they can get very packed.

the good: sparkling tea was nice and refreshing for the weather. the food was also not bad - fried rice was surprisingly spicy

the bad: the service could have improved alot. we waited for a long time for our table despite having a booking and there being plenty of available tables. the waiter also didn’t bring us a menu for about 15 minutes and we had to ask for the menu. thehightea was a little expensive for $55 - there could have been a little more on the stack for that amount.

went to zealong withhighhopes but left in disappointment. my family and friends, a group of 18, went more than an hour before closing asking for a table (or even two, we wouldn’t have minded splitting kids and adults) however we were told that there was no space for us, they were too busy and there was no staff and that usually we’d have to give them more time. usually we’d understand this as we know we are a large group however their excuse not to sit and serve us made no sense as:

1) more than 3/4 of the restaurant was empty, there were 3 huge tables that were there for us to sit and enjoy the evening.

2) we did not ask forhightea nor did we want to eat, we simply wanted a pot or two of tea.

3) their excuse for being short staffed made sense until we went to the foyer where 2 staff members were standing and talking doing nothing and serving no one - more on this, when we asked them a question we didn’t receive a smile and were answered rudely.

4) in these times where the covid pandemic is prominent businesses are going under as they are unable to make enough income - as a group of 18 (4 families) you can understand the kind of extra business we would’ve offered.

staff were rude, unaccomadative, and not welcoming at all.

an amazing place to go to even on a hot summer day for some tea. got placed on the deck on front of the plantation with a wonderful view, the place is very nice, clean, tidy and visually placed well. this place is a highly recommended place for family outing or to go on a date on in the afternoon with somehightea. there was two options $49 pp for justhightea and $57 per person to open a bottle as well. as for the food served for thehightea it was quite nice their dessert at the bottom was delicious! when selecting what tea you want highly recommend their award winning ones, it complements the course very well, my favorite was the green zealong. customer service from the waiters was also wonderful especially in explaining how to poor and drink the tea. 100% would go again whenever i can.

we drove up from tongariro to auckland and stopped at zealong to meet friends for theirhightea and so worth it!
great price at $45pp, incredible food options with tea influences a d a very decent a la carte menu. great for friends and worth the drive from any direction.

highly recommended!

great place to rest after a day out in hamilton.
had thehightea and it was awesome!
never thought i would go for a day trip to hamilton, but this place just top it off before headed back to auckland.

firsthightea afternoon at zealong did not disappoint. my experience was amazing. ambiance and the tea plantation were topnotch. food were exquisite especially those included in the sweet plate platter. opted for the passion red drink to freshen the warm weather. service was ok. will be back soon.

what an incredible place to visit.  as soon as you drive into the elegant driveway, you have an immediate wow factor about this place, so flash! my friend and i dined in "the tea house" for lunch and chose from the menu.  we started with bread and dips (enough for 4 people!), was beautiful selection of breads and yummy dips. i had the chicken ras-el-hanout and my friend had the fish dish, both were amazingly divine, soooo delicious!! had the chocolate mousse dessert, was just as divine as the meals and all so beautifully presented.  the tea selection is great and tasted amazing! we found the prices to be reasonable and good value for money. sat on the deck looking over the tea plantations and countryside, is such a stunning setting and so peaceful, could have sat there all afternoon! also beautiful landscaped gardens and sculptures, the cherry blossom trees were in bloom, so pretty!  the staff were welcoming and very friendly.  we loved this place! would highly recommend for a casual lunch,hightea, or celebration with family or friends.  will definitely be back!!

let's be simple. i was a little confused upcoming to the tea house. exterior looked a little ordinary i was almost mistaken i went to the wrong place. however, the tea was lovely and aromatic. came here for a tea date along with their signaturehightea treat. thehightea looked beautiful and tasted great, sadly as mosthighteas' just too small of a portion but the price was $45pp so i guess it was alright compared to other places.

loved the collection of tea offered there, personal favourite the sweet amber one♡. the view is a bonus as we sat midway outside but still indoors!
if i were to come back, would be better if i tried the other dishes offered there as would be more filling i hope!

atmosphere: mix of compact and fresh 4/5
vibe: 4/5
service: 4/5
food: hightea 4/5

☆☆☆☆☆

came to enjoy zealong’s signaturehightea, it was exceptionally well presented and offered a unique variety of different tea infused flavours. however is it worth the price tag of $45 pp? yes if you’re a tourist, and yes if you’re visiting for the first time, other than that, stick with the normal menu! our waiter was attentive and super soft spoken, great place overall.

food- 8/10
service- 10/10
aesthetics- 9/10

taste: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑
interior deco: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗
customer service: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑
recommend: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕
came here forhightea! prefer their savoury dishes than the sweet ones! those savoury (third plate) is our favourite out of the three. staffs were friendly, beautiful views!

zealong tea is known for theirhightea but seriously, it is not good. sandwiches were not nice and the cakes etc were not tasty.
the only good thing about this place were the main dish i ordered. tea was okay. the view was mediocre.

the tea and the mains gave this place the 2 stars, otherwise it would be a 0.

not worth the drive from auckland. don’t know why anyone would drive all the way here for the crappyhightea.

oh and we booked in advanced only to have our booking messed up on arrival. cool. you’re welcome for the photos.

nice place with lovley outdoor seating with tea plantation view.we had a wonderfulhightea with a glass of bubbles. service was good for late afternoon.

zealong tea house offer extensive quality ofhightea, and other lunch options, had a great
time time there this weekend, they have got just about everything right, food quality, services, views, the team is well trained, they are absolutely on top of things, you can’t possibly pick anything on the restaurant part.

but the new retail shop is where i recommend you to avoid, nicely, newly fitted out out display-retail tea shop somehow had two arrogant, untrained young girls which knows nothing about customer services, your sudden appearance at the shop seemed to be disturbing to their “resting”, utterly rudeness and extremely inhospitable manner made you wander if you wrongly entered premises without invite, the asian girl was indescribably rude, it’s obvious that she hates her job for sure or the society... we were glad we went to the restaurant first, that turned out not a bad over after lunch.

hadhightea here today and it was excellent. it's not my first visit, and so it was good to see that thehighstandard of service and food was maintained. the staff were friendly and attentive, without being pushy. the choice of teas is wide - making it difficult to choose. the only gripe i would have (and it's a tiny one) is that there's a $5 surcharge for vegetarianhightea (i would have thought that smoked salmon and duck confit were more expensive, not less, than eggplant or chickpeas). maybe it's because they have to prepare them specially?? whatever the reason, it didn't detract from the fabulous experience that theirhightea is. i would rate this a much better experience and better value than thehightea i've had at the langham.