Arden Kitchen - Nelson

We visited Arden bar Kitchen this evening and were so pleasantly surprised! They have food from all corners of the world on the menu and they do it so well! But although the food was the star of the evening, the excellent service by the owner was what made the whole dining experience stand out form any other restaurant we have visited in New Zealand (South and North Island included). I firmly believe that whatever you do in life, you should do it with passion and that radiated from the owner. He was passionate about his wine and food. He let us try multiple wines until he found the one that suited us and he was spot on! He convinced me to take the tirmaisu dessert (which is my favourite, but if not prepared well is very heavy and puts me off completely). Although slightly nervous, he vouched that his tiramisu could withstand the test and so it did! If you are ever looking for good food and a good glass of wine with great company in Nelson, definitely pay this place a visit!

First time in, it’s a very lovely space. The wine list was great and my friend and I chose the $55 per person let the chef choose. We were asked about dietary and what we really liked and we said seafood. The food was delicious, we had a Spanish tortilla, the sourdough, prawns with garlic bread, crab croquettes, mozzarella and figs and a side of salad and potatoes. It was a lot of food and my only gripe was two types of bread and two types of potatoes was too much. We were so full! We didn’t have room for dessert. Wine wise we had the Chardonnay, Riesling and Pinot Noir, amazing! I bought a bottle Pinot noir which is fantastic.

Consistently great. Lovely staff, relaxed and welcoming atmosphere. Excellent food and great, ever-changing wine selection. Service: Dine in Meal type: Lunch Recommended dishes: Cheese Plate, Rhubarb and Ginger Soda, Creme Brulee with Tonka Beans, Flourless Chocolate Cake, Gluten Free Toasties

Intimate, cosy, cool lighting. Platters and sharing plates for a high end dinner.

This is our second time to Arden and the second time we have elected the Feed Me option. The first time we dined, we were a 3. The service was good, the food was tasty and the atmosphere was wonderful. From this experience we recommended Arden to many friends. Having family over from the UK we booked a table for 7 on Sunday evening. From the moment we sat down we felt as a larger group, an inconvenience to the staff by comments and persona. It was certainly not the welcoming and warm vibe we had previously experienced which was disappointing and slightly embarrassing when we had promoted the restaurant to our guests. We had a couple of dietaries; 2 x Gluten Free and 2 x no red meat eaters. This was emailed to the restaurant in advance however, this was not really catered for with the main options and we did not feel there was a lot of food given the amount of people [party of 7]. We did however, when we were a smaller party. The food that we did eat was tasty. We left the restaurant around 9.15pm, however, this was simply due to feeling pushed out, despite the venue opening hours stating till 10pm. As frequent restaurant goers and willingness to recommend good places and experiences to friends and family, this will no longer be on our list, unfortunately.