Malabar Restaurant

I was not impressed. They took ages even to take my drink order. The menu looked delicious and I couldn't decide so I went with the waiter's recommendation of the chicken with lemon rice. Service was slow and the chicken dish tasted almost entirely of cumin instead of the rich blend of spices that Asian cuisine normally reaches. Also they couldn't change the heat level of the dishes although I prefer most Asian dishes with a bit of a kick. Will not visit again.

Highly recommend the tofu if you like spice. Good food. Be patient if it is busy as service can be slow

The meal was very beautiful, incredible flavour and presentation. However, we were rushed by staff to leave once finishing our meals. The staff were very snakey and attempted to double charge for items, not only for my family, but for the family in front of us too. Highly recommend watching for this when getting the bill unless money isn't an issue. Very disappointed after such wonderful service to begin with.

Was in Hanmer Springs for a family reunion, the restaurant knew weeks in advanced that we were to have over 20 people attending. We told them our dietary requirements and when our meals were served they had everything we did not ask for. Uncooked sweet and sour fish PASTA not Asian noodles we thought were coming with it. Would not recommend

The worst dining experience of my life, booked a table, got bumped for a bigger party that came in after we were seated. We were offered a round of free drinks for the inconvenience that ended up being a bottle of wine for the table of 4. They then changed their mind and said we can only have a discount on the wine. I asked to speak to the manager. who said we could have the wine and was lied to by front counter staff who fobbed me off with another staff member. We were treated really poorly, deceived and lied to.

My husband and I dined here this evening as the menu sounded great. Im not sure if we were perhaps forgotton about but our entree of four steamed dumplings took just over an hour to be served to our table. The dumplings were nice but the sauce was too acidic. We then waited another half an hour for our mains to arrive. This would have been fine if the food was worth the wait....my husband ordered rogan josh lamb shanks, these were served with a very bland sauce and the meal itself was not even warm. I ordered the chinese Sichuan pepper fish with veges and egg noodles, we received fried mushy fish and veges and noodles drowned in what tasted like a jar of sweet and sour sauce, unfortunately not what either of us expected. To the restaurants credit they didnt charge us for my meal and offered to make anything else off the menu in 3 minutes or a free dessert. We appreciated the offer but declined. Perhaps we caught them on an off night but this is not a restaurant we will be returning to anytime soon.

This has to be one of the very best dining experiences I have had in New Zealand. Bright, spotlessly clean contemporary styled dining environment. Ample lighting and comfortable seating. The food was fantastic, beautifully cooked. We had a range of sharing meals, Thai Fish Cakes, Crispy Prawns, Spring Rolls and Garlic Naan Bread. We followed with a main course of Rogan Josh Shoulder of Lamb which was superb. Polite, respectful, calm and friendly service. All of the staff who served us was fully conversant with all aspects of the menu - very impressive. I will be recommending Malabar to anyone who visits Hanmer Springs,

Interesting, but I wasn't quite as taken with it as some of the other reviewers. The breadth of asian food they cover is pretty ambitious, possibly a bit too much. After seeing the recommendations for the pork belly my wife had it, it was well cooked, but a bit overwhelmed with sweet & sour sauce. My lamb shank rogan josh was tender and tasty. On the fence, I'd rate it 3.5 if I could.

OMG! What a beautiful meal!! We had the Seafood balls for our starter, Kashmiri Roganjosh and Glazed Duck breast for our mains...well proportioned, delicious spices, and amazing service. Good selection of wine, decently priced. Was highly spoken for by a mate, and the recommendation was well deserved.

I dined here on a Sunday evening in winter and had the pork belly dish with pineapple and Asian vegetables. The ingredients were quality, the flavors were there but the execution of the dish was off. The pork was slightly overdone making it on the chewier side. The vegetables were over cooked as well making them quite soft and the dish was absolutely swimming in sweet and sour sauce which overpowered all the other ingredients. Correcting these three things would take this dish from so-so to stellar. I accompanied my meal with a glass of Reisling which was delightful and generously poured. The staff were friendly and very attentive.