Earl

Hidden away little gem in our city. The staff were really helpful and were extremely knowledgeable on the food that was being served. The interior of the restaurant was very classy and made for a pleasant dining experience. The food was mind blowing. You would take a bite and want to take a moment to just experience it. Would recommend it to anyone!

Very tasty food, neutral and clean decoration, and amazing service. The menu is a bit expensive for the size of the portions but not out of reach either. A nice place to go for a date or something! The side of vegetables was amazing

I'd score probably closer to 2.5 stars. The atmosphere is nice and the service fine. The food was pretty average and over-priced for what you get. We enjoyed the Polenta as a starter. We had 2 x Butcher's steaks, one fillet and one ribeye, requested medium-rare but both were over-cooked and lacked the sweet meat flavor one expects in quality meat. They were both dry and bland. The accompaniment was edible. For dessert, the Cremeux was tasty, but the Affogato wasn't good. The espresso came cold should have been steaming hot to melt the ice cream and didn't taste nice. Our friends also complained that their Market fish dish was too salty. The Spiced Plum Mocktail was quite enjoyable.

Went here on first table last week and was blown away by the service and food. The focaccia and prosciutto while simple as a starter was delicious and great value. The lamb pasta was devine. We will be back. The espresso martini’s were great value as well

Delicious food and amazing service. Everything there is amazing quality and very moreish. I was stuffed by the end of it. I had the Gnocchi and my partner had the pork belly, both were divine as wel as the Hor d’erves

A different sort of dining experience which we both enjoyed. Drinks were expensive. Great service staff, very friendly.

Beautiful, beautiful food! Lovely feel to the place, with pockets to sit in and catch up with friends. Very professional, helpful staff. Not a "quick and cheap" lunch place, but definitely a classy casual place to dine and the food matched the price tag. I had Autumn greens with slow cooked lamb and it was incredible! We also tried the artichoke share plate very nice, and my friends enjoyed the salmon and market fish.

Great flavors. The cavatelli with the smoked ricotta was gorgeous. If that was the last thing I ever ate that would be alright with me. The complimentary focaccia was also so wonderful and the butter served with it had a smoky flavor that really sent it over the edge.

Nice surroundings and food small portions. Very busy soon after we arrived, pasta Tuesday. Very loud and difficult to talk.

When was the last time you had complimentary sparkling water at dinner? A small but surprising detail that made me smile. Maybe I just need to get out more. My partner and I have lived in Christchurch central for a year and a half and walked past Earl frequently with always an ever delayed plan to book in for dinner; until we saw it appear on First table. 50% off? You bet! For context if you’re the one who needs to get out more; First Table is a booking service for helping restaurants secure early evening reservation times in exchange for 50% off the food price. In Earl’s case, they also require the purchase of 1 minimum drink per person with exclusions on specials for this offer. Walking into Earl you’re drawn in by the sweeping curves of the entryway to a pleasant and calm atmosphere. Sitting down at the clean marble table we enjoyed the mentioned sparkling water and a decent selection of gin and tonics. Sadly they didn’t offer ginger for a garnish as it’s a great option for Roku gin, but we’ll see if the waiter really does “steal that idea”. A botanist + cucumber did the job just fine instead. We chose the melon and prosciutto to accompany the warm house focaccia bread without disappointment, and after a great chat our mains swiftly arrived. I chose the Ribye steak which was juicy, flavour packed, and very filling. My partner went for the market fish being grouper that night with a great experience as well. We tapped out after splitting one of the best lemon tarts I’ve ever had with a crunchy caramelised top and creme chantilly. In total it came out to be around $90 which for us was well worth it. However, we did get a shock when the bill initially came to $162 before the discount was applied. We both agreed, it would have been a little much for the experience we received as the mains portions were on the small size. *Even in the opinion of a kiwi not just the American! A great place we’d recommend for a first table booking. However, you’ll need to decide for yourself if the full price is justified.