08 August 2011

Wharfside Restaurant: August 2011

Enhancing your dining experience

This blog post is about enhancing your dining experience at Circa. As discussed in our last blog, Daniel, our Chef,  has recently released his new menu, and I must say I’m pretty impressed with it. The food looks and tastes great and we are getting it to you, our patrons, in a timely manner.  

Our focus in the restaurant is to create a dining experience that provides quality food and service that you would expect in a lot of Wellington restaurants, while addressing the time constraints we are under in order to get our patrons to their shows on time. The main problem we face is people not booking in early enough; nearly everyone who dines with us is going to the show, and we need to be able to get all through their meals and into the theatre at the same time. The kitchen gets busier and busier the closer it gets to the show start time, and we need all the time we can get in order to ensure everything runs smoothly. This can be difficult when there are 200-300 people in the building and a full restaurant - particularly if those dining haven't arrived early enough. It is therefore imperative to give yourself plenty of time when booking and/or casual dining before a show, in order to fully enjoy your dining experience. After 17 years with Circa, we have tried everything and feel we have got things running as smoothly and as efficiently as we can in the environment.

A few tips to take into consideration therefore:
·         1. Make a booking. We recommend arriving for dinner about 2 hours before show time; if the show starts at 8pm, then it is best to make your booking for 6pm.

·        2.  If you are wishing to dine casually rather than book, please still allow the two hour window for dining otherwise we may be forced to turn you away due to a full restaurant or limited time remaining before the show. 

      3. Look at pre-ordering dessert/coffee/wine before the show to enjoy back at your table during the interval or after the show.  If it is a short show with no interval, you can:
o        Have a drink on arrival
o        Pre-order for after the show before you go in
o        Come out at the end of the show with your meal coming to the table a few minutes after you sit down

We currently have two shows on at Circa - When the Rain Stops Falling and EIGHT - with no interval, which make dining after the show a very reasonable option, especially on Tuesdays and Wednesdays when the shows both go in and come out early.

With the Rugby World Cup coming up, the favourite Four Flat Whites in Italy is playing a 6.30pm on most evenings. We are open for dining, and with it being an early session dining after the show and watching the waterfront from our conservatory would be a great way to finish up the evening. Please note we are only open for after show dining if bookings are received pre-show.

So please make use of us to enhance your Circa experience.
I look forward to seeing you there.
Martin Halliday
Owner, Wharfside Restaurant

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