Pizza, pizza and more pizza!
Welcome to part 2 of my review of my stay at Bannisters at Port Stephens. This post contains a review of a few more of the places we enjoyed some food and a whole lost of pizza.
Now, while my stay at Port Stephens was certainly relaxing, but food variety, I have to admit, was a bit limited. As you will see below:
The Cheeky Dog tavern at Bannisters:
The menu here was what you would expect from a standard pub fare, but there was also an extensive pizza menu that came highly recommended and many of the patrons were enjoying. When it Rome….
Our meal included a cheeseburger and a prosciutto pizza and an Aperol Spritz for me 🙂
Food: 3 stars.
The burger was very heavy going and couldn’t be finished comfortable by my partners (he can usually out do my eating quite a bit). The pizza was ok, but not the nicest pizza I have ever had.
Customer service: 4 stars.
The staff were very quick with the food orders. To also help was food delivery and ordering during Covid, they also had the option of ordering your food and drink via an app, instead of lining up at the bar. Which is great. The drink service however was a bit lacking. They only had one person capable of making cocktails and the wait time was ridiculously long. A bit of extra training for some of the staff in mixology would go a long was to help them, I think.
Next location: Murray’s Brewery
A beautiful outdoor setting that is surrounded by pop-ups of the various venues of interest. This sort of reminded me of The Grounds of Alexandria. There was a bar, food prep station, flower shop, wine tasting bar, and a bottle and various condiments shop. And all of it set on the grounds of a grassy winery. It was very picturesque.
We started with a tasting board of course (well it IS a brewery) and had also had some nice samples from a charcuterie board and yes, more pizza.
The food: 4.5 stars.
Another great ordering service via the Meandu app. Very, very quick as well. The food was estimated as 30 mins away. It was ready in 15 mins!
The meats, cheese, jams, fruits and dips were a great variety to choose from…but they did forget to give us the flatbread. Oh well. Good thing we ordered pizza 🙂
I ordered a fantastic Margarita pizza. Wood fired, with a fluffy and thin crust and packed with flavour. It was easily devoured.
The beer: 5 stars. Just great. They even had a couple of wine / beer mixes that I really enjoyed. So much that we actually purchased a pack or 2 from the shop.
Customer service: 4.5 stars. Very friendly and helpful staff, very efficient. Although they did hover a bit. As soon as you finished your water, there they were giving you a top up.
Final location: Valhalla pizza hall
Another really great space at neutral bay. Massive indoor space with the ability to hold huge crowds and a sprawling outdoor area for the kids to run off their energy in.
The pizza: 4 cheese pizza, Supreme and prosciutto pizzas.
The 4 cheese pizza was amazing!!!! I need to figure out which 4 cheeses were use and replicate this at home. It was just fantastic.
The supreme was nice and had a hint of chili in it (very much appreciated by my partner).
The Prosciutto pizza was nice, but also quite salty.
The food: 4.5 stars. HUGE menu of choices for pizza. Plenty for everyone to enjoy. The pizza base was nice and crispy, but very, very wet pizzas . Could only be eaten Napoli style (folding in half). I actually would have like a bit of cutlery to help me make sure I didn’t lose my toppings each time I picked up a slice.
The Customer service: 5 stars. Family run establishment. The bartender clearly knows his stuff when it comes to craft beers (again, my partner was thrilled) and the staff knew the menu cover to cover and could give great recommendations. They also provide takeaway boxes if your eyes happen to be bigger than your stomach.
So why so much pizza you ask? Well there wasn’t really much else to eat. Other options for food were small coffee shops, a BBQ chicken shop fish and chips shop or drive 15 mins down the road to the mall for a small selection at the food court.
Beautiful beach town, lovely customer service at Port Stephens, I’d just like a few more options for the foodie in me to be satisfied. Thanks for the relaxing week Port Stephens!
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