Fire-cooked food worth the trip to Mornington
The kitchen is the heart of this place — charcoal grill, Otago produce, a menu that changes when the season tells it to. Stay after dinner and the social poker room is right through the back doors.
The plates people photograph
The 45-day ribeye
Dry-aged in the glass cabinet by the pass — ask your server, they'll point at it proudly.
The Dealer's Board
Built for the poker rail — one-handed eating so the other stays on your cards.
Charred market veg
Proof the grill doesn't discriminate — even the cauliflower gets the manuka treatment.
Burnt honey panna cotta
The dessert poker players order between hands. We've seen bluffs lost over the last spoonful.
Six seats, elbow-to-elbow with the grill
Book the pass counter and you eat whatever Mere's excited about that week — she'll talk you through every course while the grill hisses behind her. It's the best seat in the house, and regulars know it.
Bookings open 30 days out
Still leaves time for poker after
A bar that takes Otago seriously
Central Otago pinot leads the cellar, the whisky shelf runs eighty deep, and the zero-proof list is a real list — not an apology.
- House old fashioned$18
- Central Otago pinot noir, glass$14
- Smoked marmalade sour$17
- Clarified no-groni (zero proof)$12
Everything on the drinks list is available at the poker tables via felt-side service.
Sommelier's pick of the month
A biodynamic Bannockburn pinot that somehow costs less than it should.
The salon — your own room for the night
A twelve-seat private room off the Main Hall for birthdays, board dinners and the occasional very fancy poker night. Own server, own pace, doors that actually close.
- Fully private
Separate entrance available, sound-dampened walls. - Private poker option
Add a dealer-hosted poker table to your dinner — our most-booked upgrade. - Custom menus
Mere writes a menu around your table, not the other way round.
A look around the house
Kitchen hours & the late rule
Tue–Sun 12:00–23:00
Thu–Sat 19:00–02:00
Daily till late — kitchen's late menu follows
Sat–Sun from 11:30 on the terrace
Hungry yet?
Book the table, pick the date — and if you're coming Thursday to Saturday, the poker room can hold you a seat on the felt too.
Book a table