Garlic Bread from Yellow Shack Cafe

Yellow Shack Cafe
Main West Coast Rd
Springfield
NZ

Phone: 03-318 4880


In search of sone decent food while taking a weekend trip over to the brilliant Westcoast of NZ, we ended up stopping in Springfield NZ (of The Simpson's fame - home of Homer and his doughnut, and seem to remember, the world premier of the movie - so aptly called 'The Simpsons')  Anyhow - we stopped at the Yellow Shack - well known for its pies and pizzas. The place seemed quiet when we arrived - the atmosphere was great though. The pizzas are cooked in a woodfired oven (I so gonna want one for myself) and are indeed  v e r y  delicious. As for the Garlic bread - well -  as you can see it is a basic pizza base and had garlic butter over the top. There coverage was missing in some places and so rich was the bread that upon picking up one slice you were covered in dripping butter-oil. The presentation left a bit to be desired as well and if there had been any herbs sprinkled on top, they would have floated away.  Its only redeeming feature being the fact that there is a distinctive garlic flavour to be savoured and can definitley be tasted.
Make no mistake - the service, the atmoshpere, the pizzas and the friendly smile by the owner are first class, and if they improve on the garlic bread itself this will be a fantastic place to eat out.  Alternatively skimp the garlic bread and feast on the other items from the menu!!

Presentation	1.5 out of 5
Quantity	3 out of 5
Taste:	3 out of 5
Quality	.5 out of 5
Overall score:	8 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread from Pattersons Restaurant

Copthorne Hotel Commodore
449 Memorial Ave,
Christchurch,
New Zealand

Phone: +64 3 358 8129

www.Pattersons Restaurant


Ah yes - a 27th wedding anniversary.  Last year we missed out on celebrating as we were still in panic mode when the mag 6.3 earthquake shook up our City and - well - laid waste to pretty much of the inner city.  This year we decided to treat ourselves and went a bit more upmarket.  One certainly saw plenty of plate and not so much of the food - however it all tasted very good.  you will spot the side plate and knife on the table, obviously we were meant to use this.  Suffice to say I am used to eat my garlic bread with fingers, so I am sure looked out of place.
The garlic bread came in good time, and was nicely presented.  Nice touch - on the side there was a small bowl of garlic yoghurt and a good sprinkling of herbs. Nice and crisp bread.  However the garlic butter had been spread only on the top and then it was oven roasted thus leaving a distinct lack of "butter flavor" in half of the bread.   In terms of quantity there was enough for two people, and it filled you up nicely without leaving you feeling full before your main meal arrives. 

Presentation	5 out of 5
Quantity	4 out of 5
Taste:	4 out of 5
Quality	4 out of 5
Overall score:	17 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread from Ceasars Family Restaurant and Bar

Ceasars Family Restaurant
Northwood Supa Centa,
Main North Road,
Belfast,
Christchurch
03 323 5420


www.caesars.co.nz

Yes it was time to go out again and sample some of the local products. This time we went to a family restaurant - in the same vein as NZ Cobb and Co used to be.  A typical family restaurant where the food is good and filling.  This loaf arrived in good time and did not seem to hot - a error which became obvious the moment we opened a slice up.  The extra garlic butter ion the side dish was a nice surprise.  I had visions of having to butter up the loaf myself - but as said before appearances can be deciving.  There was alread plenty of garlic butter inside this Garlic loaf.  The side-dish addition is for those who r e a l l y  like their garlic flavour.  The glass in the background gives you an idea of size - not overly big - in fact just enough for two people to have two or three slices each. The bread was still nice and warm and steaming, once opened, and the flavour was great.  Just perfect.
The only detraction was on presentation - the paper napkin under the loaf did spoil the look of the bread on the wooden platter.

Presentation	4.5 out of 5
Quantity	5 out of 5
Taste:	5 out of 5
Quality	5 out of 5
Overall score:	19.5 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread from Reflections Cafe

Reflections Cafe
State Highway 8
Lake Tekapo
New Zealand

(03) 680-6234

www -> Reflections restaurant

There are a number of eating places on the Lakefront at lake Tekapo - from your traditional quick and easy diary type place  (and some take-away places) to the more formal traditional sit down restaurants. We decided to start with Reflections restaurant that offered a good place to sit down and (if you are lucky enough to get the window seat) offers stunning views across the meadow and adjacent lake front - complete with the Church of the Good Shepherd.

The garlic bread arrived in short time and was presented in a foot long boat shaped plate. The bread itself was a very well baked and was more like a crusty baguette with good garlic flavor. Despite the crusty exterior on the main part of the bread the inside was still soft-ish and easily edible. All of the Garlic butter has melted through the bread and was fully absorbed - no oily residue on your fingers.

The absence of a hint of green herb (trad. parsley) was a detractor from what would have been a good presented and flavored garlic bread.

Very nearly the perfect bread.

Presentation	5 out of 5
Quantity	5 out of 5
Taste:	4 out of 5
Quality	4 out of 5
Overall score:	18 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread from Poco Loco

 

Poco Loco

15 Queen st 15 Queen Street,

Pukekohe

09 238 1607

http://www.pocoloco.co.nz/

 

The garlic bread arrived on a wooden platter.  It was a mini-mini French baguette – 3 bites and it was gone.  It came half cut with a nice solid flavor and plenty of green herbs on top.  It was solidly baked and yes sadly to the point of being burnt on the edges. This could have been a winner if the presentation and quality are looked after better.

Presentation	2 out of 5
Quantity	4 out of 5
Taste:	4 out of 5
Quality	2 out of 5
Overall score:	12 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread from Bistro Forty Seven

 

Bistro Forty seven

47 Queen St

Waiuku

Ph 09 235 2502

The garlic bread arrived in a timely fashion on a warm plate. The bread itself was nicely arranged, layered 2 tier high.  It had a nice garlic flavour with a cheese topping that was crusty – eg well baked.  Now I knew at ordering, that it would come with cheese, and I have to say I am not a fan of cheese toppings on garlic bread – mainly because: 

one: the cheese usually ends up leaving a oily residue (especially if Edam is used) and 

two: the texture and flavour of the cheese tends to hide the garlic on the bread.  However this garlic bread did not suffer from oily residue and there was sufficient garlic flavour left to enjoy. The greenery was purely for decoration and the smattering of herbs (usually parsley) was definitely missing in action.

Presentation	4 out of 5
Quantity	3 out of 5
Taste:	3 out of 5
Quality	3 out of 5
Overall score:	13 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread from Little Italy

Little Italy
119 Farrington Ave
Christchurch
Facebook -- Little-Italy
03 359 2930

We needed to go out for a meal after we shifted all our belongings so that Fletchers can come and do their bit inside our house and get it fixed after the earthquakes!  Anyhow we decided to give the local new eatery a whirl called 'Little Italy'.
Very nice - and they did do a garlic bread so naturally we had to sample that. In some ways it is similar to that from Harringtons  (garlic-bread-from-harringtons)
The loaf is a little smaller and just the right size for a couple that still wants to enjoy the rest of the meal without feeling full - before you even start the rest of the meal!   It comes as a whole loaf - freshly baked and very crusty! The serrated knife supplied will cut the loaf easily into whatever slice you may want too and then you have a choice of 3 condiments to add to your freshly cut loaf! (fresh soft garlic butter , tomato / capsicum pesto and a avocado pesto)  The bread was so hot that the soft butter had no trouble melting in and soaking the bread!  Yumm!!  Sadly no pictures.  If there there is any criticism the garlic butter had a teeny weeny lack of garlic flavor. 

Presentation	5 out of 5
Quantity	5 out of 5
Taste:	4 out of 5
Quality	5 out of 5
Overall score:	19 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread - from Harringtons

808 Main North Road
Belfast
Christchurch
New Zealand
http://harringtonsbreweries.co.nz


Re-visited on 12 June 2011

A group of us went out to celebrate a certain half century with instructions for no flowers and/or speeches. We went to what must be developing into our favorite watering hole.   This time I gave everyone a slip of paper and got them to "rate" the Garlic Bread - the  idea being that I get different perspectives and a consensus vote.  The Garlic bread itself has not changed since we first tasted it - it is still like a half loaf (imagine a soccer ball being cut vertically and you receive one of these half's)

The great Garlic Bread that looks like a football cut in half

The Garlic Bread Loaf arrives on a nice big white plate, and should have been steaming.  The two that landed on our table were slightly different.  Ours had still the un-melted raw butter inside whereas the other loaf while hot had to little garlic butter. There are still no herbs in any shape added. The garlic "flavor" was very faint indeed and could be described as 'missing in action', but then I prefer a more distinct flavor to some other people.  One comment that came back was saying it was to much to eat- and certainly should be shared between 3 or 4 people.

So without further ado - I have added up all the returned papers and averaged it out and post below - at first glance they seem to be on par or slightly more generous compared with previous ratings - indicating some consistency in the kitchen. Here is their rating

Presentation	4.3 out of 5
Quantity	3.5 out of 5
Taste:	3.8 out of 5
Quality	4.9 out of 5
Overall score:	16.5 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread from Corianders

Shop No 8, 70-76 Rolleston Drive,
Rolleston Square
Rolleston / Christchurch
Phone 03 347 2315

http://www.corianders.co.nz/ 

Went out with a group of Friends and we decided to give Indian a try.  Never been to an Indian restaurant before, so not sure what to expect.  The thing is - this was almost 6 weeks after the major earthquake in Christchurch and many places are still shut down, although I am sure this was not the only major contributer to the busyness of the place.
It's a curious mix of sit down restaurant and Take-away.  Wines are byo.
And the queue's for the takeaway where always 6-9 people deep - this on a Saturday from 6.30 pm onwards right through to 9pm.  Turnover must be fantastic.

To cut a short story long - we had a great time out and the meal was enjoyable.
I didn't think a Indian would have garlic bread - but they did - in a manner.
Basically it was a traditional Indian Naan bread (oven baked) - that had some fresh cut garlic on top. It was semi crunchy and had little taste and it also arrived as a side accompanying bread - as opposed to a starter.  It costs $3.50 and is meant to serve one, but somehow we got a little bit more, not sure how this worked on the night.
While this writer rates the actual bread lowly, due to the fact that this was just a dressed up Naan bread, he has to stress that the rest of the meal and company was superb quality.



 

Presentation	2 out of 5
Quantity	2 out of 5
Taste:	1 out of 5
Quality	3 out of 5
Overall score:	8 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread from Spagalimis

356 Main North Road
Redwood
Christchurch
Phone:
0800 113 113

http://www.spagalimis.co.nz/

Yes well - the expectations weren't high on this one.  Take-out Garlic Bread never lives up to the expectations and by the time you drive back home and sit down it usually is lukewarm at the best of times.  Sometimes if you are lucky and get delivery's they put the pizza and garlic bread into those special heat retaining bags and you get a better deal.  So for NZ 3.50 it wasn't too bad, there was flavour just big enough to taste and a good sprinkling of herbs.
As for style - well a paper bag - hmmmm - not much to say there.  Between Mamabear and myself we could have had another half of it again.

Presentation	1 out of 5
Quantity	1 out of 5
Taste:	3 out of 5
Quality	2 out of 5
Overall score:	7 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread from Rotherhams of Riccarton

42 Rotherham Street
PO Box 8425, Riccarton
Christchurch
Phone:
(03) 341 5142

http://www.rotherhamsofriccarton.co.nz


Hmmm had to go to this work do. Nice place -a bit posh. This was brought home when we sat down at the table and the owner / waitress took the napkins of the tables and placed them on our knees. Yeah - posh place all right and right out of my comfort zone and the sort of place where you see plenty of plate and not so much food.

The garlic bread itself arrived on a platter - along with a selection of freshly baked breads (chilly and chiabatta bread) and balsamic vinegar reduction and a small pot of rocket pesto. It was advertised as a plate for two and while the whole was filling, I did miss out on having plenty of Garlic bread. The garlic bread itself was luke-warm - even though it was mentioned that we are to be careful as it had just come out of the oven. It did however have plenty of flavor and a touch of herbs - well balanced. The plater itself was nicely arranged, and surprisingly (given the rest of the menus prices) reasonably priced!!
This would have to rate as one of the top draws.

Presentation	5 out of 5
Quantity	4 out of 5
Taste:	5 out of 5
Quality	4 out of 5
Overall score:	18 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread at Dinos Cafe

Dinos Cafe

Shop 3 / 1 Blacksmith Lane, 

Whitianga
Ph (07) 867 1010

No known Web address


Re-visited on 11 Dec 2010

We so loved the Coromandel and Whitianga town in particular - so when we knew the Pohutukawa's might be flowering we took liberty and a deep financial breath and treated ourselves to a weekend away. We then took the opportunity and revisited one of Whitianga's best kept secrets - Dinos Cafe.

This is where the idea of running a garlic critique blog began . . .




Upon ordering we noticed this time, that this is advertised as garlic PIZZA bread and
whence the look and earlier critique  ----> garlic-bread-from-dinos-cafe

Not much has changed in the months since (which is good I guess), even the staff are still the same.

Presentation	2 out of 5
Quantity	4 out of 5
Taste:	4 out of 5
Quality	4 out of 5
Overall score:	14 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread from Coromandel Hotel

Coromandel Hotel
611 Kapanga Road

Coromandel 3506, New Zealand

(07) 866 8760
www.coromandelhotel.co.nz
 (I think the link to the website is not working)
There is a Face-book page however







The bread arrived in good time
It was a Oven toasted bread - and nice and warm, moist.
It did lack the "garlic" flavour - barely there - and I tasted more of the herbs on the bread.
It was obvious that the garlic was  not cut fresh - rather manufactured from bottle.

Presentation	3 out of 5
Quantity	3 out of 5
Taste:	2 out of 5
Quality	3 out of 5
Overall score:	11 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread on camp

18 Oct 2010

yes well - I haven't been much out lately - after all we DID have a major earthquake in this beautiful City of ours - Christchurch on 4th September 2010 that made it necessary to re-prioritize ones life.

Then it was all steam ahead for our Jamboree on the Internet  and this year we added the Ham guys (radio) [JOTI / JOTA].
One of the camp staff recently discovered a bread making machine and prior to camp  there were various comments going forth and back (on Facebook no less) about stinky socks and counter smells . . . . .   ^^ 

Anyhow to cut a long story short a suitably baked garlic bread was duly baked and presented to this old bear.  I will have to say that the presentation was one of a kind - and I am positive I will never ever again experience this kind of presentation again - ever!!
Note the reverend kneeling position ^^

Without further ado - here is a pic' and urm below - well lets give it a total 18

Well done Su -
Is there any-more . . . . .


http://joti2010.blogspot.com/

Garlic Bread - from Harringtons

808 Main North Road
Belfast
Christchurch
New Zealand
http://harringtonsbreweries.co.nz


Re-visited on 26 Aug 2010

Garlic Bread type - Like a half loaf (imagine a soccer ball being cut vertically and you receive one of these half's)

The great Garlic Bread that looks like a football cut in half

The Garlic Bread Loaf arrives on a nice big white plate, and its steaming - so obviously very hot and pretty much straight out from the oven. It is pre-cut about 6 or 7 times almost all the way to the bottom.
There is something about freshly baked bread - and this is no different - soft and delicious.
The garlic butter has been spread right through the bread.  As you can see there are no herbs in any shape applied and I would have to say that the garlic flavor was very faint indeed and could be described as 'missing in action', but then perhaps my palate has changed over the last 9 months or so.

Your supplied serrated knife helps you to cut off a piece with ease.
Plates and napkins are also supplied.

Only draw back is - it is enough for 2-4 people (which is plenty for this old-ish couple) and you could say, it is almost a meal in itself.

Presentation	4 out of 5
Quantity	3 out of 5
Taste:	4 out of 5
Quality	5 out of 5
Overall score:	16 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread from Robbies

Robbies Bar and Bistro
812 Main North Road, Belfast
Phone: 03-323 6126
Fax: 03-323 9029

http://www.robbiesbar-bistro.co.nz





It was someones birthday - so the family went out for a meal.
Venue was nice and relaxed.  In due course our ordered garlic bread arrived.
We actually had two - one was the normal type and the second version came with
Mozzarella cheese toping.  Both were French baguettes cut and topped with usual garlic butter.  The cheese drowned out the garlic flavor and was rather a tad overpowering. The garlic bread itself was crisply baked although by the time we got it, it was just lukewarm. Sad to say it was pretty average.

Presentation	4 out of 5
Quantity	3 out of 5
Taste:	1 out of 5
Quality	2 out of 5
Overall score:	10 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread from La Porchetta

LaPorchetta
Papanui
484 Cranford st
Christchurch

http://www.laporchetta.com.au/menu/sides


LaPorchetta is a franchised Italian restaurant. Oddly enough the cooks were all Asian - something we once struck in Italy! The Cranford Street place is a brand new location giving Christchurch two places to choose from - the other being in Riccarton.
The place is / was very busy and one had to book a table, in order to guarantee a place - or take into a account a long time to wait for patrons to clear out and get a seat. It is a popular place with many folks - especially students as you usually get good value for your plate and the pizzas / pasta dishes are great! It also serves a good number of people taking food out - a great NZ institution. However from about 8 pm onwards foot traffic slows down noticeable. We went to Laporchetta because it was son's 21st Birthday and my 21st with 28 years of experience, and he choose the Italian food theme.
The fact it it so busy from 6-8 pm might explain the state of the garlic bread - when it arrived it felt luke-warm and upon breaking it apart you could still see the raw butter inside. I know that it ends up inside your tummy anyhow - but would prefer that the butter has melted into bread by the time it is served. It also had no herbs in any shape or form and the garlic taste was very faint - understated almost. It will be interesting when we go back to see if it has improved ^^

Presentation	2 out of 5
Quantity	2 out of 5
Taste:	1 out of 5
Quality	1 out of 5
Overall score:	6 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread at some's place in Waiuku

Waiuku Township
Franklin District
NZ


I was lucky enough to tag along (ok - invited actually) to a birthday party for a 14 year old princess and her large extended family, and urm there was an awful lot of home made food being prepared. Shamelessly everyone brought more and certainly the plentiful garlic bread came from a local supermarket - I saw the wrappers - but don't ask me which national chain supplied the goods.
The bread itself was a french baguette type cut horizontally and liberally spread with the garlic butter. Now there were actually two types and one of them was just divine.
It must have had something to do with the fact that it came more or less hot out of the oven and got served straight away thus the bread was still warm and moist, there was plenty of garlic flavour, and surprisingly enough a thin layer of baked soft melted cheese.
The whole fitted nicely together. Very nicely done.

Presentation	3 out of 5
Quantity	4 out of 5
Taste:	5 out of 5
Quality	5 out of 5
Overall score:	17 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread from Harewood Tavern

Harewood Tavern
333 Harewood Rd
Bishopdale
Christchurch

http://www.tavernharewood.co.nz/

Seeing it was Friday and urm - we needed a break so we decided to go to the Local tavern for a meal - after all no dishes beats eating at home any time. The place was packed and we were lucky to get a seat for two. Service was efficient and friendly enough, and we settled down to the meal with a glass of medicinal fruit juice.

Our Garlic bread soon arrived. It was luke warm - and more akin to a pizza. It was a flat 3 mm thick pancake shape - size of a decent plate. I cannot be sure but looking at the bottom I got the feeling that the base was pre-cooked. It was very generous topped with herbs and some cheese.
Indeed the cheese made the whole thing a bit oily. From Garlic - there was very little taste.
All in all this was a bit of a disappointment (the rest of the meal was ok-ish - again more plate then substance - but flavorsome enough)

Presentation	0 out of 5
Quantity	1 out of 5
Taste:	0 out of 5
Quality	1 out of 5
Overall score:	2 (out of poss 20)

Garlic Bread - at Rimu Park - a local Scout camp site!

Rimu Park
West Coast Rd / Buchannons Rd intersection
Outside of Christchurch City
New Zealand

No known website

Mhmmm - The local scouts had a camping competition, where they had to plan strike and feed them selves on a camp. Points were awarded for camping gadgets and cooking skills and a whole heap of other things. Anyhow - I was deemed to be a worthy food judge and went round the four campsites and got to taste the delicatessen the scouts could cook. The evening meal had to hav chicken and the following lunch had to be mince based. A great variety of meals for sure.
One patrol blew me away though - they decided for the entree to have garlic bread.
While visiting them in the afternoon I did see one young lass chopping up some fresh garlic. Hmmmmmm the aroma - just love it. There was a decent dollop of soft butter waiting in a bowl already. I was eager to taste it later, all the while wondering how they would cook it.

The Garlic bread itself was some small baguette cut into little round shapes no more then 1.5 cm thick and about an inch in diameter. They buttered both sides and then toasted this both sides on a camp toaster over gas. Very inventive. They proceeded to toast all like that and then piled them on a plate , sprinkled with some parsley - and keeping it all hot over a pot of boiling water. By the time we got round to the judging it was still soft, warm and aromatic. Just divine.

Presentation	5 out of 5
Quantity	5 out of 5
Taste:	4 out of 5
Quality	5 out of 5
Overall score:	19 (out of poss 20)

Presentation: 5 out of 5
Quantity: 5 out of 5
Taste: 4 out of 5
Quality: 5 out of 5

Overall score: 19 (out of a poss 20)