Queenstown eats well for a town of its size. The restaurants, bars and cafés are packed into a few walkable streets, the lakeside setting gives even a simple dinner a sense of occasion, and the surrounding region produces some of the most admired pinot noir in the southern hemisphere. The key is to plan a few meals around the experiences you are already booking, and to leave room for one or two unplanned discoveries. Here is how to eat and drink your way through a visit.
Start with the wine
Central Otago is the world’s southernmost wine region, a dry, high-altitude basin of schist soils where hot days and cold nights produce intensely flavoured pinot noir. Queenstown sits at its edge, and the nearest vineyards are in the Gibbston Valley, about twenty-five minutes from town along the Kawarau River gorge. Gibbston Valley Wines is the best-known stop, with a tour into its wine cave, a tasting and a cheesery that makes small-batch cheeses to match. Other cellar doors cluster nearby, and a bike trail links several of them, so you can combine tasting with a ride if you are cautious and confident on two wheels. If you prefer not to drive, a guided wine tour or shuttle takes the pressure off. Beyond pinot noir, look for aromatic whites such as riesling and pinot gris, which suit the cool climate well.
Eat on Shotover Street and in the centre
The heart of town is full of casual options. The burger bar on Shotover Street is famous enough to have a queue at most hours, and if you do not mind waiting it is a rite of passage after a day of adrenaline. Elsewhere in the centre you will find modern New Zealand restaurants serving venison, lamb, salmon and seafood, Asian kitchens, pizza, bakeries for an early start and plenty of cafés with strong flat whites. Menus change with the season, so ask your hotel or the staff what they recommend, and book dinner ahead for weekends, school holidays and the ski season.
Dine with a view
One of the pleasures of Queenstown is that a good view often comes with dinner. The restaurant at the top of the Skyline gondola serves a buffet with the town and the lake spread out below, and sunset there is a highlight for first-time visitors. On the water, the TSS Earnslaw steamship carries diners across Lake Wakatipu to Walter Peak High Country Farm for an evening barbecue, a good option for families and groups who want a sociable, scenic meal. Hotel bars and lakefront terraces are lovely for a drink as the sun drops behind The Remarkables, and a few of the grander hotels have restaurants worth visiting even if you are not staying.
Try Arrowtown
A short drive from town, Arrowtown is the place for a slower meal. Its historic cottages house cafés, bakeries and restaurants, and a long lunch after a stroll along Buckingham Street and the Chinese settlement is one of the most relaxing ways to spend an afternoon. In autumn, when the trees turn gold, a window table is hard to beat.
Drinks after dark
Queenstown has a lively bar scene, with cocktail bars, craft beer venues and live music rooms scattered through the centre. For something different, the Minus 5 Ice Bar at Steamer Wharf serves drinks in glasses made of ice in a room kept well below freezing, with warm jackets and gloves provided. It suits a rainy afternoon or an early evening before dinner. Local breweries and distilleries produce spirits and beers that are worth sampling, and a flight of local pinot noir at a wine bar is a good way to explore the region without leaving town.
Practical tips
Tipping is not expected in New Zealand, though a small gesture for excellent service is always appreciated. Many places close their kitchens earlier than visitors expect, so check hours if you are arriving late from a tour. If you have dietary requirements, Queenstown’s restaurants are generally accommodating, but it helps to say so when you book. For self-catering, supermarkets in the centre and in Frankton stock local produce, cheese and wine, and a picnic by the lake is a fine budget meal.
A simple plan
On your first evening, walk the lakefront and eat in the centre. On the second day, pair a morning adventure with a burger lunch. On the third, take a wine tour in the Gibbston Valley, and finish with a sunset drink on a hotel terrace overlooking the lake.
