FoodLovers Restaurant Guide

Reviews for Invito – Cafe , Restaurant, Bar

by Monica C.
7th January 2013

Like the location in the Chancery and used to enjoy coming for brunch on a nice day and the food was pretty good. However I tried it for dinner once and was disappointed. The food was quite bland, I had a lasagne and tried some of my friend’s meals – pastas, pizzas, the salmon – it was very average and not something you want at a restaurant. The cocktails taste like there is no alcohol in it so I’m really unsure about that and there were quite a few smokers in the outside area at night. Service is not the best. I would say go for brunch during the day but definitely not for dinner.

by Carlo V.
12th December 2012

Need to meet a friend in the city this afternoon and decided to order a coffee and muffin at Invito while waiting.

The service is quick and friendly, water was served even before I ask for it. At 6 bucks for coffee and muffin, I got a friendly service, good food and a comfortable place outside to chill out.

Sure to come back and probably try their pizzas whenever I visit the City.

by Liz I.
10th December 2012

Came here for drinks with some friends on Thursday night. The service is terrible. The European girl was nice and friendly however the Asian guy was rude and uninterested. It wasn’t busy. Desserts came out burnt. Unsure what happened to this place but I won’t be back unless some staff management are made. There was just no sense of welcome.

by Suzy
25th November 2012

No visit to Auckland without having lunch or dinner at least once at Invito. No more so since the restaurant has changed hands lately. The place has become a hangout for people who enjoy smoking waterpipes – which leaves plenty of tables inside for those who only want to eat and drink ) Although clearly more oriental, the menu still is heavily focussed on Italian dishes, the few desserts are a mixture of Italian and Turkish.

My favourite waiter is gone, the wine I always chose is not available anymore, not to speak of my favourite dish! The Italian dishes are not sophisticated anymore but the simplest of simple dishes you can cook at home – with the only difference that you might do them better. Meaning: the food – at least the pasta – has become very average; the meat balls I had were totally bland, despite the heavy use of garlic. Hubby said his pizza was very good. The chef was Chinese or so and is probably no expert in Italian pasta cooking. The wine list is short and uninteresting.

The service was not good and not bad but has lost the personal touch.

My husband asked if I had really been in this restaurant before because nothing matched my descriptions. But finally I went to the toilet – and that was still the same

Sorry, folks, I will not be back. The honest thing to do would be to change the name of this once wonderful place as well.

by Arran H.
24th November 2012

Went there for breakfast with a few friends before watching the eclipse and it was the perfect start to the day. While possibly a bit busier than normal for a Wednesday morning (we were a group of 10) the service was quick and friendly and our breakfasts were served quickly and beautifully cooked (I’m fussy about my eggs being poached perfectly and theirs were spot on). The Asian girl was was particularly good, rushed of her feet with all the customers but always there when needed, keeping our water filed, making delicious mocha (and bringing me extra marshmallows when I asked for some) and always with a smile. I’ll definitely be back and it will be with clients next time.

by Lilian L.
16th October 2012

Was there for dinner. Ordered lamb shank and mussels. Lamb was delicious but could be better with a bit more gravy/sauce. Mussels were good. Love the tiramisu and the warm chocolate tart is to die for. The desserts are quite big in portion! Lots of drinks selection. Overall good experience!

by Anthony
9th October 2012

Bought a voucher from treatment the other day, went for dinner, the steak was huge, had good feed there. They just changed their wine and food menus, which are more attractive I think. Polite waitress and good quality food

by Courtney W.
13th August 2012

I used to go there a lot in the past for drinks and for late lunch. I haven’t been back since the owner sold the business until 2 weeks ago where I went there for dinner, and I promise I won’t be returning anymore. I know it was a busy night but the service was unacceptable. The waitress was rude and forgetful, yet she was happy when she spoke to an Asian group who appeared to be her friends. We waited a long time for service, and waited a long time for our food. The food was below average and cold when served. We had a mocha and a hot chocolate at the end, and both were poorly done. I can’t imagine how a restaurant can make such terrible hot chocolate. I love the outside seatings still, but I think I’ll wait for them to change owner again before I’ll return.

by ash
1st July 2012

recently just had breakfast here, and it was AMAZING, so delicious, everything was perfectly cooked .
Service is very friendly , always greeted with a smile.

very good dining experience, highly recommend

by Dave
23rd June 2012

The outside of Invito is probably the only attractive thing about it. We sat outside and there was no gas in the heaters. Too cold, so we decided to move inside. The inside is depressing and confused. It looks like it’s a sports bar, not an Italian restaurant. Our food took a LONG time to turn up, and when it did it was cold. My spaghetti with mini meatballs was tasteless. The meatballs were definitely mini, it was like eating pieces of gristle. I had two or three mouthfuls, and decided I wasn’t going to bother. The staff didn’t seem to show any interest, didn’t apologise for the food being late. Ridiculously overpriced for a meal I could make much better at home (and I’m no chef), for a quarter of the price. Do not bother with this hole. One of the worst “dining” experiences of my life.

by Sharon
12th June 2012

No complaints here. Staff knew we had a voucher and were most gracious, very friendly and only too pleased to help. We had the big breakfast and a ceaser salad (thank you for making that for me) Absolutely lovely on both counts. They were nicely presented and the big break was great. Lovely crunchy homemade hashbrowns, super, little spicy sausages (yum), eggs cooked perfectly, yum yum to all. We had a lovely brunch and if your chef is different to previous reviews, keep him/her. Honestly faultless. Thank you, I look forward to visiting again soon.

by Amy
6th June 2012

Came here twice, both using discount vouchers.

The first time is okay, good enough for us to buy another voucher to try again.

For our second time, the three of us ordered a meatball pizza, seafood fettuccine and french toast. The food was average. We’ve ordered a champagne when the food arrived, we had to remind the people of our champagne as they have forgot (it wasn’t even that busy).

Ordered one latte to have after our meal, the coffee was so weak that it was weaker than a lot the half strength lattes I bought from other cafes (and trust me, I’m not that much of a coffee drinker, I drink half strength lattes…) not too sure if it was the barista of the day or the brand of coffee they used.

Don’t think we will go back again.

by Amelia M.
5th May 2012

My partner and I gave this place another go – been there 3 times before today, and it had been ok. We had a voucher which included 2x drinks and 2x breakfasts. Ordered 2x Mocca’s which came out as lattes, thought this was a genuine mistake, they apologized and gave us the correct coffees.
Then waited 55 minutes for our breakfasts which were given to a table inside, then had a quick zap in the microwave and re-given to us. The waiter told us they had run out of bread as my partner ordered the big breakfast, so we asked for an English muffin instead. I ordered poached eggs, avocado and mushrooms.
The meals came out completely wrong, was missing the avocado, my partners breakfast didn’t have the hashbrowns at all. We queried this and the waitress then advised us ‘we have run out of avocado and hashbrown, actually we have run out of all the breakfast today’. I then said we should have been advised of this when we were seated. Waitress said sorry and then proceeded to ask if we wanted cracked pepper. Mushrooms and eggs were freezing. The staff didn’t even top up our waters. They must have been embarrassed of this horrible service. Do not go here. Period.

by clare a.
15th April 2012

Went along on a Sunday morning with a DailyDo voucher for breakfast.

Serious lack of atmosphere or ambiance in the place. It was like sitting in a library. You have to wonder why the stereo wasn’t being used to help cover the morbid sound of nothing and nobody!

Service without smile, care or any of the basics.

And food very very average. Being the only people in the place you would expect your food to be hot. Well not at Invito. Both plates luke warm at best. Arriving that cold, it’s not long until everything you are eating is cold. And who likes cold poached eggs, cold toast, cold everything.

The bacon was way, way too cooked. Black and crispy is not good chef! And the sausages weren’t cooked properly.

Oh dear oh dear oh dear. Invito you are very very poor indeed.
Even the fact that you have brown sauce (always good when you’re an ex pat) wouldn’t make me ever step into your place again.

by Zoe K.
5th April 2012

We were a large group split between 2 tables, we ordered together. One tables mains came( and were almost finished) before the others entree’s which we had to ask for. My friend found a whole crab in her mussel shell, I asked for my steak to be med rare- the waiter said that was fine. When it arrived it was not even 1 cm thick- and so obviously was cooked through and chewy. Service all over the place, 1 glass broken, 1 juice spilt.
Don’t bother.

by Samara V.
3rd April 2012

Hi all, NEW OWNERS NOW (

Arrived all way in city with my son to have dinner as they Used to make a good lasange for my son and I the garlic pizza bread but before I continue… NEW owners, was disappointed.. found this out a few months ago actually

So checked the menu outside, asked if made garlic pizza bread and they didnt even have that..

So Off I went

by Vinay
31st March 2012

Monday 16 April 2012.
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Went again for the brunch (using the second voucher I had bought). Once again, very pleased with the service, the food and everything in general.

The staff gave us complimentary deserts on the house in appreciation of our return visit. I guess, a smile is far better received (and responded to) than anger or frowns.

==================

After reading so many horrible reviews, specifically from people who went with a discount voucher and were treated badly, I was very apprehensive of going ! Having bought TWO vouchers !!

We ordered the steak open sandwich and a pizza. They brought the bottle of bubbly first, then in a bit followed with the food. I must say, the service was good, the food was very good, and our waitress was most pleasant. The waiters / other guys need to get a crash course in smiling and being pleasant.

I will now need to re-think whether I give the second voucher to my kids, as I am tempted to go back again myself.

All in all, I am very pleased with the place.

by Bryan_AKNZ
26th March 2012

Ate there lunchtime 25 March 2012, using discount voucher. Upon sitting down, I noticed a handful of flies flying around our table.

Ordered bread and dips starter, then Big Breaky for main, while my girlfriend ordered bacon, hash brown and avocado dish. I had a latte.

The starter was served with our mains, even though we specified for the starter to come before. Our mains were cold once we finished our starter – the bread was so hard it became inedible, while the the rest of the dish, the bacon in particular, became very dry. The hashbrowns had onion slices which I enjoyed. The wild sausage was also tasty.

I spoke to the cashier while I paid for the starter (which was not covered by the voucher), suggesting for the future that starters be served before the meal so the latter won’t get cold. He nonchalantly thanked me for my advise, and was generally unresponsive and uninterested to the suggestion.

I used to go there a lot, but ownership has clearly changed and it’s not what it once was.

by Catherine T.
25th March 2012

I will never ever come back. We walked in to an empty cafe, had a big bright “hello” from the manager until she found out we had a groupy voucher (an engagement present). She became rude and looked at us although we were scum. She told us we needed to make a booking and to come back in an hour because in 15 minutes they would be all booked out. When we came back we were treated like we were a MASSIVE inconvenience. She didn’t believe we were were entitled to a bottle of wine and wanted to check our documentation. We felt embarrassed and annoyed. Never come here.

by Renee
25th March 2012

Zero star rating for shocking customer service!!! Purchased a Deal Voucher – read the terms and conditions of the restaurant that was subject to availability. Went to Invito on a Saturday afternoon around 1.30 pm – they had more than 15 table available, yet stated that if we had a voucher, we had to book 24 hours prior. I said that this was not in the terms or fine print, but they simply answered that they had recently added those terms. I asked the manager “Even though you have all these empty tables, are you refusing to allow us to use our voucher?” and he said “that’s correct!!!” Customer Service – well there is obviously a reason why they were so empty while the neighbouring restaurants were humming!!!

by Al K.
29th January 2012

Invito one of our favourite Italian restaurants since day one. Always enjoyed the excellent hospitality of the friendly staff. Great indoor and outdoor dining especially during winter. Love the food. Especially the chicken liver with garlic bread..perfectly made every time. Last visited Invito last year during Winter. The waitress and staff were very friendly and helpful. We sat outside and the gas fire was a little far so they brought it closer to us to make us as comfortable. Food arrived on time and great wine selection as well. Waitress come to our table from time to time to ensure everything was going well and if we need anything. Really sad to see some have had bad dining experience here. If you love Italian food, you will love Invito.

by James N.
1st January 2012

Once they bothered to take our order it took 45 minutes to get the chicken salad, it arrived just as we were about to walk out. It’s new years day and there were limited options for food and I was hungry so decided to give it a go. The chicken was dry and had little flavor and for a salad I was surprised to have half the plate filled with fries and only a small portion of ‘salad’ if you could call it that. The waiting staff tried to give our meals to other diners and their meals to us several times.

by Tracey
14th December 2011

Overpriced food with poor quality and service. Our group had 1 seafood salad, 1 big breakfast and eggs and bacon w avocado and mushrooms. Firstly the restaurant advertises streaky bacon… Instead we got what tasted like budget Medallion bacon cut into strips, bread was budget wholemeal, avocado was rock hard and charged $4 for a half and lastly the big breakfast served 1 small chorizo if that sliced into thin strips. The sea food salad was made from frozen mixed seafood which is a crime for 24 dollars plus another$4 for avocado….Especially when served on iceberg lettuce. It took 15 minutes for our iced coffees to arrive when there was only 2 other small tables… All up bill was 88 dollars. We did get 25 percent off after complaining at the end but eve after that the food wasn’t worth 60 or so dollars.

by Kero
25th November 2011

Very disappointing and poor standard for a mid-week meal out. My friends meals were passable, however my choices were rather unappetising, especially the main course. The Meze starter looked and tasted like the dips/sauces were straight from the supermarket shelves); the Seafood Salad (which my system ejected not long after the night had ended) was incredibly sad and highly resembled the fozen mixed seafood that comes out of a defrosted packet. This came on top of a plate of cut up cos lettuce (may have been some shredded cabbage in there) and a watery brown sauce at the bottom (may have been dressing – not sure). The table service was unfortunately abysmal – not an ounce of warmth or welcome; the timing of food coming out for the table was erratic and inconsistent; there were many errors in what we had ordered culminating in some items not showing and others needing to be cancelled as the meal had finished. On a positive note – the bread was super yummy and the wine selection enjoyable! All in all, unless Invito bucks up their service and cooking standards, I and friends will not be returning. We would not recommend this restaurant.

by Sharelle
10th November 2011

We have often wandered past and wondered what this place was like, so when a voucher came up recently my husband decided to treat us.
The service was patchy, they were prompt in taking our orders, but the entree turned up not to our specifications and had to be sent back to the kitchen. We had to ask for water 3 times before it was finally refilled.
The mezze platter had what looked like coleslaw thrown on one end of the plate as a way of high lighting the condiments which tasted very mass produced and out of the packet along with the prawn twisters and calamari.
The mains were what I would term patchy as well. The steak was requested as medium rare and was a lot closer to rare than medium, but a good quality piece of meat. The potato gratin was a pleasant surprise, but the vegetables were cold, tough and old tasting.
The snapper was nicely cooked, but the sauce on top was overpowering and the potato mash had hot spots and cold spots from being microwaved.
The tomato that accompanied both dishes was pale and barely recognisable as a tomato and we both pushed it to one side.
The desserts were the mud cake and apple & rhubarb crumble. The crumble was more of a tart and had nice flavour, but too much pastry and not enough fruit. Both desserts were dry and the ice cream did not do enough to moisten them.
The wine quality is at the lower end of what you expect from house wine. My husband ordered one of the reds and was told it was unavailable, and then made a second choice which was also unavailable, but in this instance they opted not to tell us and just replace it with another red, as we overheard them discussing this between themselves at the bar.
We requested to be seated inside and found it very hot and noticed a lot of deep frying smells coming from the kitchen, perhaps the extractor fans need sorting out.
I used the bathroom while there and the toilet paper holder had a flap that had been taped up and kept falling on me while I was using the toilet.
We did relay most of our comments above to two of the staff on the floor when queried on our experience, overall we will not be back in a hurry, but may try it at a future date to see if there have been improvements.

by Sarah B.
21st October 2011

After my bad review below: I went there on Friday night to use my voucher & in all honesty the food was excellent.

Both my friend and I purchased the recent deal for Invito, from Groupy.

When we tried to make a reservation, Invito advised that we are not able to use our vouchers on Friday or Saturday night. He was also quite rude about it.

I asked to speak to the manager & he never called me back !! We have checked the fine print and it does not state this anywhere on the voucher, or on the website.

So I called back later on that day & talked with Jonny the manager, he argued with me about my voucher told me it’s not his problem & to call Groupy to get my money back!! (how rude)

I found out today from Groupy Jonny was wrong! & we can go on a Friday or Sat night.

Our experience with Invito to date hasn’t been favourable!

by Shannon
18th October 2011

I pretty much order same food if I do brunch. That is Creamy mushroom & chorizo. Their creamy sauce is the best by far (at least better than mecca stone house’s creamy sauce) but I don’t like they cut potatoes into small pieces. That is simply not appetizing. Also they should have paid more attention to the interior.

by Anon
2nd September 2011

I had dinner here recently, I informed the waitress that I am ‘dairy free’ she spoke limited english and didn’t seem to understand what I meant, so I gave her a list of dairy products and asked her to make sure she told the chef the food had to be dairy free.

I was then served pasta which had what tasted like a cream based sauce. Even a couple of mouthfuls was enough to make me sick for 4 days.

No a good experience at all, I’m just thankful I didn’t suffer a more severe reaction!

by omnom
1st September 2011

third time to invito and the food and service has been perfect every time! their menu is simple with a variety and their staff are very helpful and efficient

i love their prawn and scallops fettuccine

will be back again soon

by K T.
31st August 2011

Having purchased a Living Social voucher for Invito I decided to take advantage of this great offer. Tuesday evening, lots of people, great area ( not too dark ) and a colourful waiter who supplied me with lovely service. I ordered the fetucine – awesome and even though I couldnt finish my mains and dessert, they arranged for me to take home. Would definately go again and take my family.

by Michelle W.
29th August 2011

I had a voucher, so I took a friend for her birthday. On our way in, I mentioned the birthday to the bartender, and with dessert he sent over a mocktail (having noticed she was drinking tomato juice with dinner – very sweet!)

We were both impressed with the menu – everything looked tasty. We had calamari and prawn wontons for entrees – both were very nicely cooked, and came with flavorful garlic aioli. My friend had the fish of the day with a caper lemon sauce and mustard mashed potatoes, which she loved, and I had one of the pizzas, which was pretty good. The crust wasn’t the best I’d ever had, but overall it was fine. The portions were very generous and we both ended up taking about half of our mains home. We had mud cake and cheesecake for dessert (again, very generous portions) and the staff put a candle on my friend’s cake. The waitstaff were lovely – it took us a bit too long to get menus, but the rest of the evening they were very sweet and attentive.

by leannex
18th July 2011

What a shame as in July last year I gave this restaurant 5 stars (see review below), but after yesterday’s lunch experience, I won’t be returning.

Firstly the place needs a good clean, everything (tables, floors, windows, toilets) looked grimy and dirty, so I despair to think what state the kitchen was in.

Steak sandwich was a joke – the steak was so thin it was practically non-existent and came minus the caramelised onions and chutney detailed on the menu. When I queried as to where they were I was instructed to look under the steak – felt like I was playing hide and seek, but still no sight of anything. When I’d almost finished I was presented with a saucer containing caramelised onion, but had to remind again to get some chutney – another wait and along came a small dish of mango chutney – not what I’d serve with a steak sandwich. Very disappointing.

My daughter had a mochachino which she said was nothing more than hot chocolate, so she left it. She also ordered creme brulee with tuile, but there was no tuile and when we asked for it we were told they had run out.

I hope the new owners of this restaurant will read this review and the one I wrote last year and try to do something to sort their problems, as they won’t be in business for long if they don’t.

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July 2011

Went to Invito with a Living Social Voucher and had a fantastic meal – probably the best voucher value meal I’ve experienced yet.

The voucher was welcomed, the waitress was super friendly and efficient (I was amazed when she told us it was her first day) and most importantly, the food was excellent. Also enjoyed the Invito Rose which was part of the deal – a nice drop!

Thanks Invito, we will definitely return.

by TheNode
8th January 2011

Osman probably works for Invito…

The restaurant is excellent, only when it will reach its peak. Currently, it has many problems, maybe it had ownership change, or there are problems within, that the average customer does not see.

I consider myself a patron, my first impressions for Invito were good, although they are placed and priced to the upscale format, I did not really have a problem until the quality started to drop and the price hardly fluctuated to accompany this, I won’t go into detail, but there is definitely an issue or two.

First would be, like a previous reviewer mentioned, there is an inconsistency with aesthetics and other aspects, second, the restaurant is listed to have Mediterranean cuisine, but lacks it. Last but not least, would be the menu, I do appreciate the simplicity, (as do others, who enjoy dining at Invito) it is definitely in need of a refresh, as it is simple, its also bland. The waiters/tress selection is also something that is good, but can be better, at times it seems that there is no effort, and others, where the service is over the top.

I don’t intend for this review to be negative, only to highlight aspects of Invito that can be improved.

by Corinna
10th March 2009

Dined: 6/3/2009
Our friend was getting married so we decided to have a meal and drinks somewhere different – we found Invito from a billboard on Albert St.
We started with predrinks – a bit disappointed when we asked the waitress what cocktail she recommended and she advised that she doesnt drink so couldnt help us!
Ordered our mains and there was absolutely no fault in the food it was divine! compliments to the chef on the chicken crepes and the crumbed mushrooms!!
As the restaurant started getting busier the service got a bit slack, as there was only one waitress on.
Being a Friday nite maybe they could of looked at playing more upbeat music it was a bit too relaxing.
The only thing that we all hated from our experience was the toilets didnt match the look of the restaurant.

by Clare Dickinson
21st January 2009

ordered shrimp pizza but it was 3 king prawns smothered in cheese so did not see shell when I took a bite. Complained to waitress you could hardly speak any English and she did nothing about it. Spent most of time picking shell out of mouth. Would not have expected shrimp pizza to have had prawns in shells.

by Osman
29th May 2008

”Invito” i think it’s the best in Auckland! Great Italian style tastes with hospitality. if u wanna try to excellent tastes and good service u should come to Chancery for Invito…

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