Boilerhouse Harbourside Restaurant

7.3 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  7      Service  8      Value  6     

We dined there on Saturday 14th January and we never had any problems with service. The food was served quickly and was of an extremely high standard, we had no complaints. The menu is quite small and expensive but that is what we expected, people seem surprised (perhaps, they should look at the website first before booking). The only strange thing for us was when we asked which dessert the waitress would recommend and she replied some aren't very good go for the brulee. We took her advice and it was delicious.

Jan 15, 2012 

3 Below Average

Food  2      Ambience  6      Service  2      Value  2     

Interesting location, but the Boiler House was very underwhelming. We were 4, the table was set for 5 which they insisted on changing, that took 10 minutes to remove a glass and cutlery while we stood around outside.

The wine list looked like it was from the set of Faulty Towers, it was printed, however, had been scribbled and written on, with most wines being crossed out, it looked extremely unprofessional. I knew in advance the meals were priced a little higher but I did not realise they would be tiny. 2 scallops with a teaspoon of crushed peas for $18 and $36 for a 125g steak and a scoop of what looked and tasted like powdered mashed potato.

We also had a salt and pepper squid which looked and tasted like the frozen type that comes from Manly Freezers. The squid arrived almost cold so had toughened up, the steak was cooked well but with a diameter of 6cm it disappeared quickly, others had the Barramundi that was a good serve and nicely presented.

The wine was the first thing ordered but arrived after the entrees and the coffee took forever despite there only 2 groups left in the restaurant and arrived cold. Summary: not slow with the food prep, but wait staff were very slow thus the cold food and coffee that I found sitting on the service bench and begged to be delivered, $350 for 4 entrees, 4 mains, 2 deserts, 2 coffees and a 1 bottle wine and we left hungry and unsatisfied.

The best part of the night was the little tour that the shuttle bus driver gave us on the way back up the hill. Go to the Q station for the tour, don't bother going to the boiler house.

Dec 18, 2011 

5.8 Average

Food  6      Ambience  6      Service  6      Value  5     

Tourist or work party venue. Food seems to be prepared well though I question the quality (my beef was ideally prepared and served as requested but, unfortunately, had no flavour). I don't like to receive a menu then be advised after studying it that some selections are not available. The building which houses the restaurant is nestled in a beautiful cove on North Head its a shame that you can't see or enjoy the vista while seated. The best part of dining here is to learn the history about Q station without all the ghost nonsense.

Dec 18, 2011 

7.5 Recommended

Food  7      Ambience  9      Service  7      Value  7     

Quick summary: Lovely location and the staff are friendly. Service could be annoyingly slow for some, but, as we were in a relaxed mood etc, we didn't mind the wait too much.

Food was good, but the serving size (especially the entree, given the prices) could be larger. Overall, we enjoyed this enough to make us consider going back another time.

Finally, it's not the staff's fault if people bring toddlers to a restaurant on a weekend lunchtime. It's the parents fault if they are allowed to run around, being noisy (you know how little kids think screaming/screeching is a cool sound to make?). However, it Is the staff's fault if they allow a parent to change a dirty nappy in the restaurant, on the floor, even if it is over in a corner away from other diners.

It's an open plan layout and the sight of that is not what we paid to see. There are baby change facilities available and staff should feel empowered to tell patrons to use them. If they don't feel confident to do so, then that's the management's fault for not empowering their staff.

Nov 26, 2011 

2.8 Not Recommended

Food  3      Ambience  4      Service  2      Value  2     

We went here for our anniversary the other night. Despite reading the reviews here, we thought we would give it a go. Big mistake! We looked up the menu online and they had about 7-8 entrees and 7-8 mains listed.

When we arrived, there was only one other table that was taken which wasn't surprising being a Monday night. The waiter gave us the menu which was just a printed piece of A4 paper which I thought was very unprofessional given the kind of restaurant it is and the price you are paying.

The service was non-existent, being that they seat everyone upstairs, the waiter and waitress seemed like they couldn't be bothered walking all the way up the stairs unless they were carrying food up. There were only 4 entrees and 4 mains on the menu even though they show more on their website which I thought wasn't very professional.

It took them 20 minutes to take our order and then another 20 minutes just to get a bread roll. My husband had the pork belly for an entree and he thought it was good apart from the fact that it wouldn't even be enough food to feed my 16 month old child who doesn't eat much.

My husband had the chicken for main and I had the beef fillet. I asked for it to be Med-Well and it came to me like a hockey puck which was completely dark brown inside. The mains were tasteless and not seasoned at all. The jus that came with the beef had no flavour to it.

After being so so so hungry and seeing how damn small the desserts were, we decided to skip dessert and coffee and stopped at McDonalds on our way home!
Sooooo not happy as the restaurant basically ruined our anniversary dinner.

The highlight of the whole night was the bus driver who took us back up to the top and told us a bit of history. We would never ever go here again and not recommend it to anyone else!

Nov 23, 2011 

5.5 Average

Food  9      Ambience  6      Service  1      Value  6     

The food was very nice, I enjoyed all of it, however, some of the menu items were not available. The service was very cold and very slow. I don't think I will be going back purely due to the bad service, it really let the food down.

Oct 23, 2011 

6.3 Average

Food  6      Ambience  7      Service  6      Value  6     

The location is fantastic. We attended early in the week and as we were the only people on the bus, our bus driver took the time to explain the layout and buildings and some of the history, that in itself was well worth the trip.

The service at the restaurant was friendly and the staff reasonably capable and enthusiastic. The food was good but not particularly memorable although my husband really liked it. Monday and Tuesday nights are BYO which is always a consideration for us. Overall the experience was enjoyable and we have recommended this restaurant.

Jul 02, 2011 

4.5 Below Average

Food  2      Ambience  6      Service  8      Value  2     

We ate at the Boilerhouse two nights in a row, as we were staying at Q Station. The beef and veal we ordered two nights running (first dining with two people and then with five people) was served way too close to blue rare when medium rare was requested. See (the link) for what we expected, I can see from other reviews that athis is the norm. Hello could someone from the Boilerhouse read these reviews!

Read more on my blog

Jun 05, 2011 

4.8 Average

Food  3      Ambience  8      Service  2      Value  6     

I made a booking ph: 9466 1500, requested a table for two for 1:30pm lunch.

You arrive at the Q station, in North Head Manly. It's a positive feel amongst the bushland. You can drive/bus to the meeting point where you will be picked up by a shuttle bus that'll take you down to the boiler-house restaurant.

The shuttle bus run, was kind-of exciting. It's a different experience.

We were a little early, as the bookings-person said to allow 30minutes of waiting and travelling time to get down to the restaurant. The location is wonderful, you can eat inside/outside. We walk inside to an open-kitchen. I prefer to dine at open kitchens, as there is usually a level of cleanliness & hygiene kept.

At the counter, we said we had a reservation for two at 1:30pm. She said there was no reservation for us. She said there were no seats available, and got the manager on duty. I told the manager that I made a reservation through this number (showing my iPhone with the call made earlier that morning).

She stated "that must be the top... they never told us".
"You should have called the restaurant instead".
We called the number that was listed on the website that stated Restaurant Bookings! We were told that we could sit, although there were big groups of people dining, and the food would take a long time.

If we didn't dine there, we wouldn't have been able to dine anywhere else as it was quite late, and with the shuttle bus, there was no hope of eating elsewhere. Note, there was no apologies for having nor record of our reservation. We kept intimidated, and as if were a "bother".

One of the waiters came to the table, stood in front with a puzzled face, said "hi, so... okay..." and walked away.

The vibe was not good. He returned 15 minutes later, asking if we were dining here. Obviously we wouldn't sit at the table if we weren't dining! He said "Oh! we are very busy, it was no more bookings, it'll take a long time for the food to arrive"...

We ordered everything straight up, so they could make use of time. Drinks, Entrees, Mains and deserts.

Drinks : Good
Entree: Average
Main: Average
Desert: Average

The drinks took a long time to arrive. We were at the restaurant for 45 minutes before the entree arrived. The prawn entree was cold and tough. It definitely sat out for a while. For the same price at a different restaurant, I was not impressed.

For the mains we had Lamb backstrap and the Angus beef. Once again, everything was cold. The lamb was pleasantly cooked, pink in the middle. Quite delicious, however the sides were unfortunately not cooked-well. The beef was not as ordered - I asked for Medium-rare, it arrived cold and well-done. Big let-down.

For dessert we ordered melon & lime pannacotta. Sounded different, I love pannacotta, so I was looking forward to it. I was hoping that it would impress me.
The pannacotta it self was nice. The flavours around were "sort-of" working. However the presentation was ugly. It was diced (cubes) of melon with a sweet melon and lime sauce. Didn't look appealing.

All of a sudden the weather changed, and it started to rain-lightly. We wanted to get out as we were on the edge of the shelter. We asked for the bill, but it did not come. We stood up, and went to pay. We were [no exaggeration] at the counter for 15 minutes!

The person before us was trying to pay, but they did not know how to operate the system. They said "it is a new system, I'm having trouble using it". Obviously the staff and manager is in need of training with their register. We paid. I wish they asked us how the food was!

An observation was made inside, that the chef had lots of food out ready to be served! However the staff were not taking it out. He was getting annoyed that it was just sitting there, and not being sent out. There were three possible persons at the counter, trying to "fix" the register, when at least one person may have taken the food out.

Overall the food was a let-down. The service was terrible. In need of training to satisfy customer needs/wants. Food was averaged priced, but for what you get it's not worth it. If they are trying to get the image of fine-dining. It's definitely not worth it.

The only good thing is the location - however people getting off boats walk through the dining areas outside with their tops off, it can be disruptive and some-what disturbing.

May 05, 2011 

8.3 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  8      Service  9      Value  7     

Definitely an 'out of the way' establishment, but worth the effort (a regular bus service takes you down the hill from the parking area). Great place to start before undertaking one of the Quarantine Station tours on offer. Two floors, as seen on the photos on this web-page, with an upper mezzanine level to watch the activity.

Food is excellent, Australian/European, freshly prepared, the kitchen is on view. A good wine list, prices are what you would expect for a restaurant of this standing. Friendly, efficient staff (certainly on the night we visited).

An ideal place for a 'special occasion" dinner, done during daylight saving would be excellent, but the night atmosphere in other months would also be good.

Apr 25, 2011