Wining & Dining in Riccarton

25th January 2012
My wife and I decided to pop into The Running Bull merely out of curiousity, plus the fact that we saw a sandwich board outside advertising $12 all-day pizzas as I was driving past. I did find trying to locate the car park a little problematic. Admittedly, there is a sign that says 'Parking at the back' but I still had some problems knowing which driveway to turn into, however, this is not necessarily the fault of the company as there's obviously a fair amount of disruption while things are being cleaned up in Christchurch. When we walked in, there was a noticeable smell all around the place, like it came from a kitchen cleaner spray - not necessarily a bad smell as such but made us kind of feel like we were eating in a hospital instead. It gave us the impression that everything was cleaned using the same cleaning solution without being wiped dry afterwards. The place itself was dark and a bit old and tired looking. We sat down and ordered the $12 pizza, and although it was ok, it was nothing to rave about and a bit surprising - especially after reading some of the other reviews about the food. The service was really good though, and we were definitely made to feel welcome. We didn't try anything else on the menu so I can't comment on the quality of the other menu items. But all in all, the visit was ok, but there was nothing special about the place that sets it apart from any other old-style pub.