The Horse & Trap sits at 3 Enfield Street in the heart of Mt Eden, and 'it's your local' is more than a slogan here. Originally opened as the North Island's first Monteith's Bar, the pub has spent decades doing one simple thing well: giving locals a public house with a great environment, excellent service, and a fantastic range of beers and food.
The kitchen opens daily from 11.30am with an all-day, family-friendly menu built around pub classics — with a bit of fine dining thrown in, some street food, and options even your fussy mate will eat. As they put it themselves: this is proper pub food with a proper drinks menu, not a 12-course degustation, and you'll leave satisfied with some change still in your pocket.
The rotating taps are a point of pride — mostly DB beers including most of the Monteith's series, plus a monthly guest tap shining a light on new local craft brews, with a drink for everyone else too. The week has a rhythm of its own: daily deals from 3pm to 5pm, Tuesday Quiz Night with Seb from 7pm (named Best Pub Quiz in Auckland in 2015), and live music every second Thursday featuring Richard Murray.
Two purpose-built private function rooms handle everything from 21st birthdays to company seminars, with the same friendly service and menu as the main bar. Named Best Traditional Pub - Auckland at the 2018 NZ Business Awards, the Horse & Trap remains what it set out to be — a stable of social relaxing in Mt Eden.
On Enfield Street in the heart of Mt Eden, the Horse & Trap does exactly what a good neighbourhood pub should: pours a proper drink, plates a proper meal, and makes room for whatever the evening calls for. The team calls it "your local," and after a few decades serving Mt Eden, the nickname has stuck for good reason. They describe the place as "a stable of social relaxing" — and it's hard to argue.
The pub originally opened as the North Island's first Monteith's Bar, and it has carried a simple mission from the very beginning — ensuring locals in and around Mt Eden had a public house with a great environment, excellent service, and a fantastic range of beers and food. That staying power gets noticed: the Horse & Trap was named Best Traditional Pub - Auckland at the 2018 NZ Business Awards, on top of earlier acknowledgements including Best Pub Quiz in Auckland (2015), Best Spirit & Best Service (2006), and — back in 2005 — Monteith's Wild-food Auckland Winner, Best Individual Beer & Food Match for mains, and another Best Spirit win.
The kitchen's own words set expectations nicely: this is proper pub food with a proper drinks menu — and no, don't come here for a 12-course degustation. The menu revolves around pub classics with a bit of fine dining thrown in, some street food, and a dash of family-friendly options — including dishes even your fussy mate will eat. The kitchen opens daily from 11.30am and the all-day menu is built for whatever the day calls for: a casual work lunch, a catch-up with the boys, a girls' night out, or a family dinner get-together. Food for all ages and all tastes, with the promise you'll leave satisfied and still keep some change in your pocket.
Beer gets genuine attention here. The Horse & Trap isn't strictly a Monteith's pub — it pours the majority of its beers from DB, including most of the Monteith's series, for the simple fact that the team prefers the taste. The rotating taps cover every interest: Murphy's Irish Stout, IPAs like Lagunitas and Black Dog's Boneyard, lagers such as Heineken, Heineken Light and Tiger, the Monteith's family — Golden Lager, Original Ale, Beacon Pilsner, Radler Bier and American Pale Ale — plus Old Mout Hard Cider and Tuatara brews. Increasingly popular are the new breed of local craft beers, which take the guest tap each month. And if beer isn't your thing? As they put it: we're a pub, there's a drink with your name on it. Guaranteed.
The week has a rhythm. Every day from 3pm to 5pm the daily deals come out. Tuesday nights belong to Quiz Night with Seb, kicking off at 7pm — a fixture good enough to be named Best Pub Quiz in Auckland in 2015 — and bookings are recommended. Every second Thursday brings live music featuring Richard Murray, the "one man, full vibe" act layering acoustic playing with a full band sound. For what's coming up, the gig guide lives on the pub's Facebook events page.
Celebrating a 21st with close friends, hosting an internal team meeting, or running a company seminar? Two purpose-built private function rooms can accommodate the occasion — and the good news is you get the same super-friendly, accommodating service and the same food and drink offerings as the main bar and dining rooms. Out in the main space, indoor/outdoor flow means whatever the weather is doing, it's always a good time.
Booking a table or a function room is deliberately easy — enquire via (09) 630-3055 or info@horseandtrap.co.nz and the team will help make it happen. The Horse & Trap has been an integral part of life in and around Mt Eden for decades; like the locals who keep coming through the doors, chances are you'll love it just as much as they do.