Independent, and free to be listed
PictonFood is edited by David Rowell. Listings are free. There is no paid placement, no sponsored listing and no affiliate commission on any link. Venues can ask for corrections, but they can't buy a better position or a kinder description.
No rankings
We don't say one place is better than another. Lists are sorted by name, by distance from the ferry, or by opening or closing time, and each list says which. There are no star ratings, "best of" lists or scores anywhere on the site.
One exception, declared rather than hidden: Subway Picton is pinned by the editor to the top of A–Z lists and shown in a spotlight on the front page. It is labelled "Pinned by the editor" wherever that happens, and it still only appears on pages whose criteria it meets. Pinning is not a rating.
Where opening hours come from
Hours are the fact most likely to send someone to a closed door, so they follow a fixed order of sources:
- the venue's current Google Business Profile;
- a recent announcement by the business itself (for example new seasonal hours);
- the venue's own website;
- its Facebook or Instagram;
- reputable local sources;
- older records, only as a last resort.
Where sources disagree, the decision is recorded and any caveat — "kitchen closes 8pm", "summer hours from 26 September" — is shown as a note beside the hours. Where nothing is reliable, we show no hours at all and say "Hours may vary — check with the venue before visiting". A handful of venues without hours in our main record show hours seen on online listings in early September 2026; those are always labelled "as listed online, not confirmed".
"Hours last checked" on a venue page is the date the hours were last compared against a source — not the date the page was built or viewed, and not a promise that they haven't changed since. If that date is more than 90 days old the page says the hours may be out of date. Hours change with the seasons and around public holidays, so confirm anything important with the venue.
Other facts
Addresses, phone numbers, cuisine, meals served, takeaway, bookings and dietary options come from the venue's own channels or its Google listing. A fact is either sourced or left blank; we never fill a gap with a guess. Dietary options are shown as the venue's own claim — we haven't tested them, and "gluten-free options" is not the same as a coeliac-safe kitchen.
Closures and changes
When a business closes permanently its page stays up with a clear "Permanently closed" banner, the business now at the address if we know it, and nearby alternatives — so someone searching the old name finds out. Closed places are removed from every list, count, map and "open now" result. Seasonal and temporarily closed places stay listed with a note, and places we haven't recently been able to confirm are trading are marked as such.
Our own words
Descriptions and guides are written for this site from the facts on file. We don't copy reviews, marketing copy or other sites' descriptions, and we avoid the vocabulary of advertising.
Photos
A photograph is shown with a venue's name only if it is a licensed photo of that venue, and it is credited. Pictures of the town are openly licensed and credited, and are never presented as a picture of a particular business. See photo credits.
Corrections
Anyone can report an error through the corrections form or at corrections@pictonfood.co.nz. We check the report against the venue or its channels before changing anything, then update the listing and its dates. Businesses can ask for a correction or for their listing to be updated at any time.