Culinary Highs

Some months I hardly dine out at all and then all of a sudden there is a flurry of invitations or new places to try. Here are a few recent highlights .

Firstly I was one of about eighty very lucky people to enjoy a superb three course dinner of Canterbury produce, including freshly smoked Akaroa Salmon and bush honey and Mt Cass Waipara Spring Lamb. The event, a fund-raiser by The New Zealand School of Food and Wine was largely cooked by owner Celia Hay with the help of Masterchef winner Nadia Lim and some generous volunteers. The dishes were paired with Waipara wines including the luscious Greystone Pinot Noir.

Celia’s school has relocated to Auckland in the aftermath of the Christchurch earthquakes.  This event raised funds to bus children from schools in the east of the city (the most damaged area) out to Duvauchelle on Banks Peninsular for a day’s cooking and some fun where Celia’s other business, a café and store there, is still standing and operating as usual.

I find it heartwarming, that in spite of the fact Celia has lost her home and her business, has had to move herself and her family to a new city and completely re-establish both, she finds the time and the energy to do something to help others affected by the same disaster. If you’d like to help too contact Celia.

A few nights later I found myself at the unique and rather sumptuous Mollies hotel for a special dinner to celebrate the hotel’s recent change of ownership. Chef Lance Tripp’s classical background and his ability to innovate was evident in the exceptional degustation menu he prepared for a raft of celebrities from the fashion, food and media worlds, all matched with carefully selected wines. Five finely honed dishes included his confit duck tortellini on butternut pumpkin with a poached quail egg and a visually beautiful dish of Raukumara venison with beetroot, crumbed ricotta, macadamia and white chocolate. Auckland isn’t exactly awash with elegant dining spaces such as Mollies. I love the effect achieved by massed white orchids and candles. Luckily Mollies dining room is open to the public. 

In August it was off down to the capital for a long weekend of wining and dining during Wellington on a Plate. I am always looking for an excuse to get to Wellington. I find the dining culture there very ‘outside the box’ compared to Auckland.

First up were some excellent demonstrations at the inaugural Fisher & Paykel Masterclass. A host of Wellington’s best shared their knowledge and skills in all things ranging from smoking yoghurt (Des Harris) to roasting snapper heads (Martin Bosley) and making old fashioned blancmange (Alexa Johnston).

We enjoyed a gorgeous high tea at Hippopotamus in the Museum Hotel with a showing of Alexandra Owen’s summer collection, a terrific children’s market held as part of the Hill Street farmer’s market and to top it all off a Malaysian Night Market held in a lantern strung Opera Lane by the Malaysian Kitchen Programme and which featured some of the city’s best Malaysian restaurants and their fragrant dishes.

Dining highlights came from two exceptional kitchens. Mark Limacher’s Ortega Fish Shack literally hummed with the who’s who of the current film scene. They obviously know where to find some of the best plates and service in town. Primarily fish focussed, as the restaurant’s name suggests, the menu is punchy and inviting, the flavours big and rewarding.

The newest hot spot is Ancestral – a stylish Shanghai-esque establishment on Courtney Place serving modern but at the same time seriously authentically based dishes from Sichuan and Guangzhou (Canton). I love the Eastern inspired cocktails, the extensive list of whiskeys and the yakitori garden bar out back. Although we experienced it at lunch this is very much a night time place, when, I am told, the bar becomes very lively.

Back in Auckland we have been witnessing the birth of a whole raft of new eateries over the last month. Wynyard Wharf has sprung up across from the Viaduct bringing new life to that part of downtown. And now, under the Sky Tower, we have our own mini version of Southbank in Melbourne with three new drinking and dining options in Federal Street.

One of them, Al Brown’s Depot Eatery and Oyster Bar, brings a touch of New York (finally!, I want to say) to the big little city. It’s slick and the food is so simple and the locals love it already. On offer is an oyster bar and sharing plates such as turbot sliders, a great version of the fish taco, kingfish belly and a to-die-for crisp pork hock - all washed down with wine on tap. What a breath of fresh air! 

And to finish, a brickbat and a bouquet. After all what would my column be without an issue or two? Briefly though;

The bouquet goes to RNZSPCA Blue Tick for their inaugural Good Egg Awards – championing those who produce, use or sell cage-free eggs.

The brickbat is for Fonterra - for canceling the contracts for organic milk in Northland.

I will say no more.