Food & Wine

If you’ve got a passion for fine food and wine then you’re in for a treat! New Zealand cuisine is guaranteed to satisfy even the most discerning palates.

Long dominated by the traditions of British cooking, in the last few decades New Zealand cuisine has undergone a major renaissance. Drawing on influences from the many different cultures that make up the local population, including indigenous Maori cuisine, New Zealand’s dining culture has emerged innovative and sophisticated. Part of New Zealand’s secret lies in its fortuitous geography. The diverse landscape that makes it an outdoor playground also means that an unusually wide variety of ingredients can be grown here – so the majority of produce is locally grown and as fresh as you please! Add to that 15,000 kilometres of coastline teeming with fish, shellfish and other goodies and you have the recipe for a local cuisine that’s pretty special. Multicultural influences and a wide selection of ingredients to draw on make New Zealand a very natural home for the fusion approach to cooking. Blending flavours from around the Pacific Rim, this vibrant style is internationally popular, and trend-setting Kiwi chefs such as Peter Gordon have played an important role in its development. When it comes to cooking and eating in New Zealand, relaxed is often the key word. Dining in New Zealand is generally an easy and unaffected time and protocols are few. Whenever the weather allows, locals are usually eager to eat al fresco and cafés cater to this with tables in the garden (even if it’s a tiny nook) or out on the pavement. Perhaps its popularity has something to do with the fact that in New Zealand the privilege of eating at an outdoor table costs no extra!

Culinary Specialities

An abundance of high quality fresh produce makes New Zealand cuisine sensational.

Beef and Lamb
Grazing on fresh pasture year-round, New Zealand beef and lamb are of the highest quality and are exported around the world.

Cheeses
The growing conditions of New Zealand's livestock also result in an abundance of wonderful dairy products. Local blue cheeses are renowned.

Crayfish
Also known as Rock Lobster, crayfish are harvested in coastal waters around New Zealand and are utterly delicious.

Gourmet Oils
Newcomers to the list of New Zealand culinary specialities, local olive and avocado oils are fresh and tasty.

Green Lipped Mussels
Native to New Zealand and farmed in the Marlborough Sounds, The Coromandel and Stewart Island.

Hangi
This traditional Maori way of cooking involves packing food into baskets, placing the baskets on hot rocks and burying them deep underground to cook for hours in their own steam.

Hokey Pokey Ice Cream
Creamy New Zealand ice cream is a must-try in any flavour, but hokey pokey, with its crunchy pieces of toffee, is a special favourite.

Honey
Many varieties of honey are available in New Zealand, but the most sought-after is Manuka honey produced from a native flowering shrub known for its health benefits.

King Salmon
Salmon, available either fresh or smoked, is farmed in the Marlborough Sounds, Stewart Island and on the South Island’s east coast.

Kiwifruit
A popular succulent green-fleshed fruit with a furry brown skin that thrives in warmer parts of the country.

Kumara
A traditional Maori food crop, this sweet potato is a Kiwi favourite that may be served as chips, roasted or mashed.

Lemon & Paeroa (L&P)
Unique New Zealand sparkling soft drink originating from the small North Island town of Paeroa.

Oysters
Juicy, succulent delicacies from the sea. Bluff Oysters, from Southland, are particularly renowned. There’s a festival every year to celebrate the season’s start.

Pavlova
The traditional New Zealand dessert is a meringue that is crisp on the outside and soft in the middle, covered with cream and decorated with fruit.

Whitebait
These tiny minnow-like fish are considered a delicacy and are most commonly cooked as a fritter, fried in batter. Caught in rivers around the country, they are famously abundant on the West Coast of the South Island.

Wine
Wine has been produced in New Zealand since the arrival of the first European settlers – the nation’s oldest winemaker, Mission Estate, has been producing sacramental and table wines in Hawke’s Bay since 1851 – but in recent years the industry has rapidly evolved. New Zealand is now internationally lauded for producing wines of note. Read more ...