Maketu sisters and former MasterChef winners Kasey and Karena Bird embarking on national tour with dining extravaganza

Matariki is upon us, and it is a time to reflect on the past, look to the future and celebrate with feasting.

That's what former MasterChef winners and TV hosts Kasey and Karena Bird will do on a national tour, by hosting Creation Dinners, a unique culinary experience sharing Māori and New Zealand legends through food.

After a whirlwind visit to 24 countries for TVNZ's Karena and Kasey's Kitchen Diploma-cy, the Maketu sisters are excited to be back home to host the dinners which combine storytelling with a seven-course degustation menu.

Driven by their desire to further their love of narration through food, the first Creation Dinner was held last month in Rotorua.

"As we travelled the world it became clear to us what we wanted to create when we got back home to New Zealand," Karena said.

"We wanted to showcase some of New Zealand's world-class produce, match this with wine made from exceptional Māori winemakers and wineries.

"We also wanted to showcase techniques and flavours we had learned from our travel overseas and combine these with familiar flavours from home."

Karena said they then tied all of that together with their culture.

It was about "sharing our food while taking guests on a multi-sensory journey through one of our favourite legends".

The exclusive evenings have a limit of 30 guests per event.

"This dining experience is a new chapter for us. We have been planning these dinners for a long time now and we are excited to finally bring it to life and share it with everyone,"
Kasey said.