From Taupō to New York, industry influencers are dining out as a source of inspiration. Seven chefs and hospitality workers share memories of their favourite food cities and reflect on how those dishes have impacted their approach to cooking.
Gleber Chaparro
Head chef and owner of Parro.
Gleber Chaparro is
So, unsurprisingly, Gleber says a restaurant from Spain’s food scene is at the top of his list. The chef spent six months working in Barcelona, some of that time at fine dining restaurant Disfrutar. The chef says this stint, and wider travels around Italy and France, had plenty of sway in the conceptualising of Parro.
“One special place that I remember was a restaurant in Barcelona called Ultramarinus Marin. The restaurant was very busy, but I was lucky enough to get a table at the bar. The food is traditional Catalan ... They produce everything they serve – sausages, preserves – and everything is cooked directly over a fire. There is no gas in the kitchen. It was incredible to witness.”
A memorable meal at Ultramarinus Marin has also sparked inspiration for a dish on the menu at Parro.
“I had mollejas de cordero which is lamb sweetbreads cooked in the fire. For me, it was one the best things I had in Spain – buttery texture, smoke and lots of umami. I thought New Zealand has the best quality lamb in the world, so at Parro we had an enigmatic dish: sweetbreads cooked in fire, dry Spanish chorizo, barbecue endives, with a mix of vinegar and olive oil.”
There are other regions in Spain that are sources of inspiration for the chef.
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Advertise with NZME.“Another place that enchanted me was Galicia, in the north of Spain, near Portugal, where the seafood is very fresh. I tried the Galician octopus, paprika, boiled potatoes and olive oil. It was simple and amazing.”
Plabita Florence
Chef and owner of vegetarian restaurant Forest.
Plant-based chef Plabita Florence spent time in New York while growing up.
“One memorable dish was a corn husk meringue I had at Cosme. Cosme is a contemporary Mexican restaurant owned by Enrique Olvera. The meringue was light, crispy and chewy in all the right places, and filled with a luxurious corn mousse and some kind of what I assume was corn ash. I’m a sucker for a dish that uses its own waste to make it taste even more like itself.”
This time in New York was formative for Plabita’s cooking.
“I picked up a decent amount of my flavour preferences there. When I was growing up we didn’t have much money to spend, so most of my original memories there are pretty humble. Gooey egg and cheese pressed sloppily into an expertly toasted kaiser roll from the deli, always washed down with the essential combination of silty black coffee and half-pulp orange juice – what a delicacy!”
In more recent travels, Plabita also visited Prune, a recently-shuttered bistro in Manhattan’s East Village. The visit put her on to the work of the head chef.
“Gabrielle Hamilton’s cooking is just kind of no-nonsense, no filler, no frills. It’s quietly confident and does its own thing, not worrying about trends. I like that.”
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Advertise with NZME.The chef says that over-the-top foods she ate in the US more broadly inspired her to play with an exciting balance of different flavours – though her own cooking is more firmly planted in earthy ingredients.
“I do think that balance is achievable from scratch, from good ingredients, and essentially the power that balance has to elicit strong feelings about flavours is something I find really interesting.”
Carlo Buenaventura
Chef and co-owner of Bar Magda
Carlo Buenaventura is the co-owner and chef of Bar Magda, a bar and bistro serving local seasonal produce through a “Filipino lens” on Auckland’s Cross St.
Carlo has trouble choosing just one place. Cities in Germany, Peru, Portugal and Singapore all make the list.
“[They] all struck a chord in my heartstrings in different ways,” the chef says.
“In Germany, it’s definitely Chairs in Frankfurt by the very talented Dennis Aukili. The menu is small, seasonal and creative without trying too hard. The food is a reflection of the growers and producers so there’s a strong sense of provenance. And despite some flavours or combinations being foreign to me, everything was delicious.”
“In Peru, I adored Panchita in Lima one of the many restaurants by Gastón Acurio Jaramillo. That kind of family-style cooking brought back some nostalgic food memories for me – but I’m not even Peruvian. But it does remind you that food has a way of connecting you to different cultures. One reason though is both Philippines and Peru have similar colonial history, so food and cultures would’ve had some crossover at some point.”
“And in Singapore, it’s the hawker places, that type of variety around each hall is just impressive. It shows you how much of a melting pot of flavours Singapore is. And the best part is how they’re able to collectively fuse them all cohesively.”
Carlo also loves to visit markets while travelling and considers it an escape from New Zealand’s supermarket duopoly:
“Everything is fresh and seasonal, you get to meet some of the producers directly.”
Dennis Aukili’s food, from Chairs in Frankfurt, has had a distinct impact on Carlo’s craft.
“[It] allowed me to pursue the idea of creating flavours through the seasons in Bar Magda. It was a common occurrence to see berries being used in a savoury form. So, at one point we had a blueberry sambal served with grey mullet late summer this year. It’s both a reflection of the season and my cultural background.”
Next on the list for dining overseas?
“If I could have the luxury to travel again, I would go visit George McLeod and Laura Santo at their restaurant Sem in Lisbon, Portugal.”
Fleur Wolstenholme, Treats NZ
Founder of Treats NZ and Treats of Taupō, an independent food festival.
Fleur Wolstenholme finds culinary delight in her hometown. In Taupō, she had a formative meal during her first visit to Brantry Eatery. The restaurant, owned by sisters Prue and Felicity Campbell, is set in a refurbished house with cosy spaces, with wall hangings and art made by locals.
“It was a family gathering and we sat upstairs, which has now been turned into an art gallery. I had the confit duck leg, which is still on the menu. I would have been around 19 at the time, and it was just a mind-blowing calibre of food that inspired my own cooking, love for food and love for the Taupō food scene which is so underrated in New Zealand.”
Fleur points to other highlights within Taupō hospitality including the pastries at Lionel’s, brunch at cafes The Cozy Corner and The Storehouse and dinner at Incredible India or Indian Delights. Fleur’s experience in dining in Taupō led her to work towards the celebratory local food festival, which begins on September 28.
“Beyond the delicious food establishments, thanks to the gorgeous waters and countryside we have here, we also produce some epic stuff! From Taupō Beef, to Lakeman Brewing, Volcanic Chocolate to Volcanic Coffee, Kinloch Honey to 5 Mile Distilling and Tui Street Gin.”
Jordan and Sarah MacDonald
Co-owners of Duo, Osteria Uno and Bon Pinard.
This hospitality husband-wife duo have a few strings to their shared bow. On Hinemoa Street in Birkenhead, they operate three spots: the aptly-named bistro Duo Eatery, pasta joint Osteria Uno and French-style wine bar Bon Pinard. A recent trip to New York provided the couple with plenty of “outstanding” eats.
“The best overall meal we had was at a restaurant called Le Coucou in SoHo, Daniel Rose is the chef-owner there, the most memorable dishes were the crepinette with foie gras and preserved pear, hand-cut beef tartare with a tonne of caviar on top and this amazing veal chop with porcini cream sauce and comte.”
Jordan and Sarah provide superlatives for a few hospitality categories.
The best restaurants include SoHo bistro Estela, Brooklyn restaurant and wine bar Four Horseman and the Lower East Side’s small plate-slinging Wildair.
The bar they enjoyed the most for drinks and people-watching was Le Dive: “we could’ve sat there for hours but we were on a tight schedule!”
The best bagel was a pastrami serving from Black Seed Bagels and the best hot dog came from Katz Deli.
The couple says they gather inspiration, from menu formats to flavour combinations, on every trip they make. They often find a chance to refresh through the dishes served in faraway places.
“It’s good to try go to different places (if possible) whether that’s within New Zealand or globally. Sometimes, when you’re stuck in your own bubble things can feel a bit stale and it can get hard to be creative.”
Beth Brash
Manager of Wellington on a Plate.
Beth Brash says there are specificities to the definition of a great food city.
“It is about having a diverse and thriving hospitality scene, speciality dishes and memorable producers.”
One Australian city delivered on this criteria.
“There are some obvious food cities but Hobart really blew me away as it was so unexpected. I’ve been there twice now. In 2021, I got stuck there for 21 days when the Tasman Bubble closed the day before I was due to fly out! It wasn’t the worst situation and I got to settle in and pretended that I lived there – which am still tempted to do one day!”
A highlight during this unexpected stay was Sonny, a small wine bar and restaurant in downtown Hobart.
“There are no bookings, and there is often a line outside, so when you get in you’re so stoked. The menu is really small, mostly snacky things that go well with wine. They have substantial pasta on the menu, which my friend and I loved so much we got it twice. We parked up at the bar for hours snacking and drinking great wines. I still have the handwritten menu stub of what we ordered pinned to my desk.”
The chef was Tommy Kearsley, who has since moved to the Agrarian Kitchen in New Norfolk, a “phenomenal seasonal restaurant” that is a 45-minute drive from Hobart. Beth has other recommendations for the city too.
“Lucinda is another great wine bar. Tom McHugo’s and The Winston are great pubs. Go to Berta for brunch. For more great dinners go to Ogee, Templo and Fico.”
Beth theorises that the similarities to Wellington’s food scene enhanced the experience of Hobart.
“Like Wellington, you have to choose to live there. The weather forces you to make your own fun so their art, music and hospitality scene is incredible. Hobart is famous for the scallop pie, which you can find at lots of different bakeries. I loved that taste of place, and it’s something they’re very proud of.”
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