Fifteen Pickles

Continuing on from my previous blog post I bring you more lovely scenery and food from my North Island road trip.

• Day 3: Tauranga to Mahia
• Day 4: Mahia to Napier
• Day 5: Napier to Wellington

Day 3: Tauranga to Mahia

On our way to Gisborne we passed by the volcano known as White Island.  Despite being one of the world’s most accessible active volcanos, it wasn’t doing anything particularly exciting as we passed by.

Some flora and White Island in the background

Mata Feijoa Beer

Upon reaching Gisborne we opted for a Thai meal for dinner at Just Thai.

Here we discovered Mata Feijoa Beer.  Feijoa is a very popular fruit in New Zealand and you can find all manner of feijoa flavoured foodstuffs from feijoa vodka to feijoa chocolate.

The beer was light and refreshing with some very subtle hints of feijoa.

Moving onto the food… it was mostly good.  Simple and tasty.  A few misses but mostly hits.  We were happy and that’s the main thing.

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During the period leading up to New Years, my family and I decided to take a little 5 day road trip around the North Island of New Zealand with nothing but stunning scenery and local eateries on the agenda.

• Day 1: Wellington to Rotorua
• Day 2: Rotorua to Tauranga

Day 1: Wellington to Rotorua

Foxton Fizz

It was typical that we should begin our road trip during a freak summer storm.  Heavy rain and gale force winds prevailed and I felt like we were beneath a waterfall half the time.  Why travel to see waterfalls around New Zealand when you could just stay at home?!  Fortunately things calmed down a little as we headed further away from windy Wellington.

One of our brief stops on the way to Rotorua was the small town of Foxton, origin of local but little known soft drink producer Foxton Fizz.  We got a bottle of Creaming Soda and De Luxe Cola and both tasted quite pleasant in that sweet, old fashioned kind of way.

Huka Falls

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It’s a lazy, grey Sunday in London and I’m feeling slightly ropey from a party last night.  Coffee is a big theme for today so what could be a better time to look back at the lovely coffee I drank in New Zealand than now?

I like coffee.  I can distinguish good coffee from bad coffee.  But when it comes to describing all the nuances of various coffee fragrances I must admit I don’t possess a cultured enough palate.

However in London there are 2 particular flavours which are seem to be most prevalent to me when it comes to coffee… burnt or watery.  Sorry London, I love you but your coffee is terrible!  How so many Londoners are happy to drink such bad coffee I shall never understand! *cough* Any large coffee chain in London *cough*

Of course there are also many amazing independent cafes in London that do make excellent coffee, but you really have to know where they are – I have maps to these fine establishments burned into my mind.

I’ve been particularly spoilt, being raised amongst the famous cafe culture of New Zealand’s capital city.  It’s generally pretty difficult to find a bad coffee there.  I certainly made the most of our wonderful cafes during my holiday and it really is too good to pass by without a mention, so here is my little tribute to all the coffee I enjoyed at various locations around Wellington.

Maranui Cafe

Flat White

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On the same day we visited Martinborough for it’s wineries and olive groves, we spent our meal times dining in the neighbouring town of Greytown.  We had heard good things about Greytown in terms of shopping and food.  As well as being home to renown artisan bakery The French Baker and chocolate specialists Schoc, there are also a number of decent restaurants and cafes.

Main Street Deli and Cafe

For lunch we dropped into Main Street Deli and Cafe located on… you guessed it, Main Street.

Main Street Deli and Cafe

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“I would like to see more of New Zealand” I said.  So off we went in our car for a mini road trip of sorts to the Wairarapa region.  Only an hour or so away from Wellington our first stop was Martinborough, a town famous for it’s vineyards and wineries.  The climate and soils of Martinborough are well suited to producing excellent Pinot Noir.  And where great Pinot Noir is made, I learnt great olive oil is sure to follow.

Martinbourgh Grapes

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