Cute Find - Nor'Wester Cafe Amberley, New Zealand

Nor'Wester Cafe is a little gem in Amberley that is not to be missed if you are in Christchurch and do not mind a relaxing, flat 30min drive north.  On a sunny day this cafe offers large outdoor sitting area, and what is more exciting here is their food!  Year after year, I have returned here several times since 2008.  I found this gorgeous cafe by accident while wine tasting in Wairapa, and it is very exciting to see that this cafe sells many of the local wine (sometimes at a cheaper price than at the cellar).  I have been here for lunch and dinner previously and have never been disappointed.  Their menu is short and concise, and offers many gluten free options.  Wonderful friendly staff here and it is very child friendly.  Without babbling on too much further, here I like to share with you the three dishes we had for alight lunch for two, enjoy!

Natural Clevedon Coast Oysters - with balsamic vinaigrette

Caesar Salad - cos lettuce, bacon, egg, anchovy, croutons & Parmesan

Salt & Pepper Soft Shell Crab (Malaysian) - cucumber & pickled ginger salad, sweet chilli, aioli

The oysters was super fresh and very tasty and I wished I had got some more, yum!  Unfortunately the Caesar salad took me by surprise by their interpretation of "crouton", for me it wasn't crouton but large slices of toasted bread - hope they will change that as texture wise it wasn't quite there.  The soft shell crab was done beautifully, kudos to the chef!  Soft crunchy crab with the zingy cucumber & pickled ginger salad, this was a winner for me!  Wish I was back there right now, but if you're down at the South Island of New Zealand and new Christchurch, go there this weekend!

OVERALL

FOOD: Great cafe food.

PRICE: Reasonable.

SERVICE: Friendly.

ATMOSPHERE: Great outdoor dining area and it is also cosy indoor.

Summary: Summer here in Amberely for me means food at Nor'Wester Cafe, I enjoy nothing more than enjoying good food on a sunny afternoon :)

Spectacular View - Pegasus Bay Restaurant, Wairapa

On a fine sunny day in summer, if you happen to be in Wairapa, South Island, New Zealand (40min drive north of Christchurch), you have to come here to Pegasus Bay Restaurant/Winery, either for some wine tasting or a sensational lunch.  Booking is essential here especially in summer.  I have always arrived early to sample the latest harvests follow by one of those 3 hour lunch.  The service here is wonderful, staffs are lovely and the food is just amazing!

The complimentary appetiser is always different.  The most memorable ones that I have sampled throughout the years were the lightly smoked fish ball and the amazing creamy asparagus soup.  This time the chef prepared a light and refreshing berry soup with a hint of mint, absolutely delicious and a great way to welcome summer.  Entree was the smoked hapuka (a white meat fish) carpaccio with shallots, sorrel, grapefruit, truffle dwarf peaches and house made fennel pollen accompanied with grissini. this was a flavourful and well balanced dish.  The light smoky flavour on the tender hapuka contrasting the sour grapefruit finished off with the salty crunchy grissini, yum!

Now for the famous main, duck for two!  Muscovy duck, braised & crisp fried, kirsch cherry jus accompanied with rocket, butter crunch, mint, pomegranate, ricotta, pistachios, aged balsamic with new season potato, aioli, olives.  Year after year I have returned for this dish, it is a good thing that it is made for two so I always had an excuse to invited good company to share this amazing duck with :) crispy duck skin with enriched flavours of pinot noir and cherry, absolutely amazing!  A great wine to accompany this is the Pegasus Bay Pinot Noir, since the chef from memory used the same wine to marinate and braise the duck for two days. 

Lastly desert, my favourite part! Cassis and pinot sorbet with polenta shortbread.  Passion fruit soufflé with anglaise. To me there's nothing more exciting than a fluffy soufflé accompanied with fresh creme anglaise and this one is definitely a winner, so delicious! The Cassis came in an ice vessel, took us a while to decipher how it was made - I'm thinking two balloons, one filled with water with the other air-filled balloon inside it? How do you think it could be made?  I had the 2007 Pegasus Bay "Aria" Late-Harvest Riesling.  Aria is a very fragrant wine that tastes fruity and not too overly sweet like other Late-Harvest Riesling on the market which goes well with sweet desert like my passion fruit soufflé, absolutely heavenly together! 

OVERALL

FOOD: Fantastic food and delicious wine.

PRICE: A bit on the pricey side, but it is worth your every penny.

WINE SELECTION: Very good selection.

SERVICE: Super friendly.

ATMOSPHERE: Great outdoor dining area with a spectacular view.

Summary:  Dining here is definitely a treat, you will enjoy every minute of it, so be sure to make this your next destination while you're in the South Island, New Zealand while the summer is still smiling at us :)

Meredith - 9 Course Degustation

If I ever leave Auckland, I believe Meredith will be the restaurant I will miss the most.  They only serve degustations at Meredith, with the option of 6-, 8-, or 9-courses and as always, there is the option of matching wines.  For several occasions now, I have fallen in love with every single dish except for the desert...and since desert is the last dish of the evening, sometimes makes me feeling a little bit empty feeling. However, if you forget the desert part, you would almost think you have just woken up from the most unbelievable dream having sampled all the mouth-watering creations from chef Michael Meredith.

Factors which I have found vitally important in dining are the atmosphere and service.  Inside the restaurant is very dimmed, while some people find it overdone, I have found it just the right amount to let you forget that you are in fact surrounded by other diners.  There are limited seating in the restaurant with a handful of staff onsite, so at any given time you are very well looked after by their staff members and yet they don't over do it.  Danny, who has been our waiters on several occasions has mastered his skill to perfection.  You will never hear him clinking the cutlery on the plates, and he will ninja away empty glasses and dishes without you even noticing and most and above all, makes you feel very relaxed making it the most enjoyable experience.

Without going on too much, I will let your eyes do all the talking with the 9 course degustation and matching wine, enjoy!

	Crispy Rice Cracker This from the chef has always been different, and this time it was a very flavourful thin rice cracker, something to nimble on while you wait for your first course :)
	Side Bread This is their homemade bread, I love a dense warm bread, and I like to eat it with olive oil and even more with butter!
	First Course: Beetroot & duck meringue The meringue is beautifully done, it is soft and fluffy and goes very well with the duck pate. Matching Wine: 8 Ranges Pinot Rose 2011, light and crisp, matched the slightly sweet beetroot meringue and rich pate well.
	Second Course: Golden Bay crab, Akaroa salmon, asparagus & daikon A gentle light dish that was well balanced. Matching Wine: Fairbourne Sauv Blanc 2011, dry and fresh, and took off the edge of the fatty salmon without taking over the dish.
	Third Course: Yellowfin tuna, mirin & bonito This was all our favourite, harmony in your mouth with the fresh tuna, and the light mirin & bonito stock. Matching Wine: Ellero Gewurztraminer 2011, fragrant with a bit of spice, delicious combo with the tuna.
	Fourth Course: Scallops, smoked eel & cauliflower The smokey eel was beautifully done and together with tender scallops, yummy! Matching Wine: Seifried Gruner 2011, complimented the smokey eel very well.
	Fifth Course: Pork belly, calamari, pomegranate & peanuts Tender pork belly contrasting the nutty peanut and fresh pomganate, amazingly good. Matching Wine: Willm Reserve Pinot Gris 2010, gorgeous light crisp pinot gris, matched heavenly with the pork.
	Sixth Course: Hapuka, paua, shitake & pumpkin Nice and crispy fish skin, fresh and crunchy greens served with the delicate fish, delicious. Matching Wine: Villa Maria Reserve Chardonnay 2010, this is a great Chardonnay, not too oaky, a great choice to go with the fish.
	Seventh Course: Poussin, cauliflower & onion Oh I love Poussin, tender and delicately soft chicken meat and it was well flavoured. Matching Wine: Urlar Pinot Noir 2010, was surprised by the Pinot Noir, but it complemented the heavy flavouring on the Poussin very well.
	Eigth Course: Rhubarb, raspberry, mint oil & yoghurt A great refresher, beautifully done. A hint of mint with the sweet and sour raspberry, t'was a great combo as the palette cleanser.
	Ninth Course: Bread & butter pudding Sadly this is not what bread and butter pudding should be, this was a light and fluffy sponge and the obvious lack of a creamy egg/milk/cream based sauce, I was very disappointed :( Matching Wine: Osawa Late Harvest Gewurztraminer 2011, this was a delicious wine on its own, not overly sweet and very fruity.
	Have you tried this ginger beer? Highly recommend to all those ginger beer fans out there, not sure where you could get it from, but it was made from the Hawkes Bay Indepedent Brewery Limited

OVERALL

FOOD: Fantastic!

PRICE: Reasonable ($150 for the 9 courses).

WINE SELECTION: Very good selection, and the matching wine were great.

SERVICE: First Class!

ATMOSPHERE: Dimmed room, cosy and relaxing.

Summary:  Fabulous food and absolutely awesome service. This is a great place to treat yourselves :)