The Crab Shack, Wellington

Although New Zealand has a relatively low population density – even for its capital Wellington, we were surprised that it would be a challenge dining out. As we made a day trip out of town we didn’t make a dinner reservation in order not to be bounded by the appointment time. On the other hand, it would meant that we had to walk in and wait for a table instead.

I shortlisted The Crab Shack for our last dinner in NZ to have a seafood feast. In fact we had recceed the outlet in Auckland as we were staying in the hotel nearby. The casual restaurant had quite a good business in the more populous Auckland – heard that it was an outpost (or franchise) from the Wellington store.

Thankfully after a modest 30 mins wait, they got an available table for us.

The eatery is housed in one of the wooden warehouses on Queens Wharf and decked out in some fishing village inspired decor.

We started with a shellfish pot for entree. At abt S$15 for a 500g scoop, it sounds like a good deal! There are three sauces for us to choose how we would like it to be done and we opted to have our Marlborough Green Lip Mussels to go with the safe option of White wine, chilli & garlic cream.

After being impressed by the freshness of the mussels, we ordered another pot.  And this time round we went for the S$16 500g mixed scoop with Mussels and 3 types of Cloudy Bay Clams: Diamond Shell, Tua Tua and Moon Shell. Feeling more adventurous we opted for the Tom Yum: tomato, kaffir lime, chilli.

Without surprise, the Tua Tua was our favourite amongst the three types of clams. They are so chewy and sweet. The moon shell was more meaty but less crunchy. When we ordered the Tom Yum sauce, we already moderated our expectations that it would not be the authentic Thai Tom Yum. So we found it quite acceptable and the sweet-and-spicy kick was something we are beginning to miss about Asian food.

For main, we ordered the Crab Shack signature Crab Pot. Similarly there were choice of: Blue Swimmer Crab, Jonah Crab Claws or Scottish Dungeness Crab to choose from. Being lazy bums, we chose the most convenient to eat option – Jonah Crab Claws in The Classic: chilli garlic butter finished w lemon and parsley.

The other two sauces were Black pepper: cracked black pepper, garlic sweet soy & spring onion or Tomato, ginger, chilli & lemongrass: sweet, rich & spicy, finished w coriander & fried shallots.

We were slightly disappointed with the texture of the crab as it was probably imported frozen crab? The meat tasted bland and I didn’t like the texture which was too firm and lean.  At about S$46 for 500g of frozen crab claws, its not worth it.

So our take? Go for the shellfish pot and skip the crab. If you want something filling, order a burger or fish & chips.

Earlier Photos Taken:

Took a light breakfast in our hotel and we were off to start our day trip. A visit to Putangirua Pinnacles Scenic Reserves which requires a closed to two-hour’s drive from Wellington.

That’s not all. Upon arrival, it takes a 1.5 hours return walk to see the geological sight used as a filming location for the ‘Paths of the Dead’ scene in (you are right – Lord Of The Rings).

To the local New Zealanders or people who are used to hiking, this distance should be a piece of cake. But not to us noobs…

There are two ways to reach the lookout – on the left is the Ridge Track and on the right is the Streambed. In order to experience the sights on both routes, we read that we could go up via the Ridge Track and return via the Streambed.

There were some parts of the route that was somewhat muddy possibly due to rain – there was slight drizzle when we drove here. But we managed to hike through the forest area before reaching a rest area offering view of the Palliser Bay.

As we ascended further up, the forested vegetation gave way to shorter shrubs and bushes. Beautiful pathway lined with pretty flowers.

As the hike got steeper, there were more steps ahead. Our lack of physical fitness began to slow us down as we huffed and puffed our way to the lookout point.

But it was worth it for this view – an expansive view of the remarkable rock formations. The greyish looking tall spiky “pillars” looked kinda spooky though.

From the lookout point, we then started our decent which was steeper than the ascent but easier to manage.

Not before long, we arrived at the streambed and found ourselves surrounded by the massive cliffs.

Although the streambed was relatively gentle, it was mainly loose rocks hence it was critical to pay attention to your footing. As we navigated towards the direction where our car was parked, we started to see the stream getting wider and deeper…That was where our inexperience caught us…

Eventually we were left with no dry track to walk…

We were not worried about being stranded in the park as there were obviously other visitors around when we hiked down. However we shudder at the the thought of having to hike our way back up the way we came from!!!

There were another few couples who were on the same route as us. However they seemed to be less hesitant about having to get their shoes wet by crossing the ankle to mid-calf high river… Left with no choice, we followed suit…

Suffice to say this was a “memorable” hiking experience… we made it safely back to our car…but we got no other shoes to change into… Unlike the other couple whom we saw changed into their spare shoes once they reached their car… =(

I had to either drive barefooted or endure the 2-hrs drive back in the wet shoes… I did the latter.  Despite the discomfort, during the journey back we took our time to stop and watch the adorable sheep.

First time I see a black faced sheep! They were pretty curious and alert as they all looked towards our direction when we stopped our car.

The sheep on another farm gets to enjoy beautiful coastal views.

While at another farm, the sheep appear like tiny dots across the massive pasture.

Finally back in the hotel for some twilight snacking in the lounge.

Other Related Posts:

• Logan Brown, Wellington
• Wellington Sea Market, Wellington
• Ebony Coffee Roastery, Palmerston North
• Replete Cafe & Store, Taupo
• The Brantry, Taupo
• The Station Cafe, Bar & Restaurant, National Park Village
• Powderkeg Restaurant and Bar, Ohakune
• The Shire’s Rest™ Cafe, Matamata
• The Bistro, Taupo
• Depot Eatery & Oyster Bar, Auckland
• Surf & Sand Takeaways, Tairua

Logan Brown, Wellington

While shortlisting for our dinner place in Wellington, we were excited to know that there will be a food festival going on – Visa Wellington On a Plate 2018. Similar to other food festival events, participating restaurants would serve special menu for the event. Same goes for Logan Brown. However the downside was we couldn’t get a decent dinner slot and ended up with a 9pm seating.

Despite having eaten some snacks at the hotel lounge and tried some nice Bluff Oysters, we were feeling hungry and tired by 8.40pm. Decided to go to the restaurant slightly earlier with hopes that our table could be ready. Unfortunately the place was full and we had to wait at the bar counter. By 9.30pm we were still waiting for our table and we pondered if we should just give up and go elsewhere but we don’t have any other alternative options in mind. We didn’t have any plans for the rest of the night so we hang in there and waited. It was till 10.30pm before we were shown to our table.

In honesty by then I was too sleepy and kinda pissed to enjoy the meal, though it was no fault of the service staff as it was clear the the restaurant was really packed.

Compared to the couple sitting at the table next to us who were holding up a conversation, we dined pretty much in silence (cos we were exhausted from a long day). And we basically gobbled down our food pretty quickly instead of slowly savouring the dish.

Nonetheless I remembered we had a good starter with the Paua (Abalone) Ravioli, Coriander & Lime Beurre Blanc. The ravioli had a good texture and the paua filling was chewy.

The 2nd dish was a tad salty for our liking – Logan Brown Boil Up: Ham Hock Roulade, Doughboys, Butternut, Watercress, Salted Petit Chou.

Main course of Venison Loin, Bush Herbs, Pickled Summer Plums, Baby Carrots was up to our expectations. I liked the balance of the sweet/tart/tangy combination that helped to cut through the gamey venison meat.

Lastly the dessert of Chocolate Birthday Cake, Raspberries, Trade Secret (Coffee) Ice Cream was a tried and tested combination that pleased my palate. I suppose it did helped to lift my spirit – to have a sweet ending.

We finished our meal in about an hour and walked back to our hotel close to mid-night.

Earlier Photos Taken:

Made a stop to see the colourful Clyde Quay Boatsheds.

Other Related Posts:

• Wellington Sea Market, Wellington
• Ebony Coffee Roastery, Palmerston North
• Replete Cafe & Store, Taupo
• The Brantry, Taupo
• The Station Cafe, Bar & Restaurant, National Park Village
• Powderkeg Restaurant and Bar, Ohakune
• The Shire’s Rest™ Cafe, Matamata
• The Bistro, Taupo
• Depot Eatery & Oyster Bar, Auckland
• Surf & Sand Takeaways, Tairua

Wellington Sea Market, Wellington

My quest to taste Bluff Oyster led me to visit Wellington Sea Market after missing the chance to try them in Auckland.

According to my research, they are in season from March till about August and are a prized delicacy. They are sourced off the southern coast of the South Island of New Zealand near a tiny town called Bluff.

Upon checking into my hotel, I started searching for seafood places nearby that sells this seasonal harvest. The food kiosk is attached to Wellington Trawling Company, that sells fresh seafood and fishes. Ideally we would want to try the Bluff Oysters served completely natural and still in the shell form, unfortunately we could only find the cooked version here.

I thought it seemed like a waste to fry these precious gems from the ocean. I had to strip away the batter in order to take a good look at it. It definitely looked plump and succulent. So how does it taste like? At first chew, it was juicy and creamy.  After a few more chews, I think its intense flavour might not sit well with some sensitive eaters. They might find it too briny and it has a slight metallic finish.  However I do appreciate the traits of these oysters! They are indeed very special and exceptional. Seldom do I get the chance to taste oysters with such rich and complex flavours.  No wonder they are touted to be one of the Best Oysters in the World.

Although I ticked off one to-eat item from my bucket list, I still failed to try Whitebait Fritter. We were too early as the Whitebait fishing season just started from 15 August until 30 November.

Earlier Photos Taken:

Our first stop in Wellington was to visit Weta Workshop – the special effects and prop company based in Miramar, New Zealand, known for producing effects for television and film (especially LOTRs). But we were not there to tour the workshop, rather I wanted to purchase a copy of the The Lord of the Rings Location Guidebook but mistakenly purchased a copy of The Hobbit Trilogy Location Guidebook instead when visiting the Hobbiton Movie Set. Surprisingly I couldn’t find it at the bookstores – I thought LOTR merchandise should be easily available throughout NZ?!

Time to enjoy New Zealand Wine Flight at the hotel with spread of light bites.

Other Related Posts:

• Ebony Coffee Roastery, Palmerston North
• Replete Cafe & Store, Taupo
• The Brantry, Taupo
• The Station Cafe, Bar & Restaurant, National Park Village
• Powderkeg Restaurant and Bar, Ohakune
• The Shire’s Rest™ Cafe, Matamata
• The Bistro, Taupo
• Depot Eatery & Oyster Bar, Auckland
• Surf & Sand Takeaways, Tairua

Ebony Coffee Roastery, Palmerston North

Finally left Ohakune for the last leg of our New Zealand trip. We will be ending our tour of North Island with a short stay at the Capital – Wellington. En-route we decided to look for a cafe to stretch our legs. As it was an unscheduled stop, we simply relied on Google to help give us the answer for the “Best Cafe” in Palmerston North. Ebony Coffee Roastery popped up and we dropped by for our caffeine fix.

Took the opportunity to try Afghan Biscuits. Despite its Middle Eastern name, this is a Kiwi food and consist of chocolate cookie baked with cornflakes, coated with chocolate topping with walnut bits. It has a wonderful texture and tasted similar to the cornflake cookies that the Malays like to bake during their Hari Raya celebrations, except the Afghan had more cookie ratio.

Other than the tasty cookie and rich coffee, we had a nice chat with the friendly lady at the cafe. She shared with us that her daughter is into Korean pop culture and will be going on a student exchange trip to Korea. When she found out that we are from Singapore, she commented that she would like to see the Marina Bay Sands Building as it looks spectacular and very futuristic from the photos. We really appreciate her warm hospitality to engage us and it left a deep impression on us.

The nice thing about visiting a neighbourhood cafe instead of those chain store is such affable interactions with the local.

Earlier Photos Taken:

Saw a rainbow not long after we left Ohakune, hope the weather at Wellington would be bright and sunny.

Passed by a town called “Bulls”, the town has a signpost with the “Bull” puns.

Other than the interesting signpost the town was pretty quiet.

Other Related Posts:

• Replete Cafe & Store, Taupo
• The Brantry, Taupo
• The Station Cafe, Bar & Restaurant, National Park Village
• Powderkeg Restaurant and Bar, Ohakune
• The Shire’s Rest™ Cafe, Matamata
• The Bistro, Taupo
• Depot Eatery & Oyster Bar, Auckland
• Surf & Sand Takeaways, Tairua

Replete Cafe & Store, Taupo

On the last day of our stay in Ohakune area we were running out of attraction options. Weather in Ohakune area was wet and cold…in order to escape the gloomy weather, we took a long drive to the east of Lake Taupo just to see the Waipunga Falls before turning back for a leisure late afternoon tea break in Taupo.

Replete Cafe & Store was one of the shortlisted ones (I was looking for cafes that served great coffee) that was still opened. It was an added bonus that it’s a cafe cum store selling kitchen & homeware along with some other cool knick-knacks.

Had a bagel sandwich with a cuppa and sat down to admire the stylish decor. Coffee was great, in fact New Zealand coffee is said to be famous around the world.

Earlier Photos Taken:

Took a detour to Lake Rotoaira in the morning. A beautiful privately-owned lake that requires a permit to do fishing. The lake is said to house a large population of rainbow trout.

After passing by Taupo, we drove South-east to see the Waipunga Falls. We chose to visit this place as it is easily accessible from a side road. The waterfall appears right before your eyes in the comfort of your car! No walking required! The stream that flows down in 3 streaks looked like a white claw to me.

There is also a barely-visible companion waterfall on the left called Waiarua Falls. The stream from the two waterfall merges together as you can see at the bottom of the photo.

Other Related Posts:

• The Brantry, Taupo
• The Station Cafe, Bar & Restaurant, National Park Village
• Powderkeg Restaurant and Bar, Ohakune
• The Shire’s Rest™ Cafe, Matamata
• The Bistro, Taupo
• Depot Eatery & Oyster Bar, Auckland
• Surf & Sand Takeaways, Tairua

 

The Brantry, Taupo

Due to the unforeseen circumstances that led us to make last minute change of travel plans, we ended up driving past Taupo again. We managed to visit The Brantry – which was closed for rest day when we stayed overnight in Taupo last Sunday.

We had an early dinner at 6pm as we had make another close to 2 hours drive after finishing the meal to get back to our accommodation in Ohakune.

The menu featured a number of interesting entrees and we set our eyes on Coconut Curry Prawns Spiced cauliflower, shaved cucumber, tamarind yoghurt, crispy shallot. The dish had Asian flavours that we were starting to miss after travelling for 1 week. We were impressed by the way the Chef had handled the spices and achieving the right balance.

We were torn between choosing the Duck Spring Roll Noodle salad, peanut brittle, chipotle aioli, soy glaze and Salt & Pepper Squid Parsnip puree, remoulade, crispy pancetta, anchovy crumb, miso mayonnaise but decided to go with the latter. The freshness of the seafood in New Zealand was so hard to resist!

Eye Fillet of Beef Pumpkin & mozzarella arancini ball, pumpkin puree, roasted beetroot, blue cheese creme, red onion & walnut salsa. The bright orange of the pumpkin puree was eye-catching and added a touch of vibrancy to the dish. Similar to The Bistro, we found this restaurant from New Zealand Beef and Lamb Excellence Award.

Both restaurants served great beef, except that the other dishes at The Brantry had a more contemporary and fusion touch. Whereas the dishes at The Bistro had a more homely feel.

The Market fish was Salmon served with Artichoke cream, tomato & sprout salad, whipped feta, kale crisps. This dish looked so wholesome with super fresh and juicy tomatoes and firm salmon meat.

I rounded up my meal with Raspberry Brulee Biscotti, berry salad plated in an artsy manner. Luv the sweet & sourish combination.

The other dessert we tried was Lemon vs Coconut Lemon tart, curd, coconut cherry ice cream, citrus fizz, puffed quinoa. Another vibrant coloured dish with robust flavours.

Other than the amazing food, what left an impression on us was the song list. Our meal was accompanied with songs we grew up listening to (think Oasis, Blur etc.). Great playlist.

Earlier Photos Taken:

It was raining at Ohakune area everyday…glad that once we drove out of the Tongariro National Park area, the weather cleared up.  We stopped by a great lookout point along the way to Taupo.

We drove to Wai-O-Tapu Thermal Wonderland, New Zealand‘s most colourful geothermal attraction.

The sunny sky helped to create great opportunities to capture the vibrant colours at the thermal pools.

It is easy to see why this place is known for the colourful appearances. The lime green pond looks toxic!

For me the Champagne Pool (above) was the key highlight at the park.

The bubbling mud pool looked like a scene from a sci-fiction movie. It felt as if there were some monster/creature lurking in the mud pool and may emerge anytime.

There are also a number of species of birds spotted in the park, including the famed New Zealand fantail. But they are so quick that it was challenging trying to capture a sharp image of them. We could only capture the other birds that were standing at ease.

Other Related Posts:

• The Station Cafe, Bar & Restaurant, National Park Village
• Powderkeg Restaurant and Bar, Ohakune
• The Shire’s Rest™ Cafe, Matamata
• The Bistro, Taupo
• Depot Eatery & Oyster Bar, Auckland
• Surf & Sand Takeaways, Tairua

The Station Cafe, Bar & Restaurant, National Park Village

For the next 3 days we had to look for alternative activities in replacement of our scrapped skiing plan. We decided to take it easy and explore the area for some nature sights.

Found The Station Cafe, Bar & Restaurant just outside the boundary of Tongariro National Park. The village is supposed to have great views of Mount Tongariro, Mount Ngauruhoe (Mount Doom in the Lord of the Rings film trilogy), and Mount Ruapehu (where we were supposed to ski). However the poor rainy weather meant that the mountains were covered in clouds and we didn’t had the chance to see them.

The restaurant is situated in a historic railway station which is still in use. It is the nearest station for visitors taking the rail to explore the Tongariro National Park (New Zealand‘s oldest national park and is designated as a dual World Heritage area).

Once again we had the hotdog with a pumpkin soup (we had the same combination for lunch yesterday at Hobbiton…). As it was way past lunch hour, the menu was limited to cafe menu. The restaurant will then serve the dinner menu later. I’m usually not a pumpkin soup person but I was impressed by the ones served in New Zealand so far. The versions I had were not too sweet, had less of the creamy texture and more chunky. If I’m not wrong it even had hints of curry or peppery taste in it.

After exploring two waterfalls in the morning, we spent a leisurely afternoon trying to plan for the activities for the next two days. The cosy cafe environment offered a comfortable and relaxing place to do our research.

Earlier Photos Taken:

Mangawhero Falls is a 28-metres waterfall along Old Ohakune Mountain Road, easily accessible with a 20-minutes return walk.  On a good day, one should be able to see a perfect view of Mt Ruapehu right behind the waterfall from this viewpoint.

This is supposedly the area used for the filming for a scene in LOTR: The Two Towers where Gollum is catching fish.

The second waterfall site we visited was the smaller 13 metres Tawhai Falls (aka Gollum’s Pool) along the way to Whakapapa Village.  This waterfall was used for a scene where Gollum was singing and bashing a fish against the rocks under the watchful eye of Faramir and his archers.

If you are a big LOTR fan, you would soon realised that the filming crew had combined shots from several real-life locations to form one fictitious location for the film.

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• Powderkeg Restaurant and Bar, Ohakune
• The Shire’s Rest™ Cafe, Matamata
• The Bistro, Taupo
• Depot Eatery & Oyster Bar, Auckland
• Surf & Sand Takeaways, Tairua

Powderkeg Restaurant and Bar, Ohakune

After leaving Hobbiton Movie Set, we drove for 3 hours to arrive at Ohakune. The town located at the southern end of the Tongariro National Park, close to the southwestern slopes of the active volcano Mount Ruapehu. We had planned to spend the next 3 days to ski at Tūroa Ski Area and had checked into The Powderhorn Chateau.

While waiting for our dinner at the restaurant housed within the accommodation, we started checking on the ski resort report on the snow condition…only to find out about two unfortunate accidents that happened over the last few weeks!

First was a controlled avalanche at Tūroa ski field which turned bad and severely damaged the main chairlift at the resort just one week ago (6th Aug). The chairlift tower was bent beyond repair due to the massive snow plough and a new one had to be ordered. As a result the upper mountain remained closed to skiers. Thankfully no one was hurt in this accident.

Then we read about another accident which happened in late July which sadly resulted in 1 fatality (a young girl). The accident involved a shuttle bus that crashed along Ohakune Mountain Rd which runs to/fro Tūroa skifield. As a result most of the other shuttle bus operators had to send their vehicles for checks and shuttle service to the skifield from Ohakune was suspended…

To be honest, I lost my dinner appetite after reading the sad news… I didn’t even note down what we ordered. I vaguely recalled this as a Thai Prawn Cake. Other then being slightly charred, it was pretty acceptable.

We also had a Chicken Confit on Gnocchi (I think). The skin of the chicken leg was really crispy but the meat was a tad dry. The gnocchi was slightly dense and the dish was dry without much gravy to go along with the gnocchi.

Not all are bad cos mid-way through our meal, there was a commotion behind our table. And there was a guy proposing to his girlfriend! He had strong support as they were dining in a huge group. Of cos she said Yes and there was a burst of cheers all round. *No free round of celebratory drinks though haha*

After the short jubilation, we were back to face our problems on hand again…We had booked 4 nights of stay at The Powderhorn Chateau we had to work out Plan B now that we may not proceed with our ski trip… Although the ski field at the other side of Mount Ruapehu – Whakapapa skifield remained open, we were certainly apprehensive about the safety standards of the ski resort…

Earlier photos taken:

Stayed 1 night in Taupo and was amazed by the clear sky. Spotted so many stars!

The next morning we left Taupo early to cover a few attractions in the area before making our way to Hobbiton Movie Set.

Drove by to check out “The World’s Coolest McDonald’s” which is in an aeroplane. The interior of the plane was retrofitted to allow guests to dine inside too.

One of the famous sights near Taupo is the Huka Falls. The Waikato River upstream was calm and peaceful before it enters a shallow ravine of hard volcanic rock, creating this powerful stream of turbulent water.

The flow over the 11 metres fall is so strong that it prevents the upstream migration of trout and native fish such as eels which is why there are no eels to be found in Lake Taupo.

The second sight was Aratiatia Rapids. I shortlisted this sight cos i read that it’s used to shoot a scene from The Hobbit. The scheduled dam releases are perfect to shoot the part of an escape where Bilbo Baggins rescues the dwarfs from elves by hiding them in barrels which float downstream.

There are 2 viewpoints to take in the views when the dam releases the water at scheduled times from the reservoir.

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• The Shire’s Rest™ Cafe, Matamata
• The Bistro, Taupo
• Surf and Sand Takeaways, Tairua
• Depot Eatery & Oyster Bar, Auckland

The Shire’s Rest™ Cafe, Matamata

Arrived at Hobbiton Movie Set about an hour prior to the start of our selected fully guided walking tour session. After collecting our tickets at the ground floor, we went upstairs to The Shire’s Rest™ Cafe for a quick bite.

Grabbed a simple hotdog with fries along with a pumpkin soup. The food here are not overly decorated with Hobbit theme unlike those of Disney theme parks.

Another point to note is if you hadn’t got the tour tickets, don’t bother making your way to The Shire’s Rest™ Cafe in hopes that you could get a glimpse of the Hobbiton. The cafe itself is just a double storey structure with no association nor resemblance of a Hobbit Hole.

From the gathering point next to The Shire’s Rest™ Cafe, we boarded the shuttle bus which then fetched us further into the rolling hills where the shire (Hobbiton) was built. Therefore there is no way guests could roam around Hobbiton on their own and you have to book either a group tour or a private tour to visit the movie set.

With some time to spare, I browsed through the items available at the souvenir shop. The miniature house caught my eye but I decided to purchase it after the tour so that I wouldn’t need to carry it during the trip. Turned out to be almost the wrong decision as after the tour, it was sold out!!! The staff were kind enough to offer me the display set in the cabinet. Really appreciate their effort as they had to look for the original packaging and pack the pieces neatly into the box before handing it to me.

Photos of the walking tour:

We booked an English tour but only 4 of us followed the official guide, the rest are Chinese visitors who listened to the explanation from their own tour agents. Apparently the chinese guided tour are so popular that it is often sold out. Hence the tour agencies booked the english tour for their group and let their own agent do the explanation.

There was only 1 hobbit hole that we could enter to take photo from inside. It’s the house of a painter. However this hole doesn’t really have properly fitted interior. There is just a small space behind the door. According to the guide, most of the hobbit holes are just a false front with no actual space behind.

Finally arrived at the most famous hobbit hole of them all – the one at the top of the hill. Fun Fact: The oak tree on the hill above Bag End is fake, so that it will look exactly the way Peter Jackson wanted. 

View of the Shire from The Green Dragon Inn (the meeting place for all residents of hobbiton). The bridge was said to be the one Gandalf rode across to reach the Shire.

We ended our 2-hour tour with a complimentary drink at The Green Dragon Inn.

Hobbiton Movie Set is surrounded by land used for sheep rearing by the same family. One brother manages the tourism of Hobbiton while another manages the family sheep farm.

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• Depot Eatery & Oyster Bar, Auckland
• Surf & Sand Takeaways, Tairua

The Bistro, Taupo

After a long day of driving, we finally arrived at our destination for the night – Taupo. Lake Taupo is said to be New Zealand‘s largest lake, which is widely known amongst the locals that the lake is the size of Singapore.

The Bistro is located in the town centre which was pretty lifeless when we got there – I suppose cos its winter season. The breeze from the lake sent chills down our back when we got out of the car.

Ordered the Olive oil poached prawn tails, duck & shiitake cream, coriander, savoy cabbage, mushroom tortellini which has very sweet crunchy cabbbage.

The Calamari cooked sous vide, handmade lemon gnocchi, fried capers, gremolata, champagne veloute was well-disguised as a pasta dish. The champagne veloute was creamy and rich with fresh gnocchi.

For main we shared a Grilled scotch fillet of beef, roasted shallots, baby beets, swiss chard, portobello mushroom, horse radish creamed potatoes. We shortlisted The Bistro as they are one of the restaurants in Taupo awarded the New Zealand Beef and Lamb Excellence Award, so we had to try the beef dish here. Judging from the pink meat it is certain that the beef was well-prepared with the right heat control.

Earlier Photos Taken:

Made it to Blue Spring before the sun sets.

The Blue Spring at Te Waihou Walkway is internationally acclaimed with water so pure it supplies around 60% of New Zealand’s bottled water.

We were awed by the turquoise stream filled with lush green aquatic vegetation as we walked further into the centre via the boardwalks through wetland areas. Staring at the featherly looking plants that sway ever so gently in the stream has a therapeutic effect.

I’m glad that they have banned swimming at Blue Springs. In fact they shouldn’t have allowed it in the first place…Visitors should be there to admire and appreciate the beauty of nature, not to destroy it.

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