Festival Awards

The festival awards recognise excellence in Visa Wellington On a Plate participants. Usually, you have the chance to help determine who will be awarded best Festival Dish, Cocktail and Burger Wellington each year.

This year we we've taken the decision to not have public ratings or Festival Awards for Burger, Cocktail, Dine Wellington. This year we're all about collaboration, community and lifting everyone up rather than competition. Anything else is just not appropriate in the current climate. For more info on changes due to Covid-19, head here.

See below for winners, runners up and finalists.

Your Visa WOAP 2019 winners!

Best Dine Wellington Festival Dish winner Grace Patisserie with "The Egg"

Best Garage Project presents Burger Wellington winner Cafe Medici with "Prawn Underbelly"

Best Cocktail Wellington winner Pravda with "Schmoke and a Pancake"

2019 Runners up

Dine Wellington Festival Dish second place. WBC with their master stock braised beef short rib, choy sum & cray fried rice

Garage Project presents Burger Wellington second place. Leroy's with "Lucy's Got Dragon Breath"

Cocktail Wellington second place. Hanging Ditch with "Salt, Cream, Acid, Bubbles"

Dine Wellington Festival Dish third place. Field & Green with "Cassola" - a baked ricotta and orange zest soufflé

Garage Project presents Burger Wellington third place. Sweet Release with "Jacked Up"

Cocktail Wellington third place. The Crab Shack with "One Night In Bangkok"

Dine Wellington 2019 - Best Festival Dish Finalists

Apachè - Sea, Land, Sky

Arborist Rooftop Bar & Eatery - Smoked black bean and corn Hush Puppy tostada

Field & Green - Cassola - baked Zany Zeus ricotta and orange zest soufflé

Grace Patisserie - The Egg

Wholesale Boot Company - Aromatic master stock braised beef short rib, sizzling choy sum, fragrant Waikanae cray fried rice

Burger Wellington 2019 - Best Burger Finalists

Apachè - Surf & Turf

Bellamy's - The Coalition

Café Medici - Prawn Underbelly

Leroy's Bar - Lucy’s Got Dragon Breath

Sweet Release - Jacked Up

Cocktail Wellington 2019 - Best Cocktail Finalists

Charley Noble - Artemis

Hanging Ditch - Salt, Cream, Acid, Bubbles

Lulu - You Had Me at Heihei

Pravda - Schmoke and a Pancake

The Crab Shack - One Night in Bangkok

Outstanding Innovation - presented by Yellow Brick Road

Event - Bandersnack by Hillside Kitchen & Cellar

Festival Dish - Hillside Kitchen & Cellar

Cocktail - Coco At The Roxy

Burger - Karaka Cafe

Outstanding Interpretation of the Theme - presented by iTicket

Event - Big Foodie Quiz of the Year - Havana Bar

Festival Dish - Hippotamus

Cocktail - Mr Go's

Burger - Rogue & Vagabond

The 2019 Judges

Jack Cashmore

Up-and-coming British-born chef Jack Cashmore heads up the Blue Duck Station in remote central North Island. Jack brings his passion for taste and knowledge of cuisine from time spent at two Michelin starred restaurants, Sat Bains in Nottingham, In de Wulf in Belgium and as head chef at Anglo in London.

Nalini Baruch

Nalini and her husband Colin have owned and operated their olive grove and brand Lot Eight since 1997. She's a familiar face around Wellington, supplying restaurants across the capital with high quality extra-virgin olive oil. A passionate foodie, Nalini makes the trip over the hill multiple times every August to attend Visa Wellington On a Plate events.

Riki Carter

Riki is an international cocktail judge, winner of numerous cocktail competitions including the Havana Club Cocktail Grand Prix. He is also the manager of Highball, New Zealand's annual cocktail & spirits festival.

Kalliana Kong

Kalliana is the co-creator of successful food Instagram account, Wellingnoms. Wellingnoms began during Visa Wellington On a Plate four years ago and Kalliana has eaten her way around the capital ever since.

Nick "Huffdaddy" Huffman

Nick Huffman’s illustrious career has spanned almost four decades and include accolades such as ‘Chef of the Nation’, creating a hot sauce empire and stints in South Africa, France and Australia. In Auckland he was chef patron of his own restaurant Wheelers on Ponsonby Rd, then went on to be executive chef at Huka Lodge, Taupo, and executive chef at Wellington’s much loved Matterhorn.