Day 8: What I'm Eating & Drinking

August 18, 2017

It’s been seven days of Visa WOAP madness, and the fun is showing no signs of slowing. I think it’s safe to say that Wellingtonians and lucky out-of-town-visitors have been truly binging on burgers, getting festive with festival dishes, shaking things up with cocktails and getting stuck into some amazing events. I’ve barely been home for the last week, with all my spare time spent in restaurants, bars and cafes. Here’s a quick rundown of the kai I’ve been enjoying and what I’m looking forward to:

What I’ve been eating and drinking

Beat Kitchen – boy am I glad my office is close to Beat Kitchen’s new home on Dunlop Terrace, behind Recycle Boutique. This burger was a dream. A huge slab of incredibly tender braised beef was offset by delicious kimchi slaw and the most amazing cheesy kimchi croquette. I am considering having a second one of these babies, but is that considered sacrilege with 122 other burgers to choose from?
Field & Green – F&G is one of my favourite Wellington restaurants, and their Dine Wellington menu certainly proved popular with my table of family-in-laws last night. The terakihi soufflé was like a cloud of deliciousness (excuse my mediocre photo), there were some minor squabbles over sharing the rolled stuffed lamb and the mushroom stroganoff (both extremely yum) and I even risked the late night caffeine hit for the Peoples Coffee icecream. The Tiamana Digga IPA tasted like peanut praline, and the Big Sky Grüner Veltliner was luscious and fruity. Highly recommended.
Hippopotamus – their Humble Kiwi Pie is anything but humble (my initial reaction was ‘that’s a pie and a half’) but the milk and honey dessert was actually the highlight of the night for me. The tangy buttermilk sorbet and chunks of hokey pokey offset by thyme and a honey gel were delightful.
Beervana – Five thumbs up to Beth Brash and her team, plus all the amazing breweries, eateries and volunteers, who pulled off a bloody impressive festival.

What I hear is good

Beach Road Deli’s burger – About 5 people have messaged me to tell me about tasty the Hāngī Pants burger is. The buns are made of fried bread, for heaven's sake. Need to jump on the train and try this ASAP.
Neo Café's burger – My sources (sauces) tell me the pulled pork with apple radish slaw and cider vinegar chipotle BBQ sauce is very tasty.
The Arborist cocktail – I’m a fiend for Amaro Montenegro, both quaffing neat little glasses of it and in all manner of cocktails. This rose-hued beauty (perhaps even millennial pink?) is right up my alley, pairing this floral aperitif with beetroot juice and bourbon and serving it alongside beet arancini with Zany Zeus smoked cream cheese. I’m sold.
Sterling Festival Dish – Lamb stuffed with tītī, served with puha, urenika and spud galette - how much more Kiwi can you get?
Hawthorn Lounge cocktail – Fans of Kiwi music and fans of damn good cocktails are getting behind Hawthorn Lounge in a big way. The combo of warm boozy chocolate and orange with crème brûlée sounds like an excellent post-burger nightcap.

What’s coming up

Boomrock’s Winter Game Shoot was so popular they had to put on another session, which still has a few tickets available. Check out that dramatic and beautiful table setting pic below. If you haven’t been lucky enough to head to Boomrock yet, make a day of it on Saturday the 26th.
Street Eats and Beats – Egmont St is hosting an Asian street food party for the second year in a row. Last year’s menu was killer (still dreaming about that savoury mushroom custard) so I’m looking forward to spending my Saturday night sampling this year’s offering.
Toast pop-up – I get it - getting out of bed in winter is hard. I’m sure you can set your alarm 15 minutes earlier to make it to the Toast pop-up in Midland Park. I hear the toast has been selling out by 9am most days, so make sure you swing by before work. I like the sound of Monday’s spice-rubbed pastrami and swiss on rye by Ministry of Food.
Sixes Pie Cart – Pies + donuts = a balanced diet. The Sixes Pie Cart has been popping up around the city slinging pastry goods on a daily basis, and I hear great things.