When you are heading “Down Under”, be prepared for an indulgence in gastronomic delights! The borrowings of Asia, Europe and other Pacific destinations have been liberally applied to the superb fresh native produce of New Zealand and Australia by a new generation of internationally-acclaimed and highly innovative chefs.
In Wellington’s buzzy café society, the trendy waterfront bars and restaurants of Auckland, in guesthouses, luxury lodges and cooking schools across the nation, New Zealand offers an impressive menu of mouth-watering home-grown flavours including lamb, cervena venison, Greenlip mussels, Kaikoura crayfish (lobster), avocado oil, macadamia fudge and of course, Kiwi fruit !
In addition, climate, geography and human skill have combined to produce highly distinctive, premium quality wines, which are the riches of a clean, green land.
So indulge your taste buds with regional food and wine marriages such as a Central Otago Pinot Noir with Canterbury lamb, crisp Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc with world-famous Bluff oysters, a buttery Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay with Golden Bay scallops or a Martinborough Pinot Gris with Lake Ohau salmon.
For a true taste of New Zealand, don't miss a traditional Maori feast (hangi) in Rotorua.
Visitors to Australia are also often dazzled by the sheer quality and variety of epicurean treats.
The fresh-food markets found in every capital city are great places to sample the rich diversity of Australian produce: try the tasty local cheeses at Melbourne’s Queen Victoria Market, marvel at the dozens of varieties of olive oil on offer at Adelaide’s Central Market or relax by the water’s edge with a tray of sushi and a glass of chardonnay at the Sydney Fish Markets.
From a traditional Aussie damper cooked on an outback campfire to a meat pie from the iconic Harry’s Café de Wheels in Sydney. From a gourmand’s delight in one of Melbourne’s groovy restaurants to a family dinner with new friends at one of Australia’s farm stays. From “roo burgers” to brimming seafood platters, Australia will delight every taste bud.
Within a short drive from nearly every capital city is a wine growing region of international repute. Choose from the Hunter, Yarra or Barossa Valleys, the Margaret or Pipers River regions... or why not try them all!
Take a seaplane to lunch and escape to a waterfront table surrounded by national park only minutes from the Sydney CBD or enjoy a candlelit dinner under the stars in the outback – these are the experiences that will stay with you forever.
The flavours of the Pacific are just as delicious; tropical fruits and fresh seafood fragranced with coconut, the potentially explosive local brews of Fijian kava or the Cook Islands ‘bush beer’, a Polynesian feast cooked in an underground oven and accompanied by traditional singing and dancing, a private lantern lit dinner on the beach and cocktails that never tasted so good sipped aboard a sunset cruise.