Manawatu¯ food battle
Get your knives and forks ready for Manawatu¯ ’s Plate of Origin competition, which is spread over two weeks this year.
The annual competition is pairing seven Manawatu¯ chefs with chefs from throughout New Zealand to showcase key ingredients from each region.
In the previous two years, the competition went for about five days, meaning people wanting to taste them all had to try up to two dishes a day. In 2017, 10 Manawatu¯ restaurants took part.
This year, people can dine without the rush, as it runs from March 3-17.
Seven Manawatu¯ restaurants are taking part, including Nosh, Amayjen, La Patio Cafe, The Fat Farmer, Table 188, Aberdeen and Nero Restaurant.
Chefs from Auckland, Bay of Plenty, Otago, Wellingtonwairarapa, Taranaki, Waikato and Canterbury will also bring their flair to the table.
People can expect to see fresh produce such as burgundy truffles from Waipara Valley, celeriac from Levin and oysters from Auckland on their plates.
Central Economic Development Agency spokeswoman Janet Reynolds said people were more likely to get around the restaurants in two weeks.
Plate of Origin would coincide with Agrifood Investment Week on March 12-17, which often meant restaurants were already full, so starting it earlier would give more people a chance to book in, she said.
La Patio chef Dexter Gallaza said he supported the chance to serve the dish to more customers in the fortnight.
For the 2018 competition, Gallaza was trying a more refined and modern dish, showcasing beef, after adding a homestyle flare to last year’s sheep’s cream cheese risotto with gurnard. ‘‘This one is a French classic that is modern.’’
In 2017, Feilding restaurant Amayjen took out best dish and people’s choice awards with a wild fallow and blue-lipped mussel dish.
The restaurant was paired with Arbour, from Marlborough, and the chefs used black garlic and honey in the refined surfand-turf dish.
This year, Amayjen chef Andrew May is working with chef Alex Davies from Canterbury’s Gatherings restaurant. They are cooking with truffles, bush honey and Kaikoura Cheese.
In 2016, Aberdeen restaurant chef Craig Robinson and Auckland’s The Grove chef Josh Barlow won the judges’ choice with a seared duck breast, golden kumara, roasted shallot and peach puree. On March 15, Wharerata, at Manawatu¯ ’s Massey University campus, is also hosting a one-off event for Plate of Origin. The five-course menu, created by head chef Sean Kereama, will use ingredients from Nelson-tasman matched with five New Zealand wines from The Village Wine Trader.
‘‘This one is a French classic that is modern.’’ La Patio chef Dexter Gallaza