Lovin’ the Deep South
Invercargill is cool, and that’s way more than just the below zero winter temperatures, writes Warren Gamble.
You know you’re in New Zealand’s most southern city when you hear the first rolled r – worrk is a beautiful sound – and you’ve tucked into your first cheese roll. It’s a bright afternoon following a -4 degree morning when I land at Invercargill Airport with its upgraded terminal, all polished concrete floors and southern beech panels. Armed with some helpful local advice, five minutes later I’m in the pleasing, wide open, threeletter named (Tay, Esk, Dee, Don) streets of downtown Invercargill. There is still ice on the footpaths, but five minutes driving later I’m grateful to step into my warm and cosy home for the weekend, The Comfort Inn Tayesta on Tay St. The 14-unit Comfort Inn offers a range of one or two bedroom units, plus two studios. It lives up to its name with furnishings that are comfortable and most importantly for mid-winter in the Deep South, warm. The complex was built in 1964 and had a colourful history before becoming part of the Choice Hotels AsiaPacific chain.
Current owners Mike and Jan Kerr gave up their pressured lives in product management and IT consultancy in Auckland to head south and are in their fifth year of running the business.
Even though Invercargill is Jan’s home town they chose it because, unlike tourist centres, it was not dependent on the summer visitor trade, but has a more reliable mix of corporate clientele and travellers.
They love their new home and it shows in the attention to detail for their guests. With the mercury plunging below zero, they place cardboard squares on vehicle windscreens so you have a clear, scrape-free start to the day. Another bonus is the location, the Tayesta is a couple of minutes from everything, including Bill Richardson Transport World just up the road, and there is a 24-hour dairy on the corner for emergency supplies. I’m in a Queen Superior unit which has everything you need, from an extremely comfortable bed, a spacious lounge with Sky TV, a kitchen stocked with the essentials and a shower with excellent pressure to get the blood flowing on an icy day. Mike and Jan can whip up a cooked or continental breakfast. But if you want to head out, The Batch on the corner of Spey and Deveron streets provides a perfect start to the weekend. Owner Gareth Hamilton, originally of Stewart Island, was a commercial fisherman who got sick of bad cafe experiences so decided to set up his own with wife Donna. After running the successful Three Bean Cafe, they created The Batch from scratch on the ground floor of a modern office building. Its laid-back beachy atmosphere is complemented with great food and coffee.
Try the Small Fry which, like the rest of the menu, takes standard fare and gives it a quality twist, in this case a big breakfast spread with a potato hash cake, poached egg and bacon, livened with a tasty chilli jam. If you can fit it in, or take away, you must try their cheese scones (ask for them grilled). They have to be the best in Southland, if not the country.
For an evening meal Louie’s Cafe and Tapas Bar on Dee St has a creatively tasty menu, including an entree of muttonbird, that southern specialty tasting like a combination of chicken and fish ALDEN WILLIAMS/STUFF with extra salt. The Rocks Restaurant and Bar, also on Dee St, is another good option for sampling fresh local produce and beverages. They love their wheels in Invercargill. Bill Richardson Transport World covers almost an entire block, housing the home town collector’s lifelong passion for trucks. He bought his grandfather’s old 1933 International D1 in 1967, and, like the big workhorses he loved, he just kept on going.
Bill died in 2005 but his daughter, Jocelyn, took up his understated challenge that ‘‘someone will be interested enough to carry it on’’. Even for non-petrolheads the rows of gleaming trucks, Model T Fords, vintage petrol pumps, and other surprises like the original yellow Mini from Goodbye Pork Pie (‘‘I’m taking this bloody car to Invercargill!) make for an engrossing visit. Check out the impressively themed bathrooms too, especially the petrol pump replica handbasins. If your engine fix is unsated you can also visit the sister display at the Classic Motorcycle Mecca that houses an equally impressive two-wheeled lineup. And right in the city, taking pride of place in E Hayes hardware store, you can see Burt Munro’s magical motorcycle of the World’s Fastest Indian fame.
After inspecting all those gleaming machines, you’ll have worked up a thirst. The independent Invercargill Brewery, in a 140-year-old engineering factory on the Leet St fringe of the central city, will warm the cockles and the tastebuds. It was set up by Steve Nally, equipped with a degree in chemistry and a thirst for authentic craft beer and cider, in 1999.
Since then the brewery has quietly gone about the business of creating quality brews like Pitch Black stout, Stanley Green, in the English pale ale style and b.man, a new world pilsner created to pair with curry.
Nally’s effervescent right-hand man Kelley Robertson says the brewery is becoming a destination in its own right, providing a character-filled backdrop for tours and increasingly for live music nights, naturally with lashings of its fine beer and food.
Other worthwhile attractions are the Southland Museum and Art Gallery, set in the peaceful gardens and fields of Queens Park in the heart of the city. You might even get a glimpse of the city’s oldest resident, Henry the tuatara, who is believed to be 111 years old, and enjoying life in the museum’s tuatarium, home to a hugely successful breeding programme. The Comfort Inn Tayesta (choicehotels.co.nz) provides a great launching pad for your southern adventures. Hosts Mike and Jan have embraced the southern hospitality ethos, and have a wealth of handy sightseeing tips. The units are priced from between $130-$150 a night, including continental breakfast. Air New Zealand flies regularly to Invercargill from most centres, with connections through Christchurch. For a pleasant 45-minute trip through rolling green fields head out to Riverton (‘‘Riviera of the South’’) to sample the quaint appeal of this hardy settlement on the Foveaux Strait. Take tea at The Crib with a retro pot and china cups, perhaps with a decadent slice of gingerbread and homemade caramel sauce. ● The writer was a guest of Choice Hotels. WARREN GAMBLE/STUFF