NEW ZEALAND FUTURE FOOD LEGEND

WINNER

MONIQUE FISO

We have some stunning food in New Zealand but if there’s one thing that we can lay claim to that no other food producing nation has, it is our connection to Māori cuisine and the indigenous ingredients found in bush and on land. Monique Fiso (pictured), a stellar chef, is leading the charge in showcasing this and she will open her restaurant, Hiakai, in mid-november in Wellington. She’s chosen a site where traditional brickmaking was carried out from the 1860s, has revamped the historic building with the help of her family and will retain the old kilns as a tribute to the city’s heritage. Fiso has worked hard to reinvent traditional food by giving it a modern twist, and is incorporating the astonishingly widespread range of flora and fauna she’s discovered in her extensive research. Joe Mcleod is her full time forager, Tom Hilton is the pastry chef (a Māori with a British accent, Fiso teases) and Cameron Douglas has worked on the wine list. Expect to see titi, ti kouka buds and kiekie flowers on a menu that will feature sophisticated fare, intense technique and unusual and underrated seafood species.

Hiakai, 40 Wallace St, Mt Cook, Wellington