FOOD & DRINK NEWS

Gift ideas, innovative new kitchen tools, adults-only chocolate, seltzers, spicy sauces and festive cooking.

CHRISTMAS BLING

New Zealand’s leading tableware and kitchenware specialist, The Studio of Tableware, is the one-stop shop for cool foodie Christmas gifts this year. Top of the list has to be its Sambonet PVD barware. The Italian brand, which began in 1856, appears in top hotels and fine-dining restaurants around the world. Sambonet products are defined by top-quality materials, unsurpassed beauty, innovation and attention to detail.

And, for a Christmas table centrepiece that will wow your guests, there’s the Bernardaud Lithophanie ‘Christmas Tree’. Made from Limoges porcelain with a tealight candle, the votive light by the French luxury house is one of 35 designs that use the same technique of hand-sculpting bisque porcelain that was first demonstrated by French artist, Paul de Bourgoing in 1828.

For a dramatic effect or to create a festive ambiance, delight your dinner guests by replacing traditional dinner candles with this icon of French design, which seeks to modernise the art of entertaining. thestudio.co.nz

WINE-COUNTRY DINING

One of Wellington’s best-loved restaurants, Egmont Street Eatery, is setting up a satellite operation at Palliser Estate winery in Martinborough for the upcoming summer months, offering bistro-style lunch dishes and grazing plates. ‘Egmont at Palliser’ will be serving its trademark culinary goodness inspired by the producers and food artisans of the Wairarapa, all created to match Palliser’s wines and to be enjoyed in the park-like surrounds of Palliser’s home vineyard and winery.

From 19 November, ‘Egmont at Palliser’ will be open five days a week (Thursday-Monday). The menu will evolve with the season and is designed for the relaxed summer environment – be it in bean bags on the lawn, shady tables in the courtyard or in the newly renovated dining room. It’s definitely the place to be this summer. palliser.co.nz

THE ONLY PAN YOU’LL EVER NEED

When acclaimed Kiwi chef Peter Gordon stops mid-recipe during an online cooking demonstration to rave about your pans, you know you’re onto a winner.

The Ironclad Pan Company is an innovative new cookware brand producing the only 100 per cent New Zealand-made cast iron skillets. It was founded in 2019 by friends Kate Slavin and Joe Carter, who wanted to create a meaningful object that people only had to buy once – something precious, that could be handed down for generations. Their 100-year promise of quality is cast in iron on the base of every pan.

Each pan from The Ironclad Pan Company is skilfully hand poured and hand finished in a New Zealand foundry. Only the highest-grade recycled T100 iron is used to craft the beautifully unique design. There are currently two pans in the Ironclad Pan family: The Legacy Pan – a 28cm, mid-size pan that is perfect for family meals ($240), and the Lil’ Legacy, a smaller (but cuter) 20cm pan ($190). A stunning Dutch oven is also in the works and will be released before Christmas.

The Ironclad Pan Company also has the benefits of a culinary advisor, Felicity Morgan-Rhind, who develops delicious skillet recipes for the company’s website and social media channels. In addition, the company wanted to create a contemporary way to store and share family recipes. The result was The Ironclad Family Recipe Vault – a closed social platform designed to store, share and save treasured recipes for generations. ironcladpan.com