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.
For many of Southern Crossings' clients an important element of a memorable vacation is to sample New Zealand's wonderful fresh produce and fine, premium wines. After many years of satisfying discerning travellers, we know where they can find the very best. We can recommend many fine restaurants and casual cafes where a memorable dining experience can be assured.
Fresh clean air, fertile soils and sparkling seas are the essence of New Zealand cuisine. We have an abundance of fresh meats, seafood, vegetables, fruit, cheeses and wines. It is a gourmet's paradise - and we're not saying that just because we live here!
Dining is an important part of the New Zealand experience thanks to the largely young and adventurous chefs who experiment with the flavours of Asia and the Pacific and are now exporting the results to the world. Pacific Rim cuisine has earned a deservedly high reputation throughout the world.
The seafood is unsurpassed (try rock lobster with a crisp sauvignon blanc) or our excellent salmon. If you're lucky enough to be in New Zealand when Bluff oysters are in season (May - August) you are in for a treat. New Zealand rock oysters and farmed Pacific oysters are available year-round and are superb and safe to eat raw. NZ green-lipped mussels should not be missed. Cervena (NZ venison) and the modern cuts of lamb and pork are superb. Our grass-fed beef is lean and tender.
Cafes and restaurants offer world-class food and wines in a friendly, casual atmosphere. Sidewalk cafes have blossomed in cities and towns.
Restaurants in the international hotels and luxury lodges feature excellent local produce and wines and have a deserved reputation for innovation and quality at a reasonable price.
New Zealand has emerged as one of the world's leading boutique wine-producing nations, renowned for sauvignon blanc and chardonnay, intensely flavoured pinot noirs and merlots that can satisfy the palate of the most demanding connoisseur.
Major wine growing areas are Auckland, Gisborne, Hawkes Bay, Martinborough in the North Island and Nelson, Marlborough, Waipara and Central Otago in the South Island.
Try a buttery chardonnay from Gisborne or Auckland, an excellent pinot noir from Martinborough or Central Otago or the crisp sauvignon blancs from Marlborough.
Wineries welcome visitors. Soak up the ambience and enjoy the wine - a great way to spend a day on holiday!
Thanks to a multicultural population of food lovers, an abundance of fresh ingredients from both the land and the sea, and a new generation of internationally acclaimed and highly innovative chefs, Australia has no shortage of dining options to tantalise any visitor’s taste buds.
As the World’s largest island it is only natural that seafood should dominate menus across the continent. Dine on swimmingly fresh Tasmanian Salmon and South Australian Rock Lobsters. Feast on Queensland Mud Crabs and freshly shucked Sydney Rock Oysters. Barbeque your own catch of Barramundi and sample the more intriguing delicacies of the deep such as Moreton Bay Bugs (small lobster-like crustacean) and Margaret River marron (freshwater crayfish).
The inexhaustible variety of fresh produce does not stop at the shore; Australia also produces excellent beef and lamb which are exported around the globe. And for the more adventurous epicureans, there is also kangaroo, emu and crocodile to be sampled. Vegetarians will delight in the abundance and wide selection of tropical and cool climate fruits, nuts and vegetables.
Australia’s wines are now world renowned and oenophiles are spoilt for choice with delicious drops to be sampled in nearly every corner of the continent from Margaret River’s buttery Chardonnays, legendary Barossa Shiraz, big Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon, Clare Valley Rieslings, Hunter Valley Semillons, Rutherglen ‘stickies’, Yarra sparklings and cool climate Pinot Noir from Tasmania’s Tamar Valley. The list of thirst quenching boutique beers is almost as far reaching, from Tasmania’s clear Cascade Lagers to South Australia’s cloudy Coopers Ales.
Regions as distinctive in their produce as they are in landscape can be sampled in the lively markets across the nation. You can almost taste Darwin’s proximity to Asia in the spicy laksas at the Mindil Beach sunset markets. Savour the flavours of the tropics sipping a mango smoothie at the Courthouse markets in Broome or spend the afternoon relaxing with fresh seafood and fine wine by the waterside at Sydney’s lively Fish Markets.
Continue your tasty travels following a trail of iconic dining experiences across the country;
Sample Sydney sunny side up with breakfast by the beach in Bondi. Take a seaplane to lunch by the water's edge and sip afternoon tea on a harbour cruise. Watch the city lights appear with a cocktail at the Opera Bar, dine at any number of fine city restaurants and grab a late night meat pie at Harry’s Café de Wheels.
See and be seen at the pavement tables on St Kilda’s bustling beachfront and enjoy the spoils of Melbourne’s multicultural melting pot in Richmond, Fitzroy and Chinatown. Dine among the vines of the Mornington Peninsula where fine foods are served with stunning coastal views. Enjoy a champagne balloon flight over the Yarra Valley vineyards or drink in the curative waters of Daylesford’s mineral springs.
Dine your way along Noosa’s trendy Hastings Street. Sample the Daintree Ice Cream company’s exotic flavours, with tropical treats such as wattleseed, macadamia and mango. Perfect the art of cocktail making on Hayman Island and taste the home grown flavours of the tropics on Haggerstone.
Unpack a gourmet picnic hamper of creamy King Island cheeses, delicately smoked salmon and sweet local strawberries in the pretty gardens of your Tasmanian country manor. Watch the brightly coloured fishing boats dock in front of your waterside table in Hobart and catch yourself a trophy sized trout in the Island’s icy streams.
Visit the original Penfold family cottage, home of the legendary ‘Grange’ shiraz or cycle between the boutique wineries of the pretty Clare Valley. Kangaroo Islands’ beachside tables and the Limestone Coast’s quayside cafes serve up a smorgasbord of fresh seafoods.
Enjoy an ice cold beer with the locals at a classic outback pub and sample some real Australian ‘bush tucker’ with the traditional landowners around the campfire. Land yourself a ‘barra’ for the barbeque or sit back and watch the sunset over Uluru as you dine under the stars to the sounds of the didgeridoo.
Enjoy a refreshing ale in Freemantle or an exotic sunset cocktail in Broome. Join a cooking class in the Margaret River or join your outback station hosts for dinner around the family table.
Gastronomes will delight in this continent and all its flavours.
Note:
- Most special dietary requirements can be widely catered for. Please advise us of any specific dietary requirements so that we may inform the appropriate accommodation and tour operators accordingly.
- Many restaurants are “BYO”, meaning you may bring your own bottled wine to drink with the meal. The legal drinking age in Australia is 18 years.
- Tipping is entirely discretionary in appreciation of good service. Employees do not depend on gratuities for their income nor are service charges routinely added to the bill however a tip of up to 10% in recognition of excellent service has become the custom in cafes and restaurants.