Category: restaurants
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Souperb Sundays at Palate Raise $7k
Words Vicki Ravlich-Horan For five Sundays in August the Palate Soup Kitchen opened its doors. Each week two local chefs took their turn in the kitchen to create a souperb dish. Just $25 a bowl the public lined up to support this initiative supported by the kind sponsorship from Sky City Hamilton. With the generous…
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Chef du Jour
words Denise Irvine It’s not often you see chef Mat McLean as a guest in his own restaurant, Palate, all dressed up and taking a seat at a table rather than being on the tools in the kitchen. But there he was, socialising out front last Sunday night while others were running the engine room,…
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ON MY PLATE – Oct 24
What goes on tour typically stays on tour, says Denise Irvine, unless it’s food recommendations: in this case, some good pickings on a weekend in Whangamatā. First stop, though, was Friday lunch at The Refinery, 5 Willoughby St, Paeroa, always reliable with homemade cabinet food, a thoughtful menu and vintage furniture fit-out. On this visit,…
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Denise Irvine says yes to Trust the Chef at Thyme Square
I’ve always liked the notion of a “trust the chef” dinner, those occasions when you put the menu aside at a restaurant and say to staff, “please just cook us something that you know we’ll love”. And you’ve got no idea what will happen next. Thyme Square in Hamilton East takes this to the next…
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On My Plate -June 24
Made for breakfast? Most certainly, says Denise Irvine. Someone commented to me the other day that there isn’t really anywhere to have breakfast at Made Market, in Hamilton East. Um, not true. Sure, there isn’t a dedicated breakfast/brunch café, as such – they leave that to others in the neighbourhood – but there are plenty…
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On My Plate – April
Denise Irvine finds plenty to love at Palate Mark 111 Chefs often talk about a “twist on a classic” as they reinvent a time-honoured dish. You could say the same thing about the reinvented Palate Restaurant, now relocated from Hamilton’s Alma St to SkyCity in the heart of the CBD. There is so much that…
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Fergus – Rototunas’ new local
By Charlotte Graham, Images by Ash Muir What do you get when you combine two foodies, a father son duo and golf course chatter? A pretty darn great bar and kitchen. It comes as no surprise that Fergus Bar & Kitchen, Rototuna North’s new local, is taking off when you consider its owners— Joe Te…
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On My Plate – Feb
Denise Irvine takes a seat at The Green, in The Sheds, Made Market, 401 Grey St, Hamilton East. Anticipation is everything and my friend Aimie and I had waited a long time for a booking The Green, Karl Martin-Boulton’s eight-seater chef’s table at Made Market. The Green is very small, miniscule in fact, it’s been…
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Palate 3.0
Palate Restaurant has taken the pole position in Hamilton’s CBD, slap-bang on Victoria St, at the entrance to SkyCity Hamilton. The third incarnation of the award-winning eatery which first opened in the city’s south-end in 2005 by owner-chef Mat Mclean, promises to set Hamilton’s culinary scene alight. Synonymous for putting Hamilton on the culinary map…
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2023 Wrap Up
Our wrap up 2023s food happenings in the Waikato, Denise highlights her most memorable plates while Vicki gets on her high horse. From Vicki Te Kauwhata based winery, Invivo, were recently awarded the supreme prize at the Waikato Business Awards. We’ll take the win in what has been a pretty quiet year on the food…
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