All posts tagged: food

Crispy fried chicken skins and sweet drinks at PappaRich Auckland

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PappaRich is a franchise serving up Malaysian classics across Malaysia, Singapore, Australia and very recently, Auckland. The first New Zealand store was promised for months on social media (I know because I was waiting patiently) and their loyal expat fans were insistent, verging on enraged that their beloved store opening was delayed. I think some people would have rammed the doors down if they thought it would get them a PappaRich meal earlier. Set on Level 1 of the SkyCity Metro complex (aka “IMAX”) on Queen Street in the city, this is a full size restaurant with all the furnishings and bright lighting you might expect from an international franchise. After soft opening for a couple of weeks, I was invited to the official opening a few weeks back where my sister and I, and others including bloggers Cecilia from Ultimate OmNoms and Sheena from As Told By Sheena. I was born in Hong Kong but grew up in New Zealand and I grew up eating Chinese/Malaysian food. So much to the point that I assumed it was Cantonese food …

Cheese and Chocolate givaway: winner

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With special thanks to Whitestone Cheese and Wellington Chocolate Factory, I am pleased to announce the winner for the Cheese and Chocolate giveaway. The prize consists of the latest products by both companies with the Lindis Pass Camembert being released just last week: Whitestone Cheese Ferry Road Halloumi Whitestone Cheese Lindis Pass Camembert Wellington Chocolate Factory Peanut Butter Bar Wellington Chocolate Factory Great War Bar Drawn by Random.org the winner is…**drum roll please!** Kris van de Water Congratulations Kris and thanks to all who entered. You can find all these new products at New Zealand stockists. This was the final giveaway in my series of giveaways to celebrate Bunny Eats Design turning 5 years. Hope you’ve enjoyed receiving goodies as much as I’ve enjoyed giving them away! To keep up with announcements including giveaways, make sure you follow me on Bloglovin’ or Facebook.

Fiercely seasonal in the Bombay Hills

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A regular contender at Taste of Auckland, Bracu’s elegant dishes are celebration of quality local produce. Bracu has always been foodie destination on my “one day” list. They also do weddings and even though we visited on a wet spring day, it’s easy to picture a glorious sunny day in the micro-climate of the Bombay Hills. Bracu (pronounced brah-KOO) is set within the 96 hectares of Simunovich Olive Estate who produce olive oils and olive-based beauty products. You can enjoy claybird shooting, archery or even knife throwing if you prefer, before relaxing over food and wine in the idyllic setting of Bracu. Think rolling hills, thousands of olive trees, and country luxury.   Last week, I was invited to sample from the new spring menu at Bracu. Spring must be a dream for chefs, especially when there are items that are so fiercely seasonal. You get to play with these bright and delicate flavours for just a short period of time and if you’re lucky, you get suppliers that have all sorts of weird and …

Bunny Eats Design turns 5 – Taste of Auckland giveaway

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Taste of Auckland is my favourite, favourite, favourite foodie event. Taste is 7 years old this year and I have been attending religiously every year since inception, including the bonus Taste at The Cloud during RWC year. Obsessed much? Taste of Auckland is coming up in November and tickets are on sale now. With special thanks to Lemongrass Productions, I have two tickets to give away to one lucky reader. To enter, just visit my Instagram account and name one dish I have posted to Instagram recently. Entry form at the bottom of this post. The main drawcard of Taste are the restaurants, each serving up a small menu of tasty morsels. This year there will also be Brew Street, a craft beer special with 10 minute meet the makers talks. The Social Kitchen by Fisher and Paykel is always popular with the festival goers. Nothing quite like an interactive, edible exhibit. You can also look forward to a gourmet hangi. A first in Taste history. Bloggers, reviewers and food pornographers will be happy to learn that Canon will be running a Food Photography workshop during the festival. Tickets: $50 per person including your …

Bunny Eats Design turns 5 – Foodbox giveaway

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I got into Foodbox a few years ago when I was investigating different food delivery services in Auckland. Foodbox was the most well rounded service I found with fair prices for the average household. Foodbox began with with a few fruit and vege box options, now they offer many more items to make cooking at home a breeze. Foodbox offer quality free range meat, seafood, free range eggs, milk, bread and artisan goodies along with their main fruit and vege boxes. Fruit and vege are mostly local except for bananas and the odd grape or pineapple in winter. Thanks to Foodbox, I have a Big Bang worth $45 to give away. To enter, you must follow Foodbox’s Instagram account and answer a fun vege related food question. Entry form at the bottom of this post. “The Big Bang is brimming with New Zealand grown fresh fruit and vegetables for your week. It is our medium sized mixed fruit and veg box which is specifically designed for 3-4 people but would suit a vegetarian couple and/or a small family with 1-2 young children.” Due to logistics, this prize …

Chinese American kitsch with a twist

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Last night I attended a new pop up at Coco’s Cantina on K Rd. Coco’s Cantina is a rustic Italian kitchen with family-style dining. While the Cocos are galavanting and eating their way through Italy (team building exercise: BOSS LEVEL), the restaurant is being “house sat” by fledgling food businesses Judge Bao and The Pie Piper. I’ve blogged about Judge Bao before and mentioned their friends The Pie Piper who regularly impress foodies at The Street Collective on Ponsonby Road with their bao and pies. On different day, the setting could be called romantic. The lighting was dim with small flowers and candles at the tables. We were seated on long tables and served family-style with a mix of food media present. I fan-girled a little bit but didn’t introduce myself to any of the foodie heroes at the other tables. Um…not there yet. We sampled a range of dishes from Judge Bao’s ambitious pop up menu and ended with slice of pie of our choice from The Pie Piper. We dined as guests of Judge Bao and …

WOOP – a review

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I am pleased to announce a special promotion for my readers. Just use the promo code BUNNYVIP to receive $25 off your WOOP order. I was recently invited by Thomas Dietz to try a new food delivery service in Auckland called WOOP. Thomas is a (former) Parisian, foodie and the entrepreneur responsible for TOMeTTe, those beautifully branded, ready-to-eat French meals we first tried at The Food Show in 2012. Since then, Thomas has launched a new initiative called WOOP (World On A Plate). Branding One thing about both TOMeTTe and WOOP, is the branding is right on point. A flash silver box arrived, the ingredients packed with the skill of a Tetris master. This box can easily fit on a shelf in your fridge – which I would recommend since they’ve packed it so snug it would be hard to beat. Convenience A weekly delivery of 3 meals for two or four people, these feature gourmet meals that take an average of 15 minutes to prepare. Sitting somewhere between cooking from scratch and “heat and eat” meals, much …

Food Porn on Film

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#NZbloggers are hosting a weekly blog post challenge. This week’s theme is FILM and you can check out other posts on this theme here. If you have a little nosey around this blog, you may have noticed I’m a bit of a film junkie. I love lots of genres but food and cooking films are up there. While there are many lists of great film food and cooking scenes, many are outdated. So here is my curated list of some pivitol food scenes from recent cooking films so as well as suggestions for local dining. Chef 2014 A movie about a food truck, the grilled cheese sandwich scene is some sizzling hot food porn. Don’t watch Chef on an empty stomach and figure out if there is a source of Cuban sandwiches in your local BEFORE you watch the movie. That way you can run, not walk to porky, cheesy goodness. Chef best food porn scenes: Grilled cheese Opening scene How to make a Cubano scene Pair this movie with your own 3 cheese grilled sandwich …

Street Eats 2015 – food porn and people watching

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Today is the last day of Restaurant Month. What a month it’s been! On Saturday was Street Eats, a highlight and grand finale event of Restaurant Month. I arrived at Street Eats at 10.30am when it opened, paid $5 admission and set upon documenting and eating my way through the huge selection of delicious food. As I’ve mentioned before, going early is the best way to avoid crowds at Street Eats. I only had to wait in line for 1 dish and since I got there early before the crowds, I even got to chat to some chefs about their dishes. Each restaurant, eatery, pop up and food truck offered between 3 and 5 dishes, all under $10. Shed 10 was filled with restaurants and plenty of seating. In the centre island, drinks could be bought from various wine, cider and beer retailers.  With festive bunting and live music it was set for great atmosphere. Food trucks and pop ups lined the outside space between Shed 10 and The Cloud. I had already eaten at both Mexico and Orleans last week …

Everything you need to know about Street Eats 2015

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Street Eats is a highlight of Restaurant Month and it’s on this coming Saturday. Now in it’s third year, this popular event is cheap, busy and delicious. This is not so much a celebration of “street foods”, but a celebration of restaurants’ take on street foods. If you enjoy eating lots of different types of foods by our local restaurant chefs, this is for you. Being a one day event has seen intense crowds and many sold out stalls. This year they are introducing a $5 entry fee which may cut down crowds. Still, I would recommend going early to avoid missing out. Street Eats Saturday 29 August 2015 10.30am – 8pm Shed 10, Queens Wharf $5 entry (Free entry for supervised children) More info at: http://www.heartofthecity.co.nz/auckland-events/food-and-drink-events/street-eats Tips for Street Eats Bring an appetite but get something quick and fast when you arrive so you don’t get hangry Bring a friend (or two) to share dishes with Entry is $5. Bring cash as some stalls may not accept EFTPOS Expect to spent $25-50 per person depending on your appetite and …

Tasty questions with Camille Rope, Bird On A Wire

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Bird On A Wire and their satellite stores Box of Bird are well known for their quick meals and for reliably feed the masses at festivals and events. With free range rotisserie chicken, sandwiches, salads and also fresh juices and soups, they make healthy takeaways an easy option. Always ethical and local wherever possible, Bird On A Wire have 3 sites in the city and a new store in Takapuna. Camille Rope is the Executive Chef behind Bird On A Wire and below are her  answers to the tasty questions I cooked up for your enjoyment. Describe your restaurant’s food: Healthy, hand made, delicious. What is your restaurant’s signature dish? Free range rotisserie chook of course! Name your favourite comfort food: Soup in winter, BBQ chicken in summer. What did you have for breakfast? Carrot, beet, pear, kiwi and ginger juice, housemade muesli, yoghurt and feijoas and coffee. What is the most delicious thing you’ve eaten this week? Homemade chicken soup. What is an underrated ingredient? Cauliflower. What are 3 sources of inspiration to you? Genuine foodies, cooking books and my husband. Favourite restaurant? It is too …

Tasty questions with Ultimate OmNoms

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Ultimate OmNoms is a prolific Auckland restaurant review blog with stunning photography. I’ve met both Cecilia and Rayshur and had the pleasure of eating with them at events such as the grand opening of Ma Cherie and Graze and Feast. Cecilia Wong is the main belly behind Ultimate OmNoms and below are her answers to the tasty questions I cooked up for your enjoyment. Describe your blog: Nommy || Sunny side up || Off the cuff. What is the most popular post on your blog? Baduzzi dessert post -> ultimateomnoms.com/baduzzi/ Name your favourite comfort food: Dumplings! There’s something soothing about the process of making them, seeing them all sitting quietly in their curved forms…then sending them away to be pan fried or steamed. Love adding chilli oil to serve. What did you have for breakfast? Avocado on toast. That’s been on repeat for almost the whole year now..A world without avocados is a bleak one.. What is the most delicious thing you’ve eaten this week? Crepes at Odettes Eatery – both their savory and sweet crepes are amazing! What is an underrated …

The Moth: Stories for soulful foodies

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If Humans of New York is a collection of portraits of real people, The Moth is a collection of true stories told by real people. The Moth is based in New York and are true stories read aloud by professional and amateurs. Fascinating and insightful, their stories are soulful, funny and at times heart breaking. I have been binge-listening to The Moth and I’ve curated a list of ten stories with food themes. Warning, some of these food stories will hit you right in the feels. The Moth: Stories for soulful foodies Sweet and Sour Meatballs Alvin Lau details what he’d like his last meal to be if he doesn’t survive his cancer. Star Custodian David Chang of Momofuku cooks for Michelin stars at Momofuku Ko. Hoboken Roast Beef Slow service at a deli counter leads to an angry and regrettable outburst and a lesson learned. Under The Wires A college kid has his jaw wired shut for a month and a half after having jaw surgery. Ruthy’s Dinner A grandmother shares wisdom (and a beer) with …

Auckland Restaurant Month 2015 – Events

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Auckland Restaurant Month starts this weekend! I’ve picked out a few budget-friendly events for those foodies who can’t quite make the $200 pp events that are happening across Auckland (as much as we’d love to). Check back over the next few days as I share restaurant promotions in different price brackets ($25, $40 and $60) as well as Q&A with chefs, owners, food writers and food bloggers throughout the month. Foodie Films If you missed the two food documentaries at the recent Documentary Edge festival, here’s your chance to see both of them for free. Deli Man is playing this Saturday and For Grace next Saturday. Seating is on a “first in” basis. Deli Man Saturday 1 August, 12pm Auckland Art Gallery Auditorium (FREE) For Grace Saturday 8 August, 5pm Auckland Art Gallery Auditorium (FREE) More info here: http://www.documentaryedge.org.nz Street Eats Saturday 29 August, 10.30am – 8pm Shed 10, Queens Wharf $5 entry (Free entry for supervised children) Immensely popular gourmet market with street food from central city restaurants. Beer, wine, kids’ entertainment and live music. …

Sliders Party

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  The Koala and I had friends over for a sliders party last weekend. We love home made burgers and make them all the time. With The Koala as captain and me as his prep chef, we usually create towering cheeseburgers with all the trimmings that require you to unhinge your jaw to feast upon. Having a burger party was on my foodie bucket list. Having never made sliders before, we might have been too ambitious with our five slider menu. Luckily we didn’t have many guests and everything went smoothly (if a little frantic). We made 50 sliders but this was too many as the sliders were more filling than anticipated. Our eyes were much bigger than our stomachs so we sent everyone home with extras and we grazed on leftover sliders all night. It was hard to pick the winning slider, but the top three were: (in no particular order) Crispy Pork Belly Pan-fried Fish Peking Duck All the sliders were good, some were just better. In future, I would just make the top three flavours. Five kinds was too much …

Game of Rhones Auckland – a review and a meaty recipe

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A couple of Saturdays ago, my friend Miss A and I found ourselves at upstairs at Shed 10 on Queens Wharf. We were dressed in Game of Thrones garb, feeling a bit foolish and ready to taste some good wine at Game of Rhones. Game of Rhones is different to other wine tasting events because of the  unofficial Game of Thrones theme and also the awesome feature being token-free. You don’t have to worry about rationing out your drink tokens, just try whatever you feel like. Each ticket holder also gets a Reidel wine glass to keep. (Just in case you’re wondering, “Reidel” rhymes with “needle”). The only thing you have to pay extra for is food which was priced well for the size and quality. For $50 we got entry, all our wine tastings and a wine glass to keep. A bargain. Game of Rhones has enjoyed sell out events in Australia for a few years but this is the first time Game of Rhones has come to Auckland. There were plenty of dressed up folk from the …

Kiwi Flavours in Mt Eden

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Last month, I was invited to Tuihana Cafe for a Zomato meetup. A mere 600 metres from my house, I was a little embarrassed that I’d never visited Tuihana Cafe before. With a clean, modern interior with gorgeous monochrome wallpaper on one wall and a huge photographic print of the owners on Piha beach, Tuihana has a modern kiwi feel…like a brand new beachside bach. The owners are Nate and Leslie: Nate is the operations guy and Leslie in charge of the food. The story We met with Nate, who guided us through their menu and business as if we were new staff getting up to speed. I’ve worked in hospo before but I’d never seen anything like this sort of training. Nate had printed a set of notes for each of us, props at the ready for our viewing pleasure and professionally photographs via his iPad to explain the dishes. Nate’s background is in IT and this geekery clearly shows with their tech integrated cafe. As someone tethered to a computer, phone or wifi …

Our Growing Edge July 2015 Intro – Party Edition

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We all have bucket lists. Whether they’re written down somewhere or kept in our heads and hearts. Our Growing Edge is the part of us that is still learning and experimenting. It’s the part that you regularly grow and improve, be it from real passion or a conscious effort. This monthly event aims to connect and inspire us to try new things and to compile a monthly snapshot of what food bloggers are getting up to. More info on the event can be found here. This month is hosted by Pia from Joie de Vivre and Cupcakes. The theme is PARTY WITH FRIENDS. I’ve got a few ideas for this month. Maybe I’ll even tick off a bucket list item. Some ideas you could try this month: Throw a 4th of July BBQ party Translate a family favourite to feed a large group Host a dinner party at home Invent some new drinks for a cocktail party Throw a make your own taco/burger/pizza party Create some make-ahead party canapés. To join, click on the submission button below:   Below are just a …

The Food Show 2015: double pass giveaway

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Thanks to The Food Show, I have a double pass to give away. Competition details at the bottom of this post. Foodie July Can you believe it’s July already? As Carli from The Enthusiastic Cook  summarised the other day, “AGHHGHGHGH How can winter suck with so many fun food events coming up?!” Graze and Feast is on this Friday, Game of Rhones on Saturday, and I’ve been invited to a Cocktail Club and Zomato’s birthday bash next week. The Food Show Another food event on my calendar is The Food Show at the end of the month. The Food Show Thursday 30 July – Sunday 2 August 2015 10am – 6pm (finishes 5pm on Sunday) ASB Showgrounds, Greenlane, Auckland. Early bird tickets start at a very reasonable $26 for adults. For more information, please visit their website here. The Food Show is an accessible expo of for food. Anything you can find in a supermarket, greengrocer, booze shop or kitchen you can find at The Food Show. Look for new and innovative products, lots of tastings and …

Graze and Feast – The Menu

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This time next week, there will be thousands of Aucklanders feasting on street food. Here’s a little preview of what they will be shoving in their pie holes… Graze and Feast will be held every Friday in July from 5pm at Shed 10 on Queen’s Wharf. Opening night is Friday 3 July. Entry is free and dishes range from $5 to $14. If you’re going, make sure you also check out my first post for everything you need to know about Graze and Feast. Vendors include: Ryan’s Kitchen, Brooklyn Dogs, Ekhaya, Dixie Barbecue, Banger Boys, Langos Hungarian Bread, Al’s Deli, Goodnight, Tiger Burger, Little Nomadic Kitchen, Love Bites, La Olivia, The Carvery, Go Go Mexican, Missoni Pizza, Siri Sri Lankan plus a few more. Follow their Facebook page for updates. “A gathering of Auckland’s best street foods including wood fired pizza, burgers, tacos, paella, bunny chow, Caesar salad, sirloin roll, pasties, American BBQ, patatas bravas, creme brûlée, ice cream, desserts.” Bunny chow? Unlike most, I actually know what bunny chow is, though I’ve never tried it. A …