New Zealand's best? Café lovers – have your say!
Love your local café? Now’s your chance to tell New Zealand about it!
Public voting has opened in the inaugural New Zealand Café of the Year competition to determine which deserves the title of the country’s best.
Hundreds of cafés from Invercargill to Kaitaia have already entered the competition and now it’s time for Kiwi café lovers to have their say.
Customers who vote for their favourite café go in the draw to win a share of $10,000 worth of prizes, including the grand prize of $5,000 to spend in their favourite café.
Cafés can enter the competition up until October 18 and to be eligible need to feature a quintessentially Kiwi dish on their menu incorporating both baked beans and bacon.
Public voting via text, online and Facebook closes on October 28. Once the votes are counted the top three cafés from five key regions go through for judging. They are scored by an expert panel based on appearance, atmosphere, service, meals and overall experience, and a winner will be chosen.
The judging panel includes some of New Zealand’s top food critics and chefs supported by The Restaurant Association of New Zealand.
Chief Executive of Restaurant Association Marisa Bidois says it’s great to see such a variety of entries representing every type of café.
“From country eateries serving home cooked fare to sophisticated city establishments with the best baristas in the business, they are all keen to show what sets them apart.
“We have cafés in Urenui, Ahipara, Sanson, Oamaru, Greymouth, Gore, Raetihi, Katikati and a myriad of places in between, including all of the big cities.
“Café culture has flourished here since the flat white made its first appearance two decades ago. Milk bars, tea rooms and coffee houses have evolved into popular places where people don’t just meet anymore; they come to drink good coffee, read the newspaper, eat good food and even do business.
“There are a lot of passionate café-goers out there and their local café plays an important role in their lives. We’re expecting vigorous voting and regional rivalry between now and the end of October.”
The public can vote in several ways from September 1. Text your favoured café’s unique code to 4249, scan the QR code inside the café, or vote online via the competition Facebook page www.facebook.com/nzcafeoftheyear or the competition website www.nzcafeoftheyear.co.nz.
The winning café will be announced in November and its baked beans and bacon dish will feature for a week on Wattie’s Food in a Minute.
The competition is supported by iconic food brands Kiwi Bacon and Wattie’s, together with the Restaurant Association of New Zealand.
BACKGROUNDER
NZ Café of the Year
Café culture
New Zealand’s café culture is an integral part of New Zealand life.
It all began in the 1930s with the arrival of the milk bar, followed closely by coffee houses in the 1950s. After a period of decline in the 1960s and 70s, the café scene has grown considerably during the past 20 years.
Milk bars emerged during the prohibition era in America. Their popularity in New Zealand was boosted by the stationing of American troops here during the Second World War. At that time milkshake machines were far more common than espresso machines. In fact, in New Zealand 'coffee' usually meant 'coffee essence' - liquid coffee and chicory served in hot milk.
The 1950s saw the emergence of the modern café in our cities, part of a global phenomenon influenced by increased immigration.
Coffee houses sprung up everywhere, notably Harry Seresin's Coffee Gallery, Monde Marie, Suzy's Coffee Lounge and the International Coffee Lounge (run by local celebrity Carmen) in Wellington.
In Auckland it was the fashionable tearooms at Farmers, John Courts, Milne & Choyce and Dejeuner coffee lounge in Queen Street where New Zealanders flocked for a special treat or sometimes to just “see, and be seen”.
The new era of coffee houses opened during the day and sometimes remained open through to the early hours of the morning - a new experience for New Zealanders. They were fashionable places and often a focal point for writers, poets, artists, musicians and academics.
In the past two decades, we have seen something of a coffee revolution which has seen growth in new cafés and coffee roasting outlets around the country.
Coffee connoisseurs will go a long way to get their daily caffeine fix and favoured cafes can be anything from a hole in the wall, a mobile truck or a slick stylish venues serving gourmet cuisine.