Cuisine NZ Restaurant of the Year Judge Declares Wellington Gastronomic Capital

Wellington’s fourth supreme win in the five years of Cuisine’s NZ Restaurant of the Year competition has cemented the city as New Zealand’s gastronomic capital, according to awards judge and Cuisine food editor Lauraine Jacobs.

Iconic Cuba Street establishment Logan Brown was last night named Supreme Winner of the 2009 awards, completing a culinary hat-trick for the capital. Matterhorn – also on Cuba Street – took out the title last year, while Martin Bosley’s was the 2007 winner. Café Bastille won the award in its inaugural year in 2005.

Lauraine said Wellington’s culinary community was vibrant and its success stemmed from the industry’s tight knit network.

“They all get on and they all know each other.”

The announcement came on day two of Wellington’s inaugural two-week gourmet festival, Wellington On a Plate.

Positively Wellington Tourism Chief Executive David Perks said all of the past three award winners were part of Wellington On a Plate’s central event, DINE Wellington, offering delectable set menus at irresistible prices.

“There are a further 40 restaurants involved in the event so there’s plenty on the menu and, who knows, next year’s winner could be one of them.”

Producer and farmers’ markets along the waterfront on Sundays, the award-winning Moore Wilson Fresh, gourmet walking tours and sitting between two of New Zealand’s finest wine regions, make Wellington an incredible culinary tourism destination.

“It’s definitely best you leave the diet at home when visiting Wellington, although of course being so compact and with so many natural walkways close to the city – you can always walk it off,” Mr Perks says.


Notes to editors:

1. The 2009 Wellington On a Plate is on now and runs until August 30. For more information and festival programme details visit WellingtonOnaPlate.com.

2. The Wellington On a Plate festival is a new initiative from Positively Wellington Tourism and Grow Wellington, who have established the festival to showcase the city’s food and beverage sector and develop culinary tourism in the capital.

3. The 2010 Wellington On a Plate festival will run from August 14-29.
4. Logan Brown was described by the Cuisine judges as a “temple of serious dining”. They also described the dining experience as "seamless, welcoming, and expert". The restaurant also won the Best Smart Dining in the Metropolitan category. Read more about what they had to say here.
5. Logan Brown features in the movie Separation City, currently in New Zealand cinemas and filmed primarily in Wellington.