we are on an epic absolutely massive Northland food adventure this is the fifth video out of
five we're making so it's a five part series just all about the incredible food all over Northland
and what a place to start this one on a wharf on the Hokianga Harbour we've come down the Twin
Coast Discovery highway so we're heading down the west coast today and this is a special part
of the world there's some beautiful scenery some great food I mean tonight we are staying
at a very old super historic Villa we're going to be eating flounder directly from
the Hokianga Harbour which is what I am standing over right now and there's heaps more we're going
to head south through the Waipoua Forest we're just going to have a stack of good food we're
going to show you this region the great food there is check out the other videos
because this has been a massive series that we've filmed all over Northland we've had a
ball but we can't wait to get into today's one I'm gonna check out the end of the wharf first
I'm Thomas and I'm Sheena and we're Chasing a Plate we hope you're hungry let's eat
Thomas mentioned we're having pātaki or flounder for dinner tonight this is where we're having
dinner and this is also where we're staying for the night so this is the historic Kohukohu Villa
it is an amazing property it's been around for over 160 years it actually used to be
the offices for the Kauri Mill which was across the road it is really neat inside let's head in
look at the room that we're sleeping in tonight it is beautiful so the couple who own this Villa
have painstakingly restored and renovated this whole place and it is stunning so you know some
of the floorboards are the original floorboards so some of the oldest floorboards in Aotearoa
I can't wait to sleep on this
look at this place it's neat to explore because there's so many little nooks and crannies and interesting rooms
I'm in the sort of the guest lounge room now so you can just chill out in here on the sofas
it's so pretty and so this is a BnB so you get breakfast and a bed and breakfast
but you can do dinner here as well we're having dinner here cooked by our hosts Dee and Sean
and this is where we get the flounder so it's all lots of little special elements to being here
and it's such a neat place to be all this wood that's all around is just so ancient there's so much history in this house
and I can't wait for the flounder
look at this beautiful dining area so we're all set up we've got candlesticks on the table
and now we're going to take a quick peek in the kitchen and see what's cooking up
these are our hosts Dee and Sean and they are cooking us up a feast what are we having?
we're having whole flounder served on a bed of greens with chargrilled
broccoli and miso dressing and I'm accompanying it with my lemon
risotto my preserved lemon risotto homemade preserved lemons
fabulous
I'm so excited for this flounder tell me about it
well because we've got a local fisherman here there's only two commercial fishermen on the Harbour
we feel really confident when we're bringing the flounder out that it's a sustainable fishery
and that our guests are getting also what is rumored to be the best flounder
so even if you go to Kaipara and you're getting flounder there it's not the same as the flounder that we get here
and probably our best part of this is that Craig brings the flounder to us here so it's a knock on the door
fish handed over we cook it and then we take it to your table
I love that and flounder is such a must eat when you're in the area
how good is this it's absolute bliss I've got home-cooked meal right in
front of me the fish has come from the Hokianga so the water which
is 100 metres away we're staying in this stunning Villa hosted by two people who
are full of joy full of welcome it just honestly couldn't get better
holy moly cooked to perfection it melted in my mouth the yellow belly flounder is specific
to the Hokianga it is so good if you've never had flounder before it's a really light delicate fish
cooked in butter with a bit of lemon over the top oh my goodness served with this preserved lemon
risotto and then this broccoli I'm gonna try some of this risotto
mmm creamy tangy from that lemon
that is my favourite way to eat broccoli charred with this beautiful miso dressing over the top
sesame seeds, almonds it's just this this is like a dream meal in a dream setting we're so lucky
you have to come here it's an incredible place an incredible experience
it's so special to be eating in so much history too sort of first records of this
house so it's a bit murky about when it truly was first built this house but looking at sort
of 1840 which for Aotearoa is old that's so much history here and I'm loving it it's
really special with fantastic hosts great food from just down the road special place
what a stay in a stunning location great hosts we've just had the most epic breakfast
back on the road like look there's the harbour right down there is where
that fish came from last night come stay here it's so cool
the food journey continues and we're sticking in and around the Hokianga Harbour to start off
today but to do that we have to cross the harbour and there's no bridges so you get
to go on the car ferry so we're going from the north side of the Hokianga to the south side
we've popped off the ferry and we've landed in Rawene
I love this township it's super charming and this whole region is so rich in history
so you know they say that the Hokianga is where Kupe the great Polynesian Explorer first landed when he came from the Pacific
with the first Māori explorers and this region in Northland
was the heart of Northland's timber industry back in the 1800s so there's so much to explore and learn about
but first morning tea we're going to the classic Boatshed Cafe for maybe a sweet treat and coffee
The Boatshed Cafe truly lives up to its name hanging over the water so cool watching the car
ferry tootle back over to the other side this is a very peaceful environment listen to this
calm all I can hear is the mullet jumping in the ocean in front of me
we ordered a slice of Hummingbird cake so banana and pineapple I've got my cuppa we're sitting out over the water
I love banana cake it's absolutely delicious we're having so much fun on this food roadie so this is
a massive five-part series traveling all around Northland and exploring it via food and drink
it is my kind of trip so there are a bunch of Northland food and drink itineraries they're
all linked in the description below so you can check them out yourself and create your
own road trip but exploring this region which I reckon is so underrated when it comes to
food people don't even realise the magic that there is here and it is so neat exploring it
through the food and drink I am having the time of my life
while this is a huge food journey it would be remiss of us to ignore the beauty of Northland
the scenery is incredible we're at the heads to the Hokianga Harbour now so where
we stayed and the cafe we've been to is up the harbour out that way the
sea is raging this huge spectacular swell coming in it's really stunning
from ocean to forest we're standing in the midst of the Waipoua forest gazing at Tane Mahuta the
largest living kauri tree in New Zealand he's absolutely magnificent and he is ginormous
we've arrived in Dargaville for a late lunch Dargaville is the kūmara capital of New Zealand
we're heading to Matich's this is a place that I've wanted to visit for so
long it's a fish shop we're heading in for lunch I can't wait to see what they've got
look at this place it's great it is a rare beast this restaurant it's got this super retro feel
it's held on to its roots it feels like you're stepping back in time which is definitely not a
bad thing it's so neat I love the setup in here and I cannot wait to have this so this is it's fish and
chips basically but it's dine in which is rare as well so super retro dine in amazing fish and chips
I'm so pumped for this meal I've just watched Ebony put my fresh pātiki or flounder from the
Kaipara Harbour into the hot oil I am so excited and I'm getting snapper so local Northland snapper so
it's turning into a bit of a seafood feast video because Sheena's back on the flounder
just like we had last night but cooked a totally different way we're getting kūmara fries because
Dargaville like Sheena said kūmara capital of New Zealand so that's sweet potato oh fish and chips
to wash down our fncs we ordered a couple of chocolate thick shakes
Shon's just putting the thick shakes on my mouth is watering
fish and chip restaurants like this are a dying breed and I have wanted to visit
Matich's for so long this fish and chip shop has been here since 1930 so it is an icon
I ordered the last flounder that they had I know I had it last night but I just couldn't
resist I have to make the most of being on the west coast I've got deep fried
flounder kūmara chips salad cup Thomas went for fish and chips with snapper and then
we've got fry bread and raw fish salad and a couple of chocolate thick shakes
mm-hmm
I'm so happy right now perfectly cooked melt in
your mouth super crispy batter the fish is so fresh homemade tartare sauce too
the kūmara just tastes better in Dargaville it's really sweet it's got a little crust
on the outside but soft sweet on the inside mmm
raw fish salad fry bread match made in heaven
yum super coconut-y the the raw fish salad so there's snapper in
there tāmure that's Northland snapper I really like what they're doing here
because a lot of it is local where possible there's a wet fish section
so you can buy fish here as well smoked fish again it's local smoked fish
what a place this type of restaurant is super rare now as we keep saying and these places need to survive
they need to be a thing and I love that this is here in Northland that you can come here
and have an experience like this and it's delicious
look at that generous chunks of lemon that's what you want when you have fish and chips this is snapper as well again local
delicious yum fish and chips is a winner and this place is a winner that is great
what a way to finish up what has been a huge filming series for us we've basically done a
big loop of the entirety of Northland right up the east coast looped back around down the
west coast and remember these are all itineraries that you can do the same as us but as we've said
many times in the videos we're tip of the iceberg for the places we've ticked off there are so many
great places to to stop and eat producers wineries cheese places fish and chip shops the list goes
on so check out the links down below because it is an absolute joy to do one or all like we have of
these itineraries they are all great there is so much cool stuff to discover the landscape the food
the people everything about it is epic so watch the rest of the videos if you haven't thank you
for watching this one and I cannot wait to finish this and let's not forget the thick shake hey
delicious
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