This week we talk to the chefs at Highlands Park Cafe, Alexandra District Club, Royal Hotel and Centennial Court Hotel about their entries in Eat.Taste.Central 2021.

Meet the chefs behind this year’s delicious Eat.Taste.Central dishes. Discover their inspiration, and learn why you should try out their dish ahead of Peoples’ Choice voting.

Chef at Highlands Park Café Tamara Trent has entered her apple, walnut and thyme cake into the sweets and dessert section.

 “They are mini loaf sized cakes, layered through with fresh apple then topped with a walnut and thyme crumble, drizzled with maple syrup then baked until golden,” she says.

“I love baking, and as the weather was very dreary at the time I wanted something comforting and warm.

“Thyme was definitely the starting point, it’s so abundant in Central Otago, and I matched that with walnuts and apples.

“The most important thing to me as a chef is having the ability to be creative, try new things; they don’t always work but that ability means you can keep a passion for your work.”

The Royal Hotel has three entries in Eat.Taste.Central: chicken burger, lamb schnitzel and Lammermoor whisky and honey ice cream.

“It's a community feel-good flavour, all helping each other out and promoting our individual expertise.

She says the chicken burger has stayed on their menu for several years, as it is so popular.

 “The crunch and taste of the chicken is truly southern fried and the ranch dressing tops it off.

“Local herbs grown onsite, skin-on fries and brioche buns made at the European bakery are all a great match.

“We’re not allowed to take it off the menu - there would be a riot!!”

Chef Jan Rutherford says the lamb used for the lamb schnitzel is as local as it gets - Provenance Lamb is just down the road.

 “We’ve done a number of successful dishes using Provenance Lamb; we won the Supreme award in 2017, which was a thrill and great for both the Royal Hotel and for Provenance.

“This year we have designed panko crumbed schnitzel served with golden kumara and Mt Kyeburn cheese gratin, spring vegetables, charred red capsicum pesto and caramelised shallots in a sherry glaze.”

Jan says the Lammermoor whisky and honey ice cream is a home-made ice cream that helps create a fun and delicious dessert.

 The ice cream is flavoured with whisky from barrel No. 8 at the Lammermoor distillery on the Elliot’s Farm at Paerau.

“We have added Patearoa honey produced by my cousin Robert McSkimming.

“With a little crunch from the homemade honeycomb looking like gold nuggets, and the texture of the chocolate tart, it all goes so well together.”

Alexandra District Club also has multiple dishes entered: a Spring in Central Otago cheeseboard, braised venison pie and Four Seasons of Alexandra dessert.

Chef Sam Farr says respect is his vital ingredient.

 “For me, the important thing is that I have a great respect for the ingredient or product I am using, especially as it has been grown for a specific reason.

“I want to then be able to showcase it in its best form.

“It's the same when I use any meat; I don’t want to have any wastage.

“I like to use everything from nose to tail.”

Sam also believes in supporting local producers, seeing what they are coming up with, then incorporating their products into different dishes.

Sam loves to make desserts, and for this dessert dish, he was inspired to showcase Alexandra, the things found on a foraging walk and all the wonderful local foods produced in and around the town.

“After leaving, then coming back due to Covid-19, I returned with a greater appreciation for this amazing part of the country we live in.

“So, I wanted to take people through a journey of four seasons in Alexandra.

“Alexandra winters are always very smoky and I wanted this to be a factor when I designed the dish - then, I wanted that smokiness to carry through into a sweet and floral element because it reminds me of the period when all of the trees come out into flower in spring.”

The result is Sam’s personal interpretation of what the changing seasons mean in Alexandra.

Centennial Court Hotel chef Zeyad Rumaneh created a main dish of Venison Three Ways. He says he was inspired by the passion for hunting in Central Otago, with the result that game meat is considered a delicacy to many of us.

“The Three Way Venison dish showcases the versatility of venison, and how different cooking techniques can bring out the different tastes and flavours in the meat.

“All of the fresh products are sourced locally, the standouts being the wild red deer game meat sourced from the pristine Otago high country, and the incorporation of thyme which is abundant in the region.

Chef, Zeyad says he uses local ingredients in dishes to support local, smaller, family owned businesses and to help encourage locals to experience the freshness and full flavours of Central Otago products.

Make sure you get out to try one or all of these amazing dishes, designed by local chefs with local produce. It's got to be worth a visit for you, your friends and your tastebuds!

Vote for your favourite using The Central App vote all within a click of Taste, Rate, Win

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