Little bar up for big award

A tiny Warkworth live music venue has made it through to the national finals of Hospitality New Zealand’s 2023 annual Awards for Excellence.

The Tahi Bar + Kitchen in Neville Street is one of just five finalists in the Best Late Night /Live Entertainment Venue section, which is one of more than 25 awards categories for the hotel, restaurant, café and bar industry that will be announced on June 28.

Rachel Cooney, who owns the Tahi Bar with partner Gareth Hedges, says they were blown away when they heard they were in the finals.

“There are only five finalists from all over New Zealand and we’re one of them!” she says. “We’re up against some real big boys with huge capacity, like Danny Doolan’s in Auckland. We can only fit 100 people. It’s amazing; I’ve hardly slept since we got the news.”

Live music has been at the heart of the Tahi’s offering since Cooney and Hedges took over in 2019, not least since Hedges is a keen musician himself – he’s currently the front man for house band The Tahi Brothers.

“We have anything and everything – we’ve had punk, classical, jazz, the Warkworth Big Band, a rockabilly showband, ska, blues, you name it,” Cooney says. “There’s live music on most Saturdays and Sundays.”

The Tahi Bar + Kitchen is also up for a People’s Choice award, votes for which can be cast online at www.hospitality.org.nz/s/ awards