WAIKATO FOOD INC AWARDS WORDS VICKI RAVLICH-HORAN | IMAGES ARIE STOKES
It was a Monday night in October and Sky City Hamilton was abuzz as over 300 people came together to celebrate the first Waikato Food Inc Awards. Celebration was the word of the night as those in the industry got to come together and congratulate not just the winners but the industry as a whole. There is no denying 2020 has been a challenging year. “This is why,” Waikato Food Inc Chairperson Sam Immers says, “it is so important for us to continue to champion local while supporting and celebrating our food and hospitality industry.” The industry voted awards included 11 categories from best barista to rising star, local food hero to best restaurant. WFI’s Projects and Event Manager Julia Clarke was in charge of pulling the awards night off with just six weeks’ notice and says, “We are so proud of the Waikato hospitality community, not just how resilient they have been this year but how generous they are. Just twenty-four hours after putting the call out for sponsors, we had filled every category and knew we could pull this off.” And pull it off they did! Sky City Hamilton played host while food trucks from the Food Truck League provided the food. MC’s Camille and Stu from The Breeze entertained and kept the crowd in suspense as the awards were announced before a DJ kicked off and the party really got started.
THE WINNERS Bidfood Best Restaurant – Mr Pickles Finalists were Palate, Smith & McKenzie, and Hayes Common Bidfresh Top Chef – Andrew Clarke (Camarosa) Finalists were Logan Murray (Thyme Square), Ashleigh Brodie (Grey St Kitchen) Ben Ensor (Smith & McKenzie), and Mat McLean (Palate) Hospitality NZ Best Casual Eatery – Grey Street Kitchen Finalists were Good George, Breaking Bread Café, Cinnamon, Camarosa Volare People’s Choice – The Keg Room Finalists were LOLA, Cinnamon, Breaking Bread Café, and Sugar Bowl POS Pro Best Cheap Eats – The Chilli House Finalists were Garden Place Noodle House, Japanese Donburi-Ya Green Valley Best Barista – Dove Chen (Grey St Kitchen) Finalists were Ella Smith (Mr Pickles), Jassjer Clayton (Camarosa), Corey Sehnert (Hayes Common)
Nourish Magazine Best Rep – Courtney Keating (Southern Hospitality) Finalists were Katrina Frost (Bidfresh), Maclain Swanson (Good George), Hamish Pedley (Burns & Ferrall) Hamilton Beer & Wine Co Top Barkeep – Alex Hudson (Wonder Horse) Finalists were Aynslee Rodger (Good Union), Craig Loveday (Alpino), Jack Thompson (Smith & McKenzie) Bidfresh Rising Star – Daniel Rich (Mr Pickles) Finalists were Brooke Walls (Good Neighbour), Matthew O’Brien (Hayes Common), Harriet Boucher Grey St Kitchen Burns & Ferrall Front of House Superstar – Clara Weinzettl (Mr Pickles) Finalists were Leslie Kairau (Good George), Christie Burborough (Good Neighbour) Good George Local Hero – Mathew Pedley (Mr Pickles) Finalists were Gus Tissink (Bidfresh), Vicki Ravlich-Horan (Nourish Magazine)
A not for profit organisation, Waikato Food Inc aims to raise the profile and calibre of food and hospitality in the Waikato. Behind major local events like Feast Waikato (back in April 2021), Meyer Cheese Melt Challenge, Matariki Challenge, and FermentFest, they are also the team behind Waikato Foodies, putting on great experiences like the recent Peta Mathias lunches and dinner as well as sharing all the foodie news in the region. Check out their new website www.waikatofoodinc.com
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