INSPIRATION One Northland specialty has made it on the a la carte menu – sustainably farmed Ruakaka Kingfish. Wakanui Beef Fillet is also served a la carte with bone marrow and beef tongue, while the Duck Leg comes in lollipop form – crispy, with plum jus.
Transforming The Bunker A million dollar makeover
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The kitchen features all mod cons and necessary chef’s toys.
uring times when many restaurateurs have been clinging onto their businesses in the hope of survival, the owners of The Bunker Restaurant and Bar in Queenstown have made a bold move, more than doubling in size. As executive chef and co-owner Ben Norfolk says: “Fortune follows the brave.” He’s hoping that holds true. He and his business partner Cameron Mitchell, who sold two other venues in downtown Queenstown last year, had two options in early 2021 after a tough 2020. “We were either going to hold down the fort or invest and this opportunity came up,” says Ben. “We’ve always wanted to expand and never had the opportunity to,” he says. “It just happened to be the worst timing ever.” They took the brave step of securing double the size of their lease, extending 8 MARCH 2022 - HOSPITALITY BUSINESS
from their current Cow Lane site right through to adjacent Queenstown Mall after a former souvenir shop vacated the lease. The three-month build, which kicked off in February last year, stretched out into a seven-month project after “all sorts of hidden treasures” under the existing building. It wasn’t only the building timeframe that stretched but also the budget. An original estimate of $1 million ballooned into almost $1.6 million, including taking on the new lease space. “It’s been a massive investment,” says Ben. “We gutted the whole thing inside.” The new-look Bunker, now with two bars, opened on November 20 2021 with a huge welcome from local fans. “We launched loud and proud. Everybody seems happy and we’ve had some amazing feedback about what we’ve produced,” says Ben. However, last year it was Ben’s turn
to help design his own kitchen. He’d longed for a larger, newer one for some time, but had to make do with the cramped original version. “My excuse was always that I was cooking off of a six burner and drop stove - that’s always what I used. But now I’ve got everything,” he says. The much more spacious modern version cost at least $250,000 and features all the mod cons and necessary chef’s toys – two Combi ovens, eight burners, a chargrill, sous vide and Thermomix, to name a few. “I was so excited to finally get in there,” he says. Regulars and visitors have been delighted walking into the flash new, rustic-style interiors, and even more so when they’ve tasted the ramped up menu. “I changed the style. It’s now a bit more exciting and there’s a bit more theatre, not that stuffy, white linen, formal, fine dining feeling like this is only for special occasions,” says
