My farewell to Hawkes Bay was one last visit to a winery, Elephant Hill Winery & Restaurant, and the perfect ending to a perfect food and wine experience in New Zealand. An elephant guards the entrance of Elephant Hill Winery Visitors to Elephant Hill Winery are welcomed by the oversized elephant statue overseeing the sweeping views over the vineyard and the Pacific Ocean on the horizon. Located on the Te Awanga coast Hawkes Bay, this New Zealand winery allows you to indulge your senses from the terrace of the Elephant Hill Restaurant. Water features surround the restaurant, where you can sit among the vines and breathe in the ocean view. It was a beautiful spring day in Hawkes Bay when I sat down on the terrace. My first sip was a surprisingly refreshing Elephant Hill Rose, lighter than Id expected, almost sparkling wine-esque. Baked whitefish at Elephant Hill Restaurant The perfect pairing was our starter: a selection of home-made breads, marinated olives, balsamic ...[more »]

Hey, Cupid make sure you pick up the check. Now here’s something romantic: You’ve just finished a delicious Valentine’s Day dinner with that special someone, you’re both a little giddy perhaps from that last glass of wine, perhaps from love and neither of you notice the check when it comes to the table because you’re too busy gazing into each others eyes. And then your date says, “How about we split this?” According to Zagat, which just released the results from its first ever Valentines Day Dining Survey, it doesn’t happen very often: Only 11% of diners are sharing the check that night; 46% of the mostly female respondents say their date is picking up the bill. Not that there’s ever anything wrong with paying your own way, but it seems on February 14th Cupid doesn’t do dutch. Here are some other interesting morsels from the survey, that queried some 600 Valentine’s Day diners: Forget doing dishes: 44% ...[more »]

Located in the charming waterfront village of Ahuriri, New Zealand, Milk & Honey is an old-fashioned,comfort cooking restaurant serving, breakfast, lunch and dinner. Breakfast at the waterfront Milk & Honey near Crown Hotel in Napier. Small villages dot New Zealands landscape, and thats part of the charm when you find these small towns with homey restaurants where locals gather, like the Milk & Honey. Down the road from the Port of Napier, Milk & Honey is located within the Crown Hotelbuilding. After a good nights sleep at the Crown Hotel, it was just a few minutes’ walk for a convenient and tasty breakfast at Milk & Honey. Milk & Honey opened in November 2008 in the historic seaside village of Ahuriri. Even on Monday morning, its a bustling center of locals grabbing a cup of coffee or meeting for breakfast. And why not with the amazing waterfront view facing north across Hawkes Bay? Our breakfast began with my favorite Kiwi flat white...[more »]