Nourish Group restaurants team up to raise funds for KidsCan & SPCA –
Iconic restaurants from Auckland, Andiamo & Jervois Steak House alongside Wellington’s Shed 5, are teaming up with drops from wineries Grove Mill, Mt Difficulty, Martinborough Vineyard and Te Kairanga for an evening of charity donation.
One hundred percent of selected Foley Wines and fifty percent of a la carte purchases on Tuesday 28 March will go to KidsCan and SPCA in areas of New Zealand affected by Cyclone Gabrielle.
KidsCan is on a mission to get clothing and food supplies to children and their families via schools and early childhood centers in Auckland, Northland, Hawke’s Bay, and Tairāwhiti and are helping displaced families start again by providing beds, bedding, whiteware, furniture and household items. The SPCA has been working hard on the ground in Hawke’s Bay, Gisborne and Northland, rescuing displaced animals, providing lifesaving transport and shelter and much needed support to vulnerable pet-owners.
Bookings for the fundraiser are now open and can be made on the restaurants’ website at https://www.thenourishgroup.co.nz/
First Table serves new reservation system –
Foodie tech company First Table is changing the way people book dining experiences with the launch of its latest product, Regular Table.
The new product simplifies the reservation process by offering real-time availability for all participating restaurants, making it easier for diners to find and book a table, all in one place, without the First Table offer.
With Regular Tables, there’s no longer a need to search multiple websites for restaurants open in a city or call around to find a restaurant that can accommodate large parties. The platform seamlessly checks live availability and inserts bookings directly into the restaurant’s reservation system, providing an efficient and streamlined experience for both customers and restaurants.
“We understand that due to the current staffing shortage and restaurant capacity issues, finding a restaurant and making a reservation can be a time-consuming and frustrating process,” said the founder of First Table, Mat Weir.
“That’s why we’re excited to be launching this new product, which allows users to search participating restaurants’ availability and book a table, all in one place.
“First Table was able to achieve this as they have the largest number of integrations with restaurant reservation systems in New Zealand, offering a smooth and efficient booking experience.”
First Table’s integration strategy is uncommon in the industry where single connections between reservation systems and booking websites are typical, and the team is continually working on new exciting functionalities to enable real-time searching across multiple systems, streamlining the reservation process even further.
As a bonus, Regular Table bookings receive five times the amount of Status Points as First Table bookings, giving users a greater opportunity to reach Gold and Platinum status levels in the company’s national restaurant loyalty programme, Frequent Foodies™.
Launched on 1 February, the loyalty program rewards users for making bookings, sharing the platform with friends, and writing reviews. The new product is live in Queenstown, Christchurch and Wellington, with more restaurants being added daily. For more information, visit the First Table website at https://www.firsttable.co.nz/magazine/regular-table
Ready for the ultimate toastie taste test? –
Think your toasties taste top? The Great NZ Toastie Takeover is back and organizers of the annual competition are once again on the hunt for the country’s supreme toasted sandwich.
With free entry, the popular competition has gained momentum year on year, with 2022 attracting more than 180 entries and a whopping 140,000 toasts served up over the duration of the search.
Now in its sixth year, and after a big jump in entries last year, organizers Cook & Nelson and McClure’s Pickles have made the call to cap entries at 250.
As always, the competition remains open to all New Zealand eateries, from cafes, bistros and hotel eateries, to bars, pop-ups, hole-in-the-wall eateries and food trucks.
Like last year, food truck entries will be judged on a designated weekend in May with the entrant required to provide exact date, time, and location details prior to the judging weekend.
Other competition rules remain the same. Each creation must be sandwiched between two slices of bread and able to be eaten by hand if necessary. The toasted sandwich must also contain cheese – or an acceptable vegan substitute, and pickles from the McClure’s Pickles range. Everything else is up to the toastie maker’s imagination.
Each entry must be on the establishment’s menu for the full duration of the competition, during lunch hours and/or dinner hours, from Friday 14 April to 31 May 2023 inclusive. Finalists must have their toastie on the menu until 20 June 2023 inclusive.
As in previous years, each toastie will be scored using set criteria. This includes presentation, effectiveness of preparation technique, eat-ability, taste, provenance and innovation.
The People’s Choice Award will also return in 2023 giving Kiwis the power to vote for their favorite participating eatery and toastie. The eatery with the most votes from the public will take away this year’s People’s Choice Award.
Entries open today (February 28) and close on March 31. Judging will begin from April 14, with the competition finalists announced on May 31. And the supreme winner will be revealed on June 20.
Last year’s battle saw finalists hail from Auckland, Ngatea, Okere Falls (Rotorua), Ohakune, Havelock North, Palmerston North, Greytown, Nelson, Christchurch, Queenstown, Twizel and Dunedin, and encompass local eateries, rural roadside cafes, breweries, a food truck , a fish farm, a burger bar, an artisan food store and a dedicated toasted sandwich shop.
Head judge Kerry Tyack said last year’s challenge saw imaginations run wild, presenting his team of 30-plus judges with an extremely tough task in choosing the finalists and eventual winner.
“With the competition heating up and a record number of toasties served up to last year, it really feels like the humble toastie has reached the lofty heights of the great Kiwi pie, the whitebait fritter, the perfect pav and the South Island cheese roll.
“In 2023, we’re expecting even more delicious and exciting entries, with the Great New Zealand Toastie Takeover now a firm feature on the local foodie calendar and those taking part reporting a notable increase in custom.”
Chef Rich Johns from Rotorua’s Okere Falls Store and Craft Beer Garden won the hotly contested title of the country’s top toastie for 2022 and had this to say at the time.
“Winning the 2022 Great NZ Toastie Takeover has been a wild ride, going from selling 10-15 toasties a day to 60+ every day, with over 10,000 toasties sold since winning! Best of all we still love making the toastie and seeing the delight on people’s faces upon the first bite.”
To submit your own entry or view the full terms and conditions of the competition, go to the entry page on www.toastietakeover.com.
Hospo Hui scheduled for 2023 Fine Food NZ exhibition –
Fine Food New Zealand, the largest trade only event in the country for the foodservice, hospitality and food retail industries returns to Auckland on June 25-27.
From top quality food and drink ingredients to kitchen equipment and technology solutions, everything you need to upgrade your business will be on display. This year the Restaurant Association of New Zealand will host its Hospo Hui at the show.
Over 200 exhibitors, expert seminars, trade deals, networking opportunities will be available at the show.
Hospo Hui brings together leaders, thinkers and innovators to share thoughts and ideas on how to pave a sustainable hospitality industry for Aotearoa.
Through speaker and panel discussions the event will offer a valuable insight into the ideas that are shaping the hospitality industry today. By bringing together leading restaurateurs, operators, chefs and thought leaders the event will also offer a rare chance to network with the industry’s finest – and provide a forum for discussion and innovation.
Restaurant Association CEO Marisa Bidois says “This is a must attend event for anyone in our industry but also for anyone with a passion for food, drink and innovation. There will be something to offer for everyone in the food and drink industry, regardless of whether you work for a brand restaurant or cafe, bar, retailer, supplier, manufacturer, or hotel.
“The aim of this event is to bring together like-minded people from all walks of our industry, and provide a unique platform for information-sharing and inspiration.”
Rebecca Stewart, General Manager of XPO Exhibitions added “XPO Exhibitions is pleased to announce its partnership with the Restaurant Association to co-locate Fine Food New Zealand, the country’s most comprehensive trade exhibition for the hospitality, food service, and food retail industries, with the Hospo Hui, a thought-provoking and inspiring summit for the hospitality sector.
“By combining these events, we aim to provide a complete industry solution that supports learning, education and business development.
“Attendees will have the opportunity to visit over 200 exhibiting companies at Fine Food New Zealand while also engaging in the full range of Hospo Hui content – it could prove to be the most beneficial day out of the year!
“We look forward to presenting the 2023 edition of Fine Food New Zealand and the Hospo Hui, which comes at a crucial time to help address the challenges faced by the industry.”
Speakers will be announced over the coming months and tickets will be on sale later this month. Registration for FFF will also open soon at https://www.finefoodnz.co.nz/
RANZ reports positive meeting with new PM outlining immediate priorities –
The Restaurant Association, along with other members of the business community, met with the new Prime Minister, Chris Hipkins yesterday morning for the first time to discuss the impact of flooding on North Island hospitality businesses.
Marisa Bidois, CEO of the Restaurant Association of New Zealand said the meeting, which lasted about an hour was “constructive and positive” and it was clear that the Prime Minister was aware of the many challenges faced by the business community, which was encouraging to see.
The Restaurant Association raised immediate priorities with the Prime Minister:
Business communications – Ensuring that the message around staying at home is followed by strong messages around when it is ok to come out again.
Clear communications around road closures and the length of time for repairs were also discussed as vital to getting businesses back up and running again.
Business support – cash flow in the hospitality industry is severely impacted by a downturn of customers or business closure. In the case of the floods 75 per cent of respondents to a Restaurant Association survey had experienced a downturn in revenue since the floods. For an industry still recovering from the impacts of the pandemic this presents further cash flow challenges.
Reviewing planned policies – there is enormous financial pressure on businesses at the moment and reviewing some of the upcoming regulatory changes would be welcomed by businesses. Parking the minimum wage increases set for this year would go some way to supporting businesses dealing with skyrocketing costs; delaying the Fair Pay Agreements process and other policy directing impacting businesses could assist with easing some of the pressure on these businesses.
International communications – ensuring our international communities understand that New Zealand is open for business. We need more messaging calling for workers showing how great it is to work here. We are currently facing a severe skills shortage and competing with other markets for workers.
Immigration policy – Being able to access the labor needed to run our business is imperative to ongoing stability in the industry.
Other issues discussed included interruptions to the supply chain causing shortages of food, insurance contracts not covering financial downturns or damage due to natural disasters along with exponential price increases.
“The rain continued throughout January which culminated with the floods that have come at the very worst time for hospitality businesses, many of whom are still trying to recover from the effects of the pandemic,” said Marisa Bidois.
“The summer months are traditionally a bumper time for hospo, particularly the Auckland Anniversary and Waitangi weekends.
“We’ve been taking calls all week from members looking for support and targeted communication to help them work through the situation and get back and running again.”
“I’m pleased to report that the prime minister was extremely open and receptive to our suggestions and I’m looking forward to working with him and his senior ministers on the important issues facing our industry,” concluded Bidois.