As you drive through the golden plains of North Canterbury, passing one picturesque rural scene after another, it’s not hard to see it’s a land of plenty. The dry, big-sky landscape is punctuated by rolling vineyards, lush orchards and verdant pastures and at times the cattle and sheep look almost painted on to the rugged, mountainous backdrop. This part of the South Island is an abundant food basket, and while possibly best known for its agricultural diversity you’ll also find plenty of dairy, fruit and vegetable production, and viticulture. Excitingly, it is now also home to some niche products such as hemp, seeds, honey, olives, nuts and truffles.

The North Course is an annual competition run by Made North Canterbury to celebrate all that’s good to eat in this beautiful part of the South Island. Made North Canterbury is a food and beverage provenance brand unifying local producers: an initiative of Enterprise North Canterbury, it builds a sense of community, connection and support for local producers.

In November 2023, The North Course connected local growers with local eateries who competed to showcase a regionally inspired dish for a month with winners chosen by public vote.

All four of the top dishes were very different in style, but each establishment has a story not only of connection to local producers but also to the people in the surrounding communities. madenorthcanterbury.co.nz

Black Beech Wine & Pizza Bar

The tiny town of Oxford is a far cry from the bright lights of Melbourne where Peter and Dani Rielly lived for many years, but all the big-city fun is no use if you’re an ocean away from those you love. The arrival of grandkids brought a decision to move back to New Zealand and, despite having no previous hospitality experience, the couple bought the local wine bar and made it their own. “We always loved entertaining at home and this has always felt just like an extension of that,” says Dani. And that’s pretty plain to see; the couple has created a place where people feel like they’re in someone’s living room and everyone is greeted like a long-lost friend. It’s not only a place to grab a drink and a bite, but to enjoy a quiz night, wine tasting or even a little shimmy on the dance floor when there’s live music. It’s hardly surprising they had the most votes by a huge majority, as they are definitely surrounded by a very loyal Black Beech ‘family’.

Unsurprisingly, their entry was a pizza – named ‘View Hill’ after a local landmark. It was topped with smoked lamb, kalamata olives, caramelised onions, mozzarella cheese and sundried tomatoes. The smoked lamb was from Shane at Oxford Butchery, right across the road from the bar, where this third-generation butcher’s family has provided meat to the local community for decades (the lamb comes from his cousin’s farm up the road). Even better, Shane loves to belt out a crowd-pleaser and pops across on live music night to front the band at Black Beech – yep, the singing butcher! The rich, deep olives were local, too, sourced from popular Terrace Edge Wines, which also produces olive oil on its incredible terraced property overlooking the Waipara River. blackbeechbar.com

Brew Moon

When you walk through the outside gate at Brew Moon you just know it’s one of those places where people come to feel happy. An easy stop on the road from Christchurch to Hanmer Springs, the place is always heaving with locals and visitors propped up at wooden tables for a pint, a flight or to wrap their mouths around a legendary smashburger. It’s just not possible to be sad in such a welcoming space with great beer and burgers that the chef claims are “the best in Canterbury” (big claim, but to be fair they are very good).

When we think about the start of craft brewing in New Zealand, we often recall pioneers such as Emerson’s, but Brew Moon was right there from those early days, too. After seeing the scene in the States, Kieran McCauley and Belinda Gould took the plunge on the state highway near Amberley back in 2002 and started brewing their first pale ale. Belinda (an ex-winemaker) took over as brewer in 2011, producing wildly popular brews until she hung up her tools a couple of years ago.

While Brew Moon has always been about the beer – and some pizza – the recent addition of Maty Johns to the ownership (a talented chef who has worked extensively in Toronto and Melbourne and is executive chef for the popular asado barbecue catering outfit, Food by Fire) has meant a cult following for their casual food with maximum flavour.

Chef Jack McMillan’s entry for the North Course was no exception to this formula: a Hallfield wagyu hot dog with Wild Child Ferments Krautido, horseradish mayo and kasundi ketchup in a grilled potato bun was a fun take on German currywurst and was definitely one bougie dog. The wagyu comes from Ohoka, where horse trainer Tom Bagrie has started breeding these famed cattle, and the Wild Child Ferments kraut added a great extra dimension. Produced in Greta Valley, Olivia Barnes’ kraut and kimchi blends are making waves, known for their punchy flavours and textures. brewmoon.co.nz

No. 31 Restaurant & Bar

When you move to the South Island of New Zealand from the exotic climes of India, it’s hard to believe a small town in North Canterbury could remind you so much of where you came from. But Vivek Rawat said the first time he set foot in Hanmer Springs he felt like he was home – maybe it’s because his home of Uttarakhand in the Himalayas similarly has mountains that soothe his soul.

After studying hotel management and cheffing all over New Zealand, Vivek knew his dream was to open his own place in this North Canterbury alpine village that kept calling him back. So, last year when No. 31 Restaurant in Hanmer came on the market he knew it was meant to be. Vivek and his partner Paula have had pretty extensive experience including hotels such as Four Points by Sheraton and restaurants such as Botswana Butchery and Peter Gordon’s Homeland, so they felt confident they could maintain the fine-dining standard people had come to expect from this local favourite for more than a decade. “We were definitely nervous at first, but people seem to like what we’re doing and we are just loving discovering more and more local producers. It’s good when they are so close and we can get such fresh and good-quality supply,” says Vivek. “We love the local wines and beer and Harris Farms amazing lamb from Cheviot. Hungry Goat Organics cheese is so good, too, and we are fascinated with what Nick Chapman is doing to grow microgreens at Aquaponics [using fish and plants to create a sustainable recirculating ecosystem].”

No. 31 Restaurant’s dish was lamb rump from Harris Farms served with cauliflower and garlic purée, beetroot, seasonal greens from Aquaponics, dukkah and charcoal tuile topped with chimichurri sauce and pomegranate seeds. restaurant-no31.nz

The Office

Considering Lisa Willetts definitely wasn’t keen on a move to Waikuku 10 years ago, it’s ironic she now finds herself at the centre of a hub where people love to congregate for good food and good company. If you’d asked her and her partner whether they ever imagined themselves buying a 140-year-old school in the middle of nowhere and developing a café and retail space they probably would have laughed at you. But it’s funny what happens when opportunity knocks. Lisa says, “When we moved here, the school was actually still operational, in fact one of my children went to school here! But in the end they merged it with Pegasus Bay and the buildings went on the market.”

With a background in retail and food it was not hard to envisage the space as a great complex and looking at it now it feels like it’s always been there. During the day you’ll see people relaxing over a coffee, delicious home baking or menu food at outdoor tables shaded by white umbrellas, or browsing at one of the stores housed in ex-classrooms at The Old School Collective. “Ironically I love it here now. North Canterbury is totally where it’s at,” Lisa laughs. And she can’t rave enough about the local suppliers. “We have everything here and the quality is just so good.”

The team didn’t want to overshadow the natural flavours in its entry with too much fussing. And the dish was definitely a testament to letting good ingredients shine – simple grilled asparagus and goat’s cheese on toast becomes a thing of beauty when the toast is Rachel Scott’s legendary sourdough and the chèvre is made by Little Farm Goat Dairy. The cheese and succulent asparagus from Behind the Hedge was just perfect with caramelised walnuts and microgreens from Fernside Microfarm. And the last bit of magic? A luxurious dollop of Kings Truffles exquisite truffle butter. Jax Lee-May has been supplying truffles for the last 10 years to delighted businesses around the country and her truffle butter and salt have been a wonderful way to make the joy of Kings flavour-bomb product last past the end of the season. osc.nz/the-office-cafe-1