Trans-Tasman bubble goes pop in Wellington
Not even the pop of the trans-Tasman bubble can spoil a trip to the charming NZ capital.
On level three of Wellington’s Beehive, a quirky building abuzz with political business, I’m being served a lunch that showcases New Zealand’s finest cuisine and wines. A little odd to find a fine-dining establishment open to the public in the executive wing of Parliament? In fact, it neatly captures the type of capital city Wellington is – quietly ceremonial but with a quest for creativity and the good life. And it’s all wrapped up nicely in a very walkable area.
Bellamys by Logan Brown restaurant was opened just before the first outbreak of Covid, in the rotunda-shaped Beehive, which has been either loved or loathed since British architect Sir Basil Spence sketched the Brutalist building on the back of a napkin in the 1960s (the polite term is “provided the concept”). Bellamys was historically the refreshment room for MPs but Logan Brown, a dining institution for 25 years in Wellington’s lively Cuba St district, was given free rein to welcome the public (with appropriate security checks) and as co-founder Steve Logan says, provide “quintessential Kiwi tastes and hospitality at its best”.
Head of the kitchen is cuisine wunderkind Joshua Ross, a young chef of the year who began at Logan Brown as a work-experience hand only seven years ago, cooked up a storm as sous chef and landed the Bellamys post. I’m won over by the succulent braised free-range pork belly with carrot puree, white kim chi and oyster mushrooms. Add a side of thick-cut truffle fries with Parmesan and, for the wine, a 2016 Margrain Vineyard pinot gris from nearby Martinborough.
My view is over the parliamentary precinct and takes in the National Library, which houses an exhibition of historic documents including the Treaty of Waitangi. Signed in 1840, this agreement between the British Crown and Maori chiefs, while flawed, laid the foundation of the nation – an essential point of difference between NZ’s history and our own in relation to Indigenous people.
Although known as Windy Wellington, I’ve always felt warmly about the waterfront city encircled by seismically shaped hills, reminiscent of San Francisco. On a visit late in June it’s exhilarating to be back courtesy of the trans-Tasman bubble, but trouble is brewing. A Covid-positive traveller from Sydney has arrived a few days before, the Delta variant begins its march through our part of the world and that bubble is about to burst. I will have to hurry home, but for ever so short a while I enjoy the privilege of being overseas.
I am keen to return to Te Aro, the district around Cuba St, but do so wondering how its characteristic small businesses have fared in the testing time since my last visit. It is a neighbourhood in which smart contemporary, old-style basic and grunge mix comfortably. Stroll Cuba St and sample diverse cuisine and the best coffee. Browse music stores with names like Rough Peel and Slow Boat Records, mosey around the crammed shelves of Pegasus Books or The Ferret Bookshop (“poke your nose in”), check out the Wellington Seamarket, delight in a Duck Island ice cream and dine at Floriditas, Pickle & Pie (a deli that’s so New York) or Ombra, styled on a Venetian bacaro. The good news is that Cuba St is bustling, my favourite businesses have survived and there is much that’s new.
Take, for example, boutique hotel The Intrepid on Guzhnee St close to Cuba, occupying what was once the headquarters of Cadbury. How sweet it is. Proprietors Sean Golding and Alex Cassels have converted the early-1900s building into the style of hotel they would like to stay at. The name was inspired by their belief that a hospitality business should “reward the intrepid”. With 18 guestrooms across three floors, the now quake-proofed property is in equal parts hip, industrial chic and heritage with a sense of humour, but never too cool for school. From showbiz globes glowing around the awning to taxidermied birds perched above reception and a shop selling a cabinet of curiosities, this property promises theatre. Banish all thoughts of the last time stuffed creatures and lodgings came together: the receptionist is not Norman Bates, this is no Psycho motel and you can shower in safety.
My guestroom has stripped-back touches in a painted brick wall and exposed electrical cords. With bottle green carpets, matching tiles in the bathroom and separate toilet, gold bedhead with ash grey linen, and peach armchairs, the effect is cocoon-like. Adjust the lighting (easily) to suit the mood. There’s a smart TV, free Wi-Fi, custom rug and artwork, complimentary snacks and a baked treat outside the door in the morning. Downstairs, a groovy bar, The Puffin, with green velvet booths, a chandelier and more of those stuffed birds, is popular until the small hours.
The most exciting “new” event in Wellington is an exhibition of Surrealist Art at Te Papa, the Museum of New Zealand, which also houses the national art collection in a revamped space. The show is a dream gathering of more than 180 works from Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam and features masterpieces by Salvador Dali, Rene Magritte, Man Ray, Max Ernst, Eileen Agar and Marcel Duchamp. The pity is the exhibition closes at the end of October before moving to Seoul in South Korea so it is unlikely Australian visitors will be back in time. For those crazy about Surrealism, created in a shattered world after the insanity of the “Great” War, the exhibition catalogue is splendid and available online from Te Papa Store.
One reflection as I await departure is how interchangeable the Maori name Aotearoa (“long white cloud”) has become with “New Zealand” in everyday use. It’s like we have a whole new neighbour to discover.
In the know
Wellington is a three- to four-hour flight from east coast capitals when travel resumes and is serviced by Qantas and Air New Zealand.
Stays at The Intrepid Hotel from $NZ280 ($265) a night.
More to the story
We may not be the hippest group but we’re the happiest (or will be soon) as my small group embarks on an early evening Cocktail Tour conducted by Food & Spice Odyssey. Our guide is Jon Salter, who has worked in food and beverage for 35 years on both sides of the Tasman, and knows every laneway to dart down or stairs to climb in pursuit of Wellington’s hideaway bars. We start at Dragonfly in Courtney Place, the entertainment district; it’s smart Asian in decor with a courtyard. Two cocktails on, we move to Crumpet, an elegant place adjacent to the Opera House, which has a Rolodex of recipes and a “flavour wheel” inviting guests to “pick a few flavours, choose a spirit and whether you’d like something tall or short, citrusy, creamy or downright boozy”, then await a delicious surprise.
Next stop is Hanging Ditch in the Hannah’s Laneway precinct built in an old shoe factory, where bottles hang from the ceiling and Tim Burton films inspire the drinks menu. My favourite haunt is opposite my hotel, The Intrepid. Night Flower’s street sign is discreet to the point of invisible; it’s up stark stairs, but the final door reveals a space that is sophistication plus.
We’ve had a fine time, but I’m determined to make dinner at Amok, in Mt Victoria, a much-talked-about bistro newly opened by Thom Millott and Natasha Piper, bright lights on the Australian cuisine scene who have returned home to NZ. Gnocchi with clams wraps it all up.
Graham Erbacher was a guest of WellingtonNZ.