Let’s be real, eating is the best part of traveling. Actually, eating is the best part of life in general, but travel opens up lots of opportunities to try new and different foods. Some of them are great, others less so (don’t ever make me eat Argentine pizza again pleeeease). Some are worth eating just for bragging rights–check out my contribution to A Southern Gypsy’s “bizarre food” post. (Or, if you can’t be bothered to click the link, I ate cow brains and they were yummy. Ha, now you’re going to click the link.)

Here are eight delicious and interesting foods to try in New Zealand. A few of these I’m really excited about. A few…I’m, well, not excited about, but you should still try them because they’re just that Kiwi and besides, trying new things–ISN’T THAT WHAT TRAVELING IS ALL ABOUT? Right. Glad we’re on the same page.

1 Meat Pies —

I had a lot of romantic notions about meat pies, largely fueled by reading Harry Potter a billion times over the course of my childhood. If Harry breakfasted on steak and kidney pie, surely it would be nothing short of magical. One of the first things I bought in New Zealand was a mince pie and DAMN did I feel sophisticated, never mind that I had only just learned that mince is not a fruit. The problem? Meat pies fall WAY short of my expectations. Instead of being filled with chunks of juicy meat they are filled with what can only be described gravy-ish goop. I’ve never been a huge fan of gravy, so this was a bit disappointing.

2 Ginger Beer —

We have ginger beer in the States but it’s not alcoholic which makes it pretty lame compared to the Kiwi version. There are a couple different breweries making ginger beers or gingery-ish beers here in NZ but so far my favorite is the classic Grizzly Beer by Boundary Road Brewery. I like ginger and I love beer so, in my eyes, Grizzly Beer can do no wrong.

3Fish and Chips —

I don’t think I’ll ever love fish n’ chips. Maybe if they smothered the fish with Siracha or green chile, I’d get more excited, but plain ol’ battered fish is (sorry, New Zealand, don’t hate me) really, really bland. That said, I am totally in love with the way Kiwis serve their fish and chips, wrapped up in several sheets of recycled newspaper. Can you imagine a restaurant doing this in the US? Surely someone would have a cow about the carcinogenic effects of eating newspaper ink. (New Zealanders, however, are logical enough to realize that the carcinogenic effects of deep fat fryers far outweigh any risk caused by newsprint.) And there is something truly special about unwrapping the folds of greasy newspaper and stuffing your face with chips (which, by the way, are French fries in case anyone is still lost here). It is impossible to maintain any dignity while eating chips out of a pile of newspaper on your lap, and that, my friends, is a glorious thing.

4 Real Fruit Ice Cream —

This is exactly what it sounds like. Frozen fruit put into a gigantic blender/soft serve machine with ice cream. So simple, yet so brilliant. Why is this just a Kiwi thing? Why aren’t people doing this EVERYWHERE?!? It’s actually that good. (Editor’s note: we recently found out that Canadians have real fruit ice cream. Damnit, USA, get up to speed!)

5Sausage Rolls —

Sausage rolls are a sort of cousin to meat pies, except, instead of hating them, I can’t get enough. Flaky pastry, wrapped around salty sausage. Seriously, why bother with the meat pies? If I gain a million pounds in New Zealand, this is why.

6 Flat Whites —

Espresso coffee with steamed milk. Yum. I actually wrote an entire post about how awesome New Zealand is at coffee, so you should meander over here and check it out.

7 Brunch —

Yes, obviously, we have brunch in the states too, but New Zealand REALLY has brunch. Think Eggs Benedict (eggs benny to a Kiwi) with smoked salmon and capers. Of course, regular brunch-eating is WAY out of my budget (it would probably quadruple what I usually spend on food), but…every once in a while…it is irresistible after all…

8 Seafood —

Obviously, New Zealand has a bit of coastline so it shouldn’t be a surprise that the country has superb seafood. There is actually a town somewhere on the South Island that calls itself the “Green-Lipped Mussel Capital of the World.” (Which makes you wonder if there is a “Normal Mussel Capital of the World” out there somewhere.”) Eating seafood in restaurants is, like, brunch, rather far out of the budget. But luckily we got to eat some oysters on the half shell…off the beach… Nommmmm.

So, now you at least have a gastronomic starting point for your trip to NZ. I’m sure I missed a lot by being too poor to eat in real restaurants, but maybe next time I’m in the country I’ll have more discretionary funding and eat green-lipped mussels all-day every-day. Also, I know I left off hokey pokey and that was intentional because I still have no idea what it is. If some Kiwi would like to get involved in the comments section and explain, that would be great.

Let me know what I missed and share your experiences eating in New Zealand!

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