New Zealand boasts some of the best chefs in the globe with their creative food, enthusiasm for using native fruits, and skill in food plating with outstanding flavour. From Michelin-starred legends to new food celebrities, the chefs range and have created their mark on New Zealand’s food scene. Award-winning masters, up-and-coming food celebrities, or fine-dining legends, the following are some of the top chefs who are making their mark on the nation’s food scene.
Josh Emett: The Culinary Icon
A New Zealand culinary enthusiast by the name of Josh Emett has gained a reputation on the strength of his fine-dining credentials and Michelin-star kitchen stint across the world. Having prepared alongside the legendary Gordon Ramsay, Emett has come back to New Zealand with international culinary expectations. The brain behind Auckland hotspot Onslow, where he presents a refined but unpretentious dish that respects the best local produce, he is the one man who delivers it all with flair and finesse.
What’s Unique
- Global outlook through Michelin-starred restaurants.
- Owner of Onslow, one of Auckland’s highest-rated restaurants.
- Passion for using high-quality, locally sourced food.
Michael Meredith: The Culinary Prodigy of Gourmet Delicacies
Celebrated for his cutting-edge and creative style with food, Michael Meredith has led the way with New Zealand fine dining innovation. His former, highly acclaimed eatery Merediths, a number-one-rated restaurant where culinary creativity had no constraints, has closed. Still, he currently leads the stylish fine eatery Mr. Morris, a fine Auckland, Britomart eatery that pairs modern tastes with impeccable technique. Meredith also cares about philanthropic causes, giving outside the kitchen as much as he gives inside the kitchen.
What’s Special
- Designer of Meredith’s, one of New Zealand’s top restaurants.
- Unique and creative food with an international flavour.
- Sustenance activist who promotes community food projects.
Monique Fiso, the Pioneering New Zealand Chef
Placing traditional Māori cuisine on the map, Monique Fiso has led the way in using indigenous New Zealand foodstuffs in the kitchen. Hiakai chef and owner Fiso has received international recognition for her creative reinterpretation of the Polynesian and Māori food traditions. Fiso’s work not only breaks boundaries with innovation, but with preservation and respect for indigenous traditions as well.
What’s Special
- Māori and Polynesian specialists with a splash of modern style.
- Owner of Hiakai, New Zealand’s most creative dining destination.
- Spotted on food television shows and food websites.
Al Brown, the New Zealand Comfort Food King
Al Brown, if anyone, personifies New Zealand’s laid-back and full-flavoured style of eating. Acclaimed for his unpretentious-but-full-of-flavour New Zealand comfort food, Brown has created New Zealand’s favourite restaurants, including Depot Eatery & Oyster Bar and Federal Delicatessen. Acclaimed food writer and television personality Brown solidifies his position on the New Zealand food scene even more.
What’s Unique
- Lord of simple, flavorous New Zealand food.
- Owner of the oyster depot and eatery, a gourmet heaven.
- Committed to local produce and fresh seafood.
Sid Sahrawat, the King of Modern Gastronomy
A perfectionist chef with an eagle eye, Sid Sahrawat has the creative force behind New Zealand’s leading fine-dining restaurants behind him. At his restaurants, The French Café, Cassia, and Kōriso, his new techniques combine with bold flavouring for fine dining that’s as elegant as it’s surprising. Sahrawat has earned his reputation as a bold experimenter as well as a chef who can push New Zealand’s new wave in dining to new heights.
What’s Unique
- Owner of various award-winning restaurants.
- A master at infusing new techniques with international flavour.
- One of the foremost proponents of New Zealand’s new-wave food movement.
Vaughan Mabee – Crafting Stories with New Zealand’s Natural Flavors
A self-proclaimed kitchen pioneer, Vaughan Mabee has found inspiration in the New Zealand landscapes, bush food traditions, and indigenous produce. Amisfield’s executive chef at the highly-rated eatery close to Queenstown, Mabee, crafts food as much about storytelling as flavour. His craft has made Amisfield a highly-rated New Zealand eatery.
What’s Special
- Front runner in foraging and bush food.
- Head chef at Amisfield, which is famous for immersive tasting menus.
- It is focused on sustainability and New Zealand’s natural wealth.
Ben Bayly: The Haute Cuisine Master
Ben Bayly, a chef, has found the fine line between fine dining and accessibility with his range of restaurants, including the much-patronized restaurants Ahi and Origine, which he owns in his native New Zealand. Having worked in Michelin-starred kitchens, he has come back home, where he has several successful restaurants showcasing the best that New Zealand’s seasonal produce has to offer with refined but humble techniques.
What’s Special
- Expert in elegant, regional, haute food.
- Auckland restaurateur, two of the best.
- Origine and Ahi Sustainable and Ethical Food Procurement Award.
Conclusion
In addition, New Zealand boasts an exceptionally talented culinary community, and these chefs are the crème de la crème when it comes to skill, ingenuity, and food passion.
From the pioneering of fine dining traditional Māori cuisine to outstanding comfort food, all these chefs are leading the trend towards New Zealand gastronomy in the future. Whether you’re keen to taste the ultimate New Zealand food, visiting one of their restaurants is the way to go.
