TRUE NORTH
“This one tastes like chocolate pudding,” says the chipper, check-shirted server as she arranges a wooden platter on our picnic table. “And that one, like caramel. Oh, and if you like custard…” Her voice trails off as she notices my expression, which I suppose is one of bafflement, because this is no dessert board she’s describing. Rather, it’s a kaleidoscope of glistening tropical fruits, only a few of which I recognize. Shrugging, she points to a ruby-red berry and adds, “Eat this, and everything else will taste sweet. Even”—and here she flourishes a wedge of citrus—“lemons.”
Truth be told, my expectations for Tropical Fruit World were not high. With its petting zoo and boat rides and tractor trains, the 65-hectare fruit farm sounded like the sort of tourist attraction I usually avoid. But as an introduction to the astonishing fecundity of northern New South Wales’ Tweed Valley, it proves entirely worthwhile. More than 500 fruits from around the world are grown here, from avocados and macadamia nuts to the seasonal exotica on the platter before me: black sapote, a Latin American species of
