Summer escape in the Central Plateau
Fine dining on top of the world
It is possibly the craziest restaurant location in New Zealand. The Chef’s Table, reopening in January at Blue Duck Station, Whakahoro, is accessible only by hiking, four-wheel drive or helicopter.
Situated upon one of the highest points of Blue Duck Station the views from here are expansive. On a clear day it offers a panorama that encompasses the snow-dusted peaks of Mt Ruapehu and Mt Ngāuruhoe. Other days you’re looking at the different shades of the wilderness following the ridges from green to grey as far as the eye can see. “The mood is different every day you are up here which gives you a reason to come back,” says Blue Duck Station’s Dan Steele.
Chef Jack Cashmore is Steele’s business partner for the fine-dining restaurant, which offers a 10-course degustation menu from January to June. The menu will be crafted with food farmed, foraged and produced at Blue Duck Station. “It’s in
