23rd April 2013
The Lakehouse Restaurant
What a romantic notion the thought of a lakehouse can be. One conjures up images of something special on the shores of a lake…a place where one can do nought but relax and take in the views, suck in fresh country air and luxuriate far from the push and shove of the daily grind. Lake Hood, near Ashburton, boasts its own restaurant which sits on the banks of this 80 hectare, man-made yet very attractive waterway.
Modern, spacious and known for its excellent local and regional food, the restaurant has often been a potential dinner destination but, alas, always a bridge too far for me. I am invariably dashing past or through Ashburton en route to Otago or wherever and haven’t ever factored in a stop. Naughty boy me!
The great love of my life just happens to be a helicopter pilot and she recently insisted that we should fire up the engines of the ‘44” and fly down, with friends, to Lake Hood for dinner one warm and balmy late summer evening. How could any self-respecting, female-helicopter-pilot-loving man refuse an offer like that? And so it was….
The run across the Canterbury Plains is nothing less than truly uplifting…in more ways than one…..and the patchwork of paddocks a brilliant expression of the tidiness of modern farming! The wonderful thing about helicoptering is the relatively low altitude one flies at; this is fantastic from the snoop value point of view as you can see just what is going on in every backyard. Not that I ever meant to pry…
Back to the story. Arriving at The Lakehouse is easy as they have a suitable expanse of lawn at the side of the restaurant tailor-made for a smooth landing.
Inside, the quality of service is immediately foretold by the warm welcome extended by the Maitre’d. Our table was in the great chamber of the main dining area, offering views to the lake, fine settings and a menu one can warm to instantly.
Champagne for some of us (not the pilot of course), fresh Bluff oysters ( a dozen no less and at a mere $35), wild Atlantic scallops with crispy bacon, warm house bread & dips – entirely adequate to start and each presented lovingly by the lovely mother hen waitress. A pinot gris, a Riesling and a Pinot noir soon found their way onto the table, all welcomed with a gush of joy and sipped with commensurate appreciation.
I have never liked the term “Signature Dish” but, that opinion aside, the restaurant does have two damn fine Siggy dishes, “A Trio of Wild Game” and “Oceans Trio O’ Fish”. This was no flight of fancy for me as I knew the reality was that I would be eating the former, wild fallow venison rump, rare, wild pork and wild goat fillets all hunted in the Te Anau, Milford area of the South island. Such unspeakably fine provenance! Add a cluster of roast gourmet potatoes, Kumara rosti , a smattering of greens in brilliant verdancy and tasty tasting tubs of wild condiments. How much you ask? A gift at $42 – can you believe it?
Wild game is not for everyone but if you want to experience a distinctiveness of flavour, quite unlike your traditional fillet steak, a strong, gamey taste you might say, but exuding the essence of the mountains, the spirit of the Southern Alps, the raw ferity of undomesticated, un-farmed natural meat then give it a go!
Alongside the roast potatoes and the indigenous Kumara, coupled with the clean & naturally refreshing green leaves, the meats in all their chunky, mountainous magnificence, were tamed ever so slightly to offer a culinary ride worth taking. Paired with a smooth and complete Merlot to soften the rough edges the experience was more than palatable and certainly memorable.
In spite of the somewhat lackluster reviews this restaurant has attracted in recent times my own experience was far from mediocre. My thanks to the chef and the FOH staff for a good job all round.
The Lakehouse Restaurant
What a romantic notion the thought of a lakehouse can be. One conjures up images of something special on the shores of a lake…a place where one can do nought but relax and take in the views, suck in fresh country air and luxuriate far from the push and shove of the daily grind. Lake Hood, near Ashburton, boasts its own restaurant which sits on the banks of this 80 hectare, man-made yet very attractive waterway.
Modern, spacious and known for its excellent local and regional food, the restaurant has often been a potential dinner destination but, alas, always a bridge too far for me. I am invariably dashing past or through Ashburton en route to Otago or wherever and haven’t ever factored in a stop. Naughty boy me!
The great love of my life just happens to be a helicopter pilot and she recently insisted that we should fire up the engines of the ‘44” and fly down, with friends, to Lake Hood for dinner one warm and balmy late summer evening. How could any self-respecting, female-helicopter-pilot-loving man refuse an offer like that? And so it was….
The run across the Canterbury Plains is nothing less than truly uplifting…in more ways than one…..and the patchwork of paddocks a brilliant expression of the tidiness of modern farming! The wonderful thing about helicoptering is the relatively low altitude one flies at; this is fantastic from the snoop value point of view as you can see just what is going on in every backyard. Not that I ever meant to pry…
Back to the story. Arriving at The Lakehouse is easy as they have a suitable expanse of lawn at the side of the restaurant tailor-made for a smooth landing.
Inside, the quality of service is immediately foretold by the warm welcome extended by the Maitre’d. Our table was in the great chamber of the main dining area, offering views to the lake, fine settings and a menu one can warm to instantly.
Champagne for some of us (not the pilot of course), fresh Bluff oysters ( a dozen no less and at a mere $35), wild Atlantic scallops with crispy bacon, warm house bread & dips – entirely adequate to start and each presented lovingly by the lovely mother hen waitress. A pinot gris, a Riesling and a Pinot noir soon found their way onto the table, all welcomed with a gush of joy and sipped with commensurate appreciation.
I have never liked the term “Signature Dish” but, that opinion aside, the restaurant does have two damn fine Siggy dishes, “A Trio of Wild Game” and “Oceans Trio O’ Fish”. This was no flight of fancy for me as I knew the reality was that I would be eating the former, wild fallow venison rump, rare, wild pork and wild goat fillets all hunted in the Te Anau, Milford area of the South island. Such unspeakably fine provenance! Add a cluster of roast gourmet potatoes, Kumara rosti , a smattering of greens in brilliant verdancy and tasty tasting tubs of wild condiments. How much you ask? A gift at $42 – can you believe it?
Wild game is not for everyone but if you want to experience a distinctiveness of flavour, quite unlike your traditional fillet steak, a strong, gamey taste you might say, but exuding the essence of the mountains, the spirit of the Southern Alps, the raw ferity of undomesticated, un-farmed natural meat then give it a go!
Alongside the roast potatoes and the indigenous Kumara, coupled with the clean & naturally refreshing green leaves, the meats in all their chunky, mountainous magnificence, were tamed ever so slightly to offer a culinary ride worth taking. Paired with a smooth and complete Merlot to soften the rough edges the experience was more than palatable and certainly memorable.
In spite of the somewhat lackluster reviews this restaurant has attracted in recent times my own experience was far from mediocre. My thanks to the chef and the FOH staff for a good job all round.
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