Full of Beans, South Westland

Intensely picturesque and luxuriously endowed with some of the world’s most beautiful native flora along a coastline that must be said to be nothing less than spectacular in all its primordial glory. Such divine lack of contamination, such natural grandeur, seemingly so very far from the stomping urban hordes. Yes, I’m talking about South Westland and its sheer weight of allure, its essence of timelessness that doesn’t fail to draw all of us into its lush embrace at some time or another.
Of course, many of you will have taken the unforgettable drive from Hokitika to Haast and will remember the mountains, the coastline, the unpainted, abandoned farm sheds with their rusted iron roofs, collapsing weatherboards and more. Powerful, evocative images!
Along the way you will roll into Franz Josef Village where every effort has been made to cater (pander) to the passing tourist. Nothing wrong with that at all as it’s a fine thing that people want to see our magnificent country, me included. And anyway, can any of us go far these days without topping up with food and fuel?
The town was athrong with people in early June and this did surprise me as the road was very quiet to the north. The Full of Beans Cafe is a newly opened establishment in FJ and seemed to be well staffed, bright and modern. The owner impressed me with his energy and enthusiasm – clearing tables, cleaning tables, greeting guests.
The menu was the usual , I suppose I could say, with muesli & fruit, bacon and eggs, pancakes, Benedict, Full breakfast etc as well as such delights as Clam & Mussel chowder, Whitebait Fritters, Angus Beef Burger to name but a few.
My coffee was hot and strong, as requested, and with spinach, salmon, tomato, parsley and two poached eggs atop ciabatta this was a celebration of colour and taste. When pierced the egg yolks spilled their lightly viscous golden yellow nectar over the fluffed up ciabatta, offering a scintillating visual contrast to the dark and glistening spinach beside; the moist, velvet smooth texture of the salmon giving its all to deliver a final caress.
Full of Beans might be “just a cafe” but on the day of my visit it was “on fire”, like an Olympic torch. Let’s hope they don’t slip into mediocrity as the days turn into weeks and the weeks into months.