Rotorua’s Capers has been named the 2017 Meadow Fresh New Zealand Café of the Year.
For the fifth year running, the Meadow Fresh New Zealand Café of the Year Awards highlight the diverse, the delicious and the most delightful of our great NZ café culture, shining a light on outstanding cafés across the nation.
Capers has been a top contender in previous years and this year the judging panel chose to reward its quality, consistency and most of all the passion it clearly displays for satisfying every customer who walks through the door.
Along with being announced the 2017 Meadow Fresh NZ Café of the Year, Capers was also presented with the national Tararua Best Metro/CBD award after winning this category award for the Upper North Island region in December.
Judging, tasting and deliberating was conducted by a highly-experienced panel led by NZ’s pre-eminent food and restaurant authority, Kerry Tyack.
”Capers has all the credentials to proudly be the 2017 Meadow Fresh New Zealand Café of the Year. The food is fresh, beautifully presented and serves up an enticing menu delivering uncomplicated and innovative cuisine. Capers inspires loyalty from its customers by providing great food and coffee on site, as well as takeaway meals and salads and a retail larder full of local artisan and organic produce. Capers is superbly organised and managed. The engaging staff are proactive in determining and meeting customer’s needs. The café itself is an easily accessible bright open space and importantly, the coffee is consistently well brewed and hot! With great care taken on their food, coffee and customer experience, Capers is a great example of a local café that consistently brings passion and integrity to its customers,” said Kerry Tyack.
Capers will now enjoy the prestige of winning the title of 2017 Meadow Fresh NZ Café of the Year, a trip to Melbourne valued at $7,500 and a feature in Dish magazine.
“The judging team has been hugely impressed, proving café owners around the country know how to dish up a vast range of satisfying food, to accompany some of the best coffee in the world. It has been a real treat for the panel to see first-hand how truly dynamic the Kiwi café scene is throughout the nation,” said Kerry Tyack.
Brian Woodcock, National Business Manager, Foodservice, Goodman Fielder New Zealand Limited says “Congratulations to owners Gregg and Susan Brown and their team headed by Manager Liz Todd of Capers – the 2017 Meadow Fresh NZ Cafe of the Year! We are extremely proud to sponsor the awards that ultimately acknowledge the important role cafés play in New Zealand’s culture and lifestyle. It is with great pleasure, we also announce the national award winners.”
2017 Meadow Fresh NZ Café of the Year| Capers | 1181 Eruera Street, Rotorua
NATIONAL CATEGORY AWARD WINNERS:
Tararua Best Metro/CBD | Capers | 1181 Eruera Street, Rotorua
Hellers Classic Kiwi | Rumbly Tums | 213a Rosebery St, Tokoroa
Hellmann’s Best Suburban | Sweet Vanilla Kitchen | 49 Pretoria Street, Lower Hutt
Tucker’s Ridge Pies Best Rural | Red Shed Palazzo | 64 Jesmond Rd, Karaka, Auckland
Puhoi Valley People’s Choice | Surf Shack | 123 Emerton Road, Waihi Beach *as voted by the people
Goodman Fielder and Unilever Food Solutions Award for Innovation | The Sugar Shed | Pukekohe