The road to health is long and winding but should it be paved with vitamin supplements? Madeleine Chapman dives into the world of monthly vitamin subscriptions. Seven-minute abs, that one trick for a slim waist, and the perfect fruit to get rid of cellulite. They all promise a better you with little to no effort. … Read more
Natural health company BePure provided the following statement to the Spinoff for our story about vitamins, which you can read here. We certainly empathise that the area of natural health and supplementation can be both confusing and be misleading with the huge volumes of information out there and the high number of products available in … Read more
A journey through toasted lizards, Indian feasts, plain spaghetti and service-station pies. Stage 1 When I was 12, I accidentally cooked a lizard in the toaster at my dad’s house in Fiji. I was home alone watching a Zoey 101 marathon on TV, and a metallic rattling from the kitchen tore me away from Jamie … Read more
From the alleyways of Běijīng to the Tibetan highlands, independent brewing is on the rise in the world’s most populous nation. When we think of China, chances are we don’t think of craft beer. You might put that down to the legacy of popular beers like Tsingtao, Harbin or Snow. Tsingtao, of the seaside city … Read more
In the best drinking cities in the world, sharing a punch bowl with your mates at a bar makes for a splendid evening. To have a similar experience here, you’ll have to stay home. “Red fruit, Raro.” “Very drunk 21-year-old Christians.” “Red wine, Sprite Zero, half-sugar Just Juice, vodka.” “Berocca, white wine, vodka, pineapple juice … Read more
New research from the University of Auckland reveals startling disparities in the ways communities are targeted by junk food retailers. Don Rowe speaks to the study’s author, Professor Boyd Swinburn. A combination of political apathy and toothless local government is exacerbating New Zealand’s obesity crisis, a new study has found. We’re living in fundamentally unhealthy … Read more
The angst of a Wellington winter melts away amid the tongue-tingling tastes of the Middle Kingdom. You’re in the break room guarding the microwave as your soup-berg slowly circles. Your toast’s just gone down. Pete comes in. You eyeball him: lay down that Vogel’s bro, this needs at least another minute. The weather’s shit. Work … Read more
In The Spinoff TV series Frickin Dangerous Bro Review White People Things, James Roque, Pax Assadi and Jamaine Ross try all the fancy shit white people seem to like for no apparent reason. This week: kombucha. Previously: Frickin Dangerous Bro Review Bath Bombs The Spinoff TV screens Fridays at 9.45pm on THREE. Thanks to NZ … Read more
Chef Luke Adams shares three delicious Māori dishes. As he whipped up an on-trend beetroot and farro concoction in the kitchen of a cafe in Auckland’s Newmarket, Luke Adams talked us through how to make something very different — the kai he was raised with. Adams (Te-Uri-o-Tai hapū, Te Aupōuri iwi) is head chef at … Read more
Dietary Requirements is our new monthly podcast in which we eat, drink and talk about it too, with special thanks to Freedom Farms and Fine Wine Delivery Company. On the inaugural Dietary Requirements, our hosts Simon Day, Alice Neville and Sophie Gilmour discuss the crispy bacon spectrum, the perfect egg sandwich and memorable dining experiences, … Read more
Taking over New Zealand’s most lauded restaurant is not a move for the faint-hearted, but risks tend to pay off for Sid and Chand Sahrawat. In 2014, when I first ate at Cassia, my palate was racist. I knew the food at the new modern Indian restaurant hidden down a back alley in the heart … Read more
A new addition to Wellington’s cafe scene is giving former female prisoners the chance to hone their barista skills — and build better lives in the process. As any barista will tell you, making coffee is not an easy job. You’re on your feet all day, your hands turn to sandpaper and every inch of … Read more
Alex Casey talks to Nic Murray and Marie Fitzpatrick, co-founders of Good Bitches Baking, about changing the world, one cupcake at a time. It began, like all good things, with a warm cheese scone. Nic Murray’s baby nephew was battling cancer and it was a traumatic time for her whole family. One afternoon, she spent … Read more
A displaced Wellingtonian yearns for the coffee culture she once derided. “It’s coffee, but not as you know it.” It made a greater impression on me than any advertising slogan on the side of a bus should. The fact, the bitter reality, was that a new kind of cold Nescafe in a can was besides … Read more
Air New Zealand has been lambasted for serving Business Class passengers a burger without meat in it, which is obviously an assault on the NZ economy. Here The Spinoff’s leading New Zealander, Madeleine Chapman, recounts the day in the life of a true patriot Every night, before I slide beneath my All Blacks™ duvet cover, … Read more
Gather round, hop-loving harridans of Aotearoa, for now is our time. This story originally ran in Stone Soup “Smash the beer patriarchy” is a phrase I trot out good-naturedly whenever I encounter an example of everyday beer sexism — the likes of being immediately directed to the wine list at a dedicated craft beer bar, … Read more
Mukbang is a South Korean video craze in which a host eats huge amounts of foods while interacting with their audience. Comedian and mukbang superfan Rose Matafeo decided to make her own mukbang, so she bought $60 of takeaways from Double Happy in Te Atatū South, west Auckland, and got to work. The Spinoff’s food … Read more
Simon Day has a meal with a criminal narcissist. Somewhere between the sweet-and-sour tripe and the dramatic dissection of the five-spiced suckling pig, we discover that our entrancing new acquaintance named Alex is actually called Wayne, and is one of New Zealand’s most prolific conmen. Over the course of the evening, and four courses of … Read more
A quest for pasta perfection takes one carb enthusiast from Mt Eden, Auckland, to Bologna, Italy. This story originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine. During my three-week honeymoon in Europe, I gained 7kg. Despite spending only two days there, I believe Bologna is where the majority of the weight was assumed. I am obsessed with pasta … Read more
We’re jolly excited to announce the launch of The Spinoff’s newest section, dedicated to all things food and drink. Its editor, Alice Neville, explains what it’s all about. Do you like eating? Do you like drinking? If you answered “yes” to one or more of these questions, chances are you’ll like The Spinoff’s new section. … Read more
Alice Neville went along to The Creation Dinner, a pop-up restaurant by MasterChef winners Karena and Kasey Bird, and it was bloody good. Ko tēnei te tīmatatanga. This is the beginning. In the darkness, sky father Ranginui and earth mother Papatūānuku are locked together in a never-ending embrace, their many children crushed between them. After … Read more
To celebrate Wellington on a Plate’s 10th birthday the capital’s party experts have shared their tips on how to nail your next blowout. Throwing a party, whether for four people around the dinner table at home or for 40,000 people at a festival, is a complicated chess game. All the different pieces have to move … Read more
From the moment he arrived in Italy to play rugby Sir John Kirwan fell in love with the food and wine. He speaks to Simon Day about bringing a taste of his corner of the country back to New Zealand. In 1985, a 20-year-old (not yet Sir) John Kirwan was living in Mangere earning $150 … Read more
Samuel Flynn Scott explores the buzzy flavours of the natural wineries of downtown Wellington. I’m in the Garage Project Taproom with my long term comrade in music Lukasz Buda. We’re entertaining Marlon Williams and his lovely band The Yarra Benders. We find ourselves here because it’s close to the gig, and we’re trying to impress … Read more
It appears the two biggest pizza nerds in the world are both from Wellington. Samuel Flynn Scott spoke to the capital’s pizza guru, Tommy Millions, about the perfect slice, learning his craft, and his alternative social media style. Tommy Millions started life as a little woodfired pizza trailer that would pop up at farmers’ markets … Read more
This month legendary Wellington food emporium Moore Wilson’s turned 100. Samuel Flynn Scott meets Julie Moore, the most important and influential person in Wellington food. Sean Clouston, executive chef and co-owner of Logan Brown, was bustling through Moore Wilsons in his cheffy regalia. “Sammy! You come here on Fridays too? Best time mate. All the … Read more
We review the entire country and culture of New Zealand, one thing at a time. Today: Toby Manhire tries the freshly launched burger at vegan fast food outfit Lord of the Fries Meat. On the one hand it involves the institutionalised slaughter of animals, carries a range of grave health risks and presents a menace … Read more
You never realise how good you have it until it’s too late. In the first part of a series on Wellington’s flourishing food scene, former resident Samuel Flynn Scott yearns for the capital’s $7 menu. So long and thanks for all the roti, I don’t miss you at all. When I think of Wellington, until … Read more
One third of all food produced is thrown away, at the same time as one billion people go hungry. Simon Day met some of the people trying to fix our broken food system. On Monday evenings, when most Auckland restaurants rest, Gemmayze St is consistently host to more than 200 customers. While the award winning … Read more