The Barn manager Adam Wilson holds one of the wallaby pies, which are proving popular with customers. Photo / Gus Patterson
Pest-packed pies are proving popular at The Barn.
Plenty of people had been hopping off the main road to try the Waimate cafe and bar's new wallaby pies, manager Adam Wilson said.
Wilson said the pies were part of the reason The Barn had bounced back so strongly from the Covid-19 lockdown.
About 50 pies were sold every day and people were coming from outside the district to try them.
"They are bloody nice," he said.
"If you didn't know what was in them you wouldn't guess it was wallaby."
The meat came from locally sourced wallabies, of which there was no shortage, he said.
The Barn celebrated its first birthday last weekend. The Queen St business was a cafe, bar and restaurant, which reflected consumer trends, he said.
"We really didn't know what we what we were going to be.
"The day trade has been way busier than we expected.
"There are a lot of older people in Waimate who didn't have anywhere like this to go during the day."
Plans to expand the business into the building next door, at present a second-hand shop, were progressing.
The expansion would create room for pool tables and al fresco dining, Mr Wilson said.
Work on new range of engines starts next year.