Wapiti is a red deer that was imported to NZ from North America in the early 1900s for hunting (the first herd was a gift from President Roosevelt).
Wapiti are free-roaming in Fiordland, but they interfere with the habitats of native species such as the whio, kākā and kiwi.
The Fiordland Wapiti Foundation oversees nearly 200,000 hectares of Fiordland, managing and maintaining the wild wapiti population for recreational hunting, and now food.
Here's how to get a taste.
Wapiti at home
Fiordland Wapiti Foundation is now working with WithWild to make use of the wapiti as a food source. If you're keen to try cooking up some yourself, WithWild supplies restaurants and butchers around the country with wild hunted wapiti. Co-founded by Cazador's Darius Lolaiy and Orphan's Kitchen and Orphan's Kitchen and Daily Bread's Tom Hishon, WithWild also gives back to the foundation, and invests in stoat trap lines and in monitoring wildlife in Fiordland. In Auckland, you can buy wapiti from the Aussie Butcher in New Lynn, the Village butcher in Takapuna and Victoria Ave Butchers in Remuera, but a full list is available on their website at
BurgerFuel's wapiti burger
This new burger from BurgerFuel is 100% locally sourced, with wild wapiti, The Four Sauceman barbecue rub, Pukekohe carrots and central Otago cherry sauce. $1 from each purchase will go back to the Fiordland Wapiti Foundation to further their mission.
Wild Heart is a well-balanced burger – there's sweetness from the cherry sauce, but a little sharpness too. The meat is rich but not gamey at all – it's burger perfect. And it's juicy, so you'll want to move fast – this is a burger to be eaten with some urgency. This one's for garlic lovers - you can smell it as soon as you open the box. If you're sensitive to the alliums, maybe give this one a miss. But the burger is delicious, plus it's raising a bit of awareness for the issues around food waste. burgerfuel.com/nz/wildheart
Wintery wapiti at Cazador
Along the endless strip of Dominion Rd, surely the best eating street, Cazador restaurant has long been known for its approach to game meats – here, they like it wild, sustainable, interesting, and sometimes all three. Head along on a cold night for a wintery take on wapiti - served with salty fermented currants, whisky and parsnip. cazador.co.nz
