Paul Froggatt from The Lodge at Kauri Cliffs Matauri Bay, won Luxury Lodge Chef of the Year in this year’s Cuisine Good Food Awards.
Paul Froggatt from The Lodge at Kauri Cliffs Matauri Bay, won Luxury Lodge Chef of the Year in this year’s Cuisine Good Food Awards.
The executive chef of one of Northland’s most luxurious lodges is “super stoked and deeply honoured” after scooping a major category in this year’s Cuisine Good Food Awards.
Paul Froggatt from The Lodge at Kauri Cliffs in Matauri Bay won Luxury Lodge Chef of the Year in this year’s awards, held at SkyCity in Auckland on August 7.
The annual industry celebration is regarded as the country’s pre-eminent hospitality award and this year Cuisine announced 18 category winners and 84 hatted restaurants.
Froggatt thanked his wife and two children, and his culinary team at Kauri Cliffs for helping him achieve success.
“It’s a great honour to be recognised,” Froggatt said.
Before that, he spent nine years working as the executive chef at New Zealand’s iconic Huka Lodge in Taupō.
He has also worked as chef de cuisine [head chef] at two-star Michelin restaurants, Amber in Hong Kong, and Saint Pierre, a Relais & Chateaux grand chef restaurant in Singapore, along with extensive travel and work in kitchens in Asia.
He describes his food as a “European style of kitchen with the influence of my travels in Asia” while also showcasing New Zealand produce.
Working at a luxury lodge varies from day to day, he said.
“Life can be so different on a daily basis. Some guests want an ultra-super luxury experience. Some are craving simple roast chicken. So, it’s very diverse.
“We have guests that come for extended periods of time, and I try to create a dining experience for them... I try and create a memory personal to them.”
Froggatt said he moved to Northland “for a change of scenery and to come and work with the Robertsons at their flagship lodge”.
He is always seeking out the region’s freshest and most unique ingredients which he sources from local markets and growers, which have inspired his culinary team.
“I’m on the hunt for anyone with anything a bit different, like using Northland pineapples and bananas.
“I’ve found a local citrus grower, and someone who grows courgette flowers... the tomatoes, the fruit, anything I can lay my hands on.
“There are all these pockets of suppliers that have these boutique items. We need to showcase what’s on our doorstep.”
The Luxury Lodge Chef of the Year category was newly introduced into the mix this year, with “a new generation of discerning, well-travelled consumers in mind,” Cuisine said.
Top chef Vaughan Mabee, who grew up in Kerikeri, won the Ōra King Salmon Innovation Award for his work at Amisfield in Queenstown.
Top chef Vaughan Mabee, who grew up in Kerikeri, won the Ōra King Salmon Innovation Award for his work at Amisfield in Queenstown.
The three-hatted chef and MasterChef NZ 2022 judge attended Kerikeri High School as a teenager and still thinks of the Bay of Islands as “home”.
For the second consecutive year, Amisfield, led by Mabee, was named the American Express Restaurant of the Year and awarded a three-hat status. Its score of 19.5 out of 20 was considered to be “extraordinary and approaching perfection.”
Dining there was an experience described by the judges as “magical, entertaining and memorable.”
“Mabee remains top of his game, delighting us with his theatre of food delivery and executing a near faultless and daring dance of innovation putting Kiwi food firmly on the global culinary stage,” lead judge Kerry Tyack said.
Cuisine editor Kelli Brett said New Zealand’s hatted restaurants and category winners for 2023/24 were “absolutely at the top of their game”.
“If ever there were a time for you to spend your dollars supporting restaurants across our beautiful country that deliver outstanding experiences it’s now.”
Jenny Ling is a news reporter and features writer for the Northern Advocate. She has a special interest in covering roading, health, business, and animal welfare issues.
