On The Up: The Fat Duck pub in Te Anau – how a pub in a remote town at the bottom of the country became New Zealand’s best

Tucked at the edge of the country’s most dense bushland, an unassuming gastropub has quietly risen to become New Zealand’s best.

In March, The Fat Duck in Te Anau claimed the Supreme Award at the Top 50 Gastropub Awards – a remarkable achievement for a hospitality venue in one of the nation’s most remote towns.

“There’s so many good gastropubs in this country. We’re all the way down here in Western Southland in a small community.

“It’s not very often that you get to go up to the big smoke of Auckland and walk away with an award. I didn’t think we’d be able to take out the top prize,” co-owner Cam Davies told the Herald.

Selina Wright, Hospitality New Zealand chief executive Steve Armitage, and Cam Davies at the Estrella Damm Top 50 New Zealand Gastropubs awards in Auckland.

The award, presented in Auckland in front of 150 industry peers, many of whom Davies said “don’t even know where Te Anau is”, capped off nearly a decade of growth for first-time business owners Cam and Selina Davies.

The pair purchased The Fat Duck in 2016, sight unseen.

At the time, Davies was working as a chef on private yachts in Europe and the Caribbean, where he met Selina, who was a chief stewardess.

While anchored in the Caribbean, Davies found the Fat Duck listing online.

“I was actually on anchor in the Caribbean, browsing Trade Me when I came across the Fat Duck for sale. [Selina’s] got an auntie up here too, so she did all the research. She walked me around the place on Facebook – back in the early days of FaceTime – and we put an offer in.”

The pair returned to New Zealand at the same time Selina became pregnant with their first child, and together they took over the pub in June 2016.

Davies, a trained chef with 15 years of experience, said the pair brought a hands-on approach to their first ownership venture, initially with a small team of just five people.

“Selina was out the front or in the kitchen. It was awesome, we were just really hands-on.”

The opening weekend happened to coincide with Queen’s Birthday weekend, when traffic in Te Anau is at its peak - though the initial busy-ness proved to be short-lived.

“We had a really busy first weekend, and the first few weeks after that, it was a bit like tumbleweed blowing down the street.”

The couple briefly questioned their decision.

A platter at the Fat Duck gastropub in Te Anau.

“We sort of wondered if we’d purchased a lemon ... because there was hardly anyone around,” Davies said.

Despite a quiet start, the business grew steadily over the years.

“Every year’s got busier and busier as our name’s grown, and we’ve become renowned for good food and good service. Te Anau and Fiordland have done quite well with growing tourism too.”

The Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 presented the business with its most significant challenge.

With international and domestic travel restricted, Te Anau, a tourism-dependent town, experienced a sharp decline in visitors.

“Fifty-five % of our turnover ran away overnight ... Being right at the bottom of the country, at the end of the road, certainly has massive challenges when people aren’t moving,” Davies said.

He credits the local community for supporting them through the pandemic.

“Locals backed locals in those tough times. We traded our way through that period, and every year after that has had a different challenge – staff shortages, cost-of-living crises, all sorts,” he said.

“Like anything, you rise to the challenge and get through it. Small towns in New Zealand are extremely resilient.”

He said the pair was “over the moon” when they were announced as the Supreme Winner at the Top 50 New Zealand Gastropubs.

A 600g pearl veal rib-eye on the bone is one of the many locally sourced menu items at the Fat Duck.

“[We were] so stoked for the team and all the hard graft that’s gone into this place over the years,” said Davies.

“We’ve got an amazing team here ... a lot of them have been here a long time.

“We’ve got two or three chefs that have been here for nearly eight or nine years, and they just give it everything every single day.”

Davies said he believed a large part of the pub’s success came from fostering a positive work environment – alongside good food.

“We’ve tried to create a business that is enjoyable to work in and that guests love too ... Southland’s the food bowl of New Zealand,” he said.

“We’ve got amazing farmers, producers, artisan suppliers ... There’s been some small plates on the menu like popcorn chicken and salt and pepper squid that have been on there since day one.

“The back page of our menu is devoted to telling our food story and telling the stories of all the suppliers and producers that we buy from.

“You’re only as good as the produce you buy.”

Davies says operating a business in Te Anau brings unique rewards and challenges, though the lifestyle and environment, he says, make it worthwhile.

“Rush hour traffic’s about three minutes from my house to work. In the time most people in Auckland have been sitting in traffic, I’ve gone home, strolled 100 metres to the lakefront with my dog, thrown a few sticks, and come home to cook dinner for the kids.”

Davies, who grew up in rural Canterbury, said the local culture in Te Anau suits him and Selina.

“I love the rural community. Southland punches well above its weight in most things. It’s an awesome community to bring kids up in – it’s got everything on your doorstep," he said.

“I’m just incredibly proud of everyone who works with us and has created something the country is proud to call the number one gastropub.”