My Aching Head

As far as drunk and hangover foods go, the meat pie is one of the brilliant, can’t go wrong sort of selections. It’s beauty is in it’s ubiquity, it’s always available, it’s cheap, easy and as greasy as you like. But, not all pies were created equal, a frozen supermarket pie microwaved is always inferior to the same pie oven-cooked and at the top of this pyramid of brilliance are bakeries. Not just any old chain of bakery though, the sort that claim they have world class pies, the sort that have a 4 page pie menu and the sort that people drive from miles around just “for a pie”.

Arrowtown Bakery is one of these places, now they don’t make the outrageous claims of being world famous and the bit about the 4 page pie menu was a bit of an embellishment but people really do drive from miles around to get the pies. Now, let me assure you, they don’t dissapoint. The menu consists of a heap of different chicken pies; spicy chicken; cream of chicken; chicken and cheese and plain old chicken. They also have your normal staple of mince, steak, steak and onion and steak and cheese along with a couple of not so run of the mill - bolognaise and lamb and mint. Lamb is up there with my 4 favourite meats and it lends itself perfectly to being low cooked, roasted or baked. Needless to say I was heartily impressed by a lamb pie.

Not only are the fillings brilliant but that’s not all there is to a pie, the other ingredient is pastry and it doesn’t fail to impress here either. The pastry literally melts in your mouth, the top is crisp nut not tough and the pie itself holds itself together. This in itself is part of the genius, there is nother better than not having to worry about mince down your front when you are hoeing into your hangover cure.

All in all these parcels of oven-baked pastry-laden meat are amazing. If you are in the Wakatipu, hangover or no, the 15 minute drive to Arrowtown is well worth the effort.

If you have never partaken in a gourmet burger then you are in for a delight. Popping up all over Australia and New Zealand are small hamburger shops that really know how to make hamburgers. They usually have your regular style burger - meat-pattie, lettuce, tomato and cheese on a hamburger roll but the menu generally consists of a number of delights you had never dreamt of. Well maybe you have dreamt it, but this is your dreams coming true.

Now, I’m not going to rant about the history of this phenomenom but there is a few of this style of shop opening, Velvet Burger in Dunedin, ChimiChanga in Brisbane (now closed I’m told), Wunder Burger in Tauranga, I’m told there are a few stores in Melbourne and last but certainly not least, Fergburger in Queenstown. I’m sure they are popping up everywhere, probably in my own kitchen, but the point is there are lots around the traps and the numbers are growing.

Now, the first gourmet burger joint I ever visited was Queenstown’s own Ferg a few years ago and since then I’ve had more than I could ever count. This includes every burger on the menu, in every state of drunk, sober and hungover possible. Needless to say, I love the place and it’s going to be very difficult for me to be impartial in any reviews I write. I’d also love to hear about any other gourmet burger shops around the traps.

Funky music, art and comfortable surrounds are the order of the day at Joe’s Garage. Being one of the bigger cafes in Queenstown it doesn’t have the compact, claustrophobic feel that other coffee shops around here give off. The dining area is quite sparse with a few tables and a full length breakfast-style bar which over looks the food preparation area. There are few things better in my opinion than an open kitchen, being able to see the staff preparing your coffee and meals is something that more places should do. The only problem is it can be hard to grab someone’s attention to order another coffee or food as the staff are busy with their back to you, a small price to pay for the great atmosphere.

The coffee is great at Joe’s (as it is in most places around here), this particular blend/roast is a richer flavour than I am used to but it definitely is not overdone. The quality of the end product is, like most things in this cafe, exceptional. I have seen the dread-locked barista singlehandedly pumping out a ridiculous number of cups high quality coffee in short succession and personally have not tasted a bad cup. No burnt coffee, bitter coffee and the presentation is always top notch.

My only complaint is a distinct lack of raw sugar, I always take a little bit of sugar in my coffee and personally think that white sugar is a waste of time. It does not provide any flavour while raw sugar adds just the slightest hint of caramel. I think a lot of coffee drinkers are in the same boat as I and there really is no reason why sachet’s of both can’t be on the tables.

For food, I think Joe’s is certainly one of the best places in Queenstown for a queezy stomach or an aching head. It has a good range of salads, cereal and hot breakfast on the menu, rounded out with a couple of bratwurst rolls. My personal favourite meal is “The Joker”, it is a toasted roll, bratwurst, bacon and egg. This is certainly full of flavour and meat and certainly won’t dissapoint with it’s size. All in all the meals at Joe’s are superb, they aren’t necessarily the cheapest but they are definitely worth every cent.

Probably my biggest complaint about Joe’s Garage is the clientele, often the feel given off from the other customers is one where they think you should get out of their coffee shop and town. People have mentioned this to me about other places in Queenstown, but I have only ever noticed it at Joes. I think it is magnified by people sitting in the dining area with their dogs under the table and not caring if anyone else has a problem with this - that is what the outdoor eating area is for!

Overall I love the place and regularly recommend people to drop in for a coffee and breakfast.

I’ve eaten a lot of bacon in my time, and IHEARTBACON is the first website I visit every morning (that might actually be a lie), regardless, I couldn’t think of anything better at 2pm in the morning (hangover or not) than bacon and eggs and maybe a little bit of toast. This could actually have been the breakfast and that Moses cooked before he led his people from Egypt, well he would have apart from the fact that Judaism prevents the touching of the flesh of pigs. Maybe I should steer clear of religion.

Don’t get me wrong, bacon isn’t just for breakfast, the BLT is a great meal, especially at lunch and the fat and flavour of bacon is extremely complimentary to a number of other meats, chicken the most notable.

Having sampled quite a bit of bacon in my time, I was very disappointed when I first not only purchased but prepared some here in Queenstown. First let me say that I’m not sure if this is endemic across the nation, but the situation here in Central Otago is dire. There is a few problems with it, first of all bacon here is ridiculously expensive (I wonder how it weighs in on the Bacon and Eggs Index). The cheapest (and worst quality) comes in at about $10 a kg, that is for some dodgy extra fatty, extra salty shoulder bacon, as you improve the “quality” the price increases to around $20 a kg. This is usually American streaky bacon - I don’t really know what that is supposed to mean, but it certainly doesn’t mean meaty. They are long rashers, with not a great deal of anything on them, what sets them apart is the saltiness and this meat does at least taste good, but it doesn’t go very far for a hungry man.

Compare these prices and quality to the 9.99kg Woolworths bacon in Australia and it makes this bacon lover want to cry.

Motogrill is one of those places where the first time you walk in there, you don’t actually feel like you belong. The staff probably won’t look up from the newspaper they are reading, or break from the conversation they are having with the 3 guys leaning on the counter. Don’t get me wrong, they aren’t being unfriendly or rude, work may not actually be why they are there. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining, I’d be the same if I were them. There isn’t a problem with getting a coffee though, you will get it and it will be good. It just won’t be the all smiles and how can I help that you will get at Starbucks, and don’t get me started on Starbucks.

Which leads me to the next point, the food. The Motogrill steak sandwich may be one of the best lunches in Queenstown, it is definitely not overdone. Served on toasted bread, seasoned with parsley (It might not actually be parsley) and complete with partly melted cheese,tomato and lettuce it is everything you could hope for in a sneak sandwich, and let me tell you, I’ve hoped for a lot of things in a steak sandwich. The pasta salad is another favourite of mine - beans, spiral pasta, chicken, tomatoey sauce and some shaved parmesan. One of the things about everything at Motogrill is the size. They definitely aren’t skimping on the portions, which on a hangover is exactly what you want.

All of this is great, but there is one glaring problem for Motogrill to be the ultimate cafe for a hangover cure, this is of course the fact that Motogrill is closed on Sundays. Now I know that the staff are snowboarding on Sunday’s or recovering from their hangover and who am I to blame them? But seriously guys, you get us addicted with your awesome steak sandwiches and then refuse to open and serve us scrambled eggs and cappuccinos for breakfast on a Sunday.

This post was written by Bruce Thurlow, normally he writes about the Black Keys or about nothing in particular over at Mr Dingleberry.

For some people a basic act of survival is having a cup of coffee each morning. Especially after a big night out. And it becomes more of an act of survival when that coffee does not meet expectations. Being in a rush at home and swallowing a couple of tar-like gulps of instant coffee with not so hot water ain’t fun. Just like coffee, bad tea comes in many shapes and sizes. More so when you’re paying for it. Or for that matter when you are offered a cuppa from a work colleague or house mate and there’s nowhere to hide and refuse.

When I once lived in a share house and was interviewing prospective house mates, I didn’t bother with the basic “Are you employed?” questions. I went straight to, “How do you make a cup of tea?”.  Having someone demonstrate making a too-milky cuppa with the tea bag still immersed with the string dangling limp over the rim of the cup is as unsatisfying as any experience I know. And I’ve had a few.

Recently I’ve been drinking a lot of tea, mainly in cafes between job interviews. Where once I could put up with with a tea bag of English Breakfast in a pot, now days I’m an unrepentant Chai drinker. More of a Chai snob actually. Chai, of course, roughly translates as ‘tea’ in Iran, India and Turkey and surrounding countries, invariably the spiced or masala milk tea style. This is my weakness - that sweet/spiced aromatic lure of some place Other than where you are now that invades your consciousness. I traveled India some years ago and the hollah of tea for sale from the Chai Wallah (seller) at train stations was a sweet greeting for the ears. The Wallah would tilt the large urn of spiced masala tea strapped on his back and pour the tea into a small clay cup which you would throw away after drinking from it. I never had a bad cup.

Some years later, the Chai craze hit the Western world and it became a plague on otherwise respectable cafes driven by a consumer who thought they tasted something “new” and “original”. Something instant coffee drinkers also said about “granulated coffee” many moons ago. Chai for profit-taking cafes can simply mean a rough jumble of tea, sugar and a smattering of “flavours” in a powdered form.  It’s the stuff you drink at Starbucks (or once did before they defaulted on any consumer credibility they once held). You know when you drink it; “powdered” tea will never be the real deal.

Yesterday, however, I saw how it could and should be done. I had a Chai at the cafe Journal and upon a functional serving plate came: a pot of hot milk and divine leaf Chai (not too spicy, not too sweet), a spare pot of hot milk to refill the tea pot, a small amount of honey on the side, a tall glass with long spoon, and a leaf strainer with drip tray. I got three and a half full cups of Chai for $4.00.  The previous day I paid $6.00 for one glass at Soul Mama that was more hot milk with honey than any semblance of spiced tea. No refills. Lest we forget.

So, next time you consider a coffee for your morning fix, rejoice in a Chai for that sorry head of yours.

Further to the Drink Planner’s post on the drinkiest shows on television, I’ve got a few observations on Deadwood. I have only recently started watching it (pretty much all the way through.) Al Swearengen is the character throughout that you don’t know if you are supposed to like him or hate him but one thing is for certain he has got the right idea about a few things. You will only ever see him drinking 2 things, coffee and whiskey, coffee in the morning and whiskey pretty much whenever else. I’d say he wakes up with a fair hangover (though he doesn’t often show it) and a couple of times he has been seen eating or ordering bacon and eggs, clearly a man that knows how to handle a hangover.