Premier ‘Taste of New Zealand’ Award

IMMEDIATE Announcement
10th October 2011

Queenstown’s True South - Winner of Premier ‘Taste of New Zealand’ Award

True South Dining Room at the luxurious Rees Hotel in Queenstown has been named as a Premier Award winner in the inaugural Taste of New Zealand Awards (TONZA) programme.

The prestigious semiannual award is part of the Taste of New Zealand Festival launching in Auckland next week prior to the 2011 Rugby World Cup final.

One of the key criteria for earning the coveted accreditation was showing leadership, integrity and pride in the use of New Zealand’s great local produce.

“Our Executive Chef, Ben Batterbury has a strong penchant and passionate dedication for using fresh, local ingredients. To know that True South Dining Room has been peer reviewed and deemed one of finest in New Zealand because of that fact, is to be highly celebrated,” says Mark Rose, Chief Executive, The Rees Hotel.

As part of the Premier Award, Chef Batterbury has created two signature dishes for the public to enjoy from the TONZA kitchen at Taste of New Zealand Festival; the in-season, kiwi delicacy whitebait fritters and a terrine of Southland rabbit.

Earlier this year, Batterbury piqued the palates of discerning international media in New York attending ‘Flavors of New Zealand’ hosted by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise and the Rees Hotel at the Beard Foundation, described by Time magazine as the home of the “Oscars of the Food World”.

Former United Kingdom ex-pat, Batterbury now calls the ‘Central Otago culinary hub’ home - where he can indulge in his love of seasonal, artisan produce with a unique terroir producing premium quality wines and specialist, world-class cheeses.

ENDS

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