The Auckland Food Show is a solid reminder that New Zealand’s focus is clean and green, with quite a lot of fun tossed into the mix. It’s one of my favourite annual events, and once again, it did not disappoint. Let’s face it, who doesn’t love food?
It is functionality over form, as visitors taste seemingly endless samples, try their hand decorating cupcakes, learn new cooking techniques from the experts, participate in cooking or coffee preparation workshops, or discover new kitchen gear. Beverages intermixed with the food stalls covered the gambit from healthy concoctions and teas to spirits, wine, and beer (for the 18+).
It’s more than just a taste of Auckland. There is something for everyone, whether you prefer sweet or spicy, smooth or dry, organic, paleo, or mainstream – you will find something to please even the most discriminating palate. Here are ten reasons to visit the Auckland Food Show:
1) Sample foods and discover new favourites
Photo Credit: Brent Godfrey
2) Learn new cooking techniques from the experts
Included in the ticket price are food and cooking demonstrations. I love the large stage from Whirlpool as it has a big screen overhead, so you can easily see what the pros are preparing.
Or, join in a workshop for some hands-on learning.
Below are:
- Ray McVinnie creates a three-course meal with a tomato and cheese tart, an impressive beef dish, and a dessert all in 45 minutes.
- A smaller demonstration area without seating sponsored by Kenwood.
- We joined a workshop hosted by Casa Barilla Cooking School. Executive chef Andrea Tranchero demonstrated a dish, and then we got a chance to do it ourselves. The result was delicious, and we got a gift bag to take home.
3) Listen to live entertainment
Live entertainment plays in “Street Food Alley,” an area for those looking for a rest or for more food than just a sample. We enjoyed the Contemporary Brazilian, Latin, and Spanish sounds of Afro Tropical Duo.
4) Enjoy international flavours made locally
Two of our favourites:
- This Sicilian Limoncello is actually made in Kerikeri, New Zealand. Also at the show were samples of wines, beers, and other spirits.
- Jeff is a huge fan of hot sauce and found a new favourite from Samoan Boys at the show. It’s Samoan-influenced, Auckland-made. It is one of many oils, sauces, and condiments available at the show.
5) Learn something new about the foods you eat
One of the big surprises for me, and possibly a new favourite snack food, is raw orange kumara. I was as surprised as you are to read this, but there it was. Here is what I learned about this Maori sweet potato:
- The orange kumara has less starch than the others and can be eaten raw.
- It metabolizes in a way that counts as one of the 5-a-Day, rather than as a carb.
- It tastes crisp, fresh and a bit sweet, with a texture reminiscent of Jícama, my favourite Mexican yam, which isn’t available in New Zealand.
6) Purchase your favourite foods or gadgets (nearly always at a discount)
7) Meet real New Zealanders
Nearly every booth offers great food show deals. I couldn’t resist purchasing some of the yummy mueslis from “Something to Crow About.” They were one of many vendors offering paleo, gluten-free, and other healthy options.
8) Have something to drink
Visitors with ID (18+) can purchase a wine glass and holder, allowing them to wear the glass around their neck.
Or, sample some water. At the Waiheke Water booth, they ran a side-by-side taste comparison of their water versus a variety of other popular brands. Theirs is the only one that is cold, so perhaps that is the difference – you decide.
9) Discover ancient secrets
Yes, I did drink a sample of black water. Discovered in Canada, this water has 77 trace minerals including the naturally black, ancient fulvic mineral.
10) Meet a few heroes
The Auckland City Mission is at the food show to raise both funds and awareness. They provide food packs to families in need and distress. The table shows the contents of a typical food pack. They are always happy to receive donations or volunteers.
Food Tips and Tidbits we have learned at the Auckland Food Show
Aside from tempting food porn and interesting gadgets, we learned a few things. Did you know:
- In Europe, USA, Canada, and Japan, to be a “feta” the cheese must be 70-90% from sheep with the remainder from goats. There are currently no restrictions in Australia and New Zealand as to which cheeses can be called “feta”.
- From the Italian chef leading the Casa Barilla cooking school, we learned:
- When making pasta, do not add oil to the water; instead, add seven grams of salt per litre.
- Do NOT rinse cooked pasta.
- Two minutes before the pasta finishes boiling, strain it from the water and finish cooking it in the sauce.
- You can use the juice from a can of chickpeas (garbanzo beans) as an egg white substitute, even for meringue.
- Many of the recipes available at the show are also available online.
- The Auckland City Mission is at the food show to raise both funds and awareness. They provide food packs to families in need and distress. They are always happy to receive donations or volunteers.
Auckland Food Show Practical Information:
- The Food Show typically runs for four days in July at ASB Showgrounds in Auckland, New Zealand. Check out the Auckland Food Show’s official web page for ticket information.
- While you can sign up in advance for sine Cooking Workshops, about one-third of the spots were saved for on-the-day sign-ups last time we did this.
- Some workshops, like wine tastings with Glengarry and coffee making with Nespresso were both first come, first served.
- There is a charge for parking; however, if you arrive early, look for free street parking around the back and enter the showgrounds at Gate 4.
- If you want to see it all, allocate at least 4 hours.
- Bring a wheeling cart (or at least a shopping bag), as many of the “food show deals” are irresistible.
- Talk to the vendors, as many of them are the owners and happy to share fun and interesting information.
- If you want to sample alcoholic beverages, be sure to bring a proper ID.
- There are plenty of other festivals in the city, as well as more than 75 free things to do in Auckland.
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More from Auckland you might also like … starting with these 75 free and nearly free things to do in the city
Disclaimer: We were guests of the Auckland Food Show. The opinions expressed here are purely our own.
Mary {The World Is A Book}
I’m hungry now! This looks like such a fun festival to attend. I feel like I have to look for some food festivals near me now. I have a sweet tooth so your pictures were so tempting. It’s great that this festival also focuses on the healthy side of food.
Rhonda Albom
You would have loved the chocolate and coffee show a few months ago, as that one completely focused on your sweet tooth. Although there were a lot more sample options here. I am already finding much of my shopping list has been altered by the is show and the new healthy options I discovered.
Danielle
Hi Rhonda,
Thank you so much for including us in your lovely post! Like you, we thoroughly enjoyed The Food Show – not just the eating and learning about new foods and vendors – but meeting all the people. Pie is for sharing, and I’m sorry you didn’t get a little bite of pie, but can completely understand watching the sugar intact – more so, since we’re baking pie every day. 🙂
We’re gone ahead and shared your blog post on our Facebook page.
We hope to see you and your husband again at some stage.
Thanks again from all of us here!
Danielle & The Pie Piper team
Rhonda Albom
Thanks Danielle. Your little pie really did catch my eye. It was about to be consumed by a stranger who had just purchased it. As for a bite, I am nearly 2.5 months sugar free as I fight a medical issue. Hopefully it wont be forever and by next year I will be able to try one. However for me it will be that chocolate and marshmallow pie. The lime sounds great, but chocolate is my favorite. The lime was prettier for the photo. Thanks for sharing.
noel
I love foodie shows and this would be really fun, one of these days I’d love to visit New Zealand.
Eileen
Hello Rhonda, the food show looks fantastic. I would love to try some of the free samples, yum! The Kumara sounds delicious! Your images are wonderful, thanks for taking me along. Have a happy week ahead!
Robyn Engel
Oh, I love sweet potato. Now to hunt down some kumara. It’s nice that they had lots of healthy options at the Food Show. I went a few times to a huge Food Show in San Francisco. I just remember eating loads of chocolate. Of course, that’s all I’d remember.
Take care, Rhonda.
Rhonda Albom
LOL – I went the Chocolate and Coffee show a few months ago and thought of you. I am much the same by nature, but now that I am fighting the IH, I have been cut off of chocolate and coffee.
Kathy Marris
Yes I love food festivals. I attended one in Brisbane, Australia last year and I couldn’t believe how popular it was. I got to indulge in some lovely wines and cheeses, plus and array of other delicacies. It was very interesting to read about sweet potatoes – they are one of my favourite vegetables.
Rhonda Albom
I am not sure about other sweet potatoes and yams, but I do know you can eat the orange kumara (New Zealand) and the jicama yam (Mexico) raw
Lyn (aka) The Travelling Lindfields
We eat a lot of kumara. It is wonderful baked with a roast dinner. I like the idea that it isn’t a carb!
Rhonda Albom
I was pretty excited about that too, but I ran it by my nutritionist and she made a face of uncertainty, but agreed I could have twice as much of it as any other carb, but wouldn’t go as far a veggie, but that was cooked, maybe it metabolizes better raw.
Michele {Malaysian Meanders}
I adore food and wish that something like this was close to me. That first photo reeled me in, but I’m glad to find out that there were a ton of healthier options, too. Bravo to them for handing out free samples. I probably would have needed one of those shopping trolleys since all your photos look delicious.
Rhonda Albom
That first little pie reeled me in as well, even though I am not eating sugar. It’s just so pretty in addition to being delicious (according to hubby).
[email protected] on Tour
Great to see you could keep up your healthy eating if you really wanted to, or take the opportunity to indulge just a little.
Rhonda Albom
You could even go completely over the top, if you wanted. There was something for everyone, even handy kitchen tools for the chef in the family.
beatravelling
Just joined! Do you have a html code for the badge?
Ruth
Great, great, great! I do not need a lot of convincing to go to a show like this. I just think about all the new flavors I can experience.
Paul F. Pietrangelo
Mini lime meringue pie, WOW! Yum, yum, yum.My mouth is watering just thinking about it. I’m watching myself when it comes to goodies , so looking at this beautiful dessert is about all I can do, look at it. But, oh my goodness how I would like to eat that mini lime meringue pie.
Have a scrumptious Saturday Rhonda. See ya.
Cruisin Paul
Rhonda Albom
Actually Paul, All I could do was look at if, photograph it, and then watch hubby eat it. They have cut me off of sugar amongst other things. But just looking at it was enough for me. There are so many healthy options at the food show, I feel like my limited eating options have been dramatically expanded.
Paula McInerney
Would love to go the food show, and I love the different tasters that you had. I didn;t know that orange kumara was so good for you, so will put that on my shopping list. Oils – my favourite.
Rhonda Albom
I didn’t know about the kumara either. It was my favourite discovery of the show. A new snack food that doesn’t violate my eating plan. What could be better than that?
Vicki Green
I’ve never been to a food show. It looks like there were a lot of tasty things to try.
Rhonda Albom
Yes, this show was loaded with samples, and information about new foods and food accessories. We bought a new Magic Bullet at the show for a huge discount over retail.
Travelera
I have never been in a food show, It would be great to visit!! Yummy Yummy
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Travelera
Definitely everything looks delicious!!
budget jan
I love food festivals. Ljubljana in Slovenia has one every Friday! I particularly like samples of main courses from around the world. Curries, Tacos, etc.
Rhonda Albom
A weekly food festival would be amazing. The New Zealand show is annual, and huge. You are only seeing a small portion in my photos.
Lydia C. Lee
I’ve never been to a food show – I was tempted to go to one that said they had the most ‘instagramable creations’ (I’m not sure if you got to eat them too…)…but the timing didn’t work out (story of my life)
Rhonda Albom
What an interesting way to promote a show. Let’s hope you could eat them too, otherwise it’s a bit of torture.
Ellen @ The Cynical Sailor
I have to say, I’m a bit dubious of the idea of raw kumara as I’m not really a fan of the stuff even when it is cooked. I’ll have to take your word on this 🙂 Now, that little merengue pie – I would have thumb wrestled with your hubby to get a bit of that. Looked delicious!
Rhonda Albom
Like you, I was a bit hesitant to try the raw kumara, but once I did, I had to ask for a second piece. It’s only the orange kumara you can eat raw. Give it a try one day, you might be surprised.
Suze The Luxury Columnist
I’m surprised by this raw kumara too, not sure if we have this in the UK but I’m going to look into it
Chrys Fey
I’ve never been to a food show but now I want to go to one! It sounds like fun and it looks yummy! I may be a vegetarian but I love food and love to try new things…especially desserts. 😉 I’ve never tried raw kumara. I’ll have to remember that.
Rhonda Albom
Being a vegetarian would not be a problem at this food show. There really is more than enough options for any eating style. And remember, it’s only the orange kumara that you can eat raw.
Hilary
Hi Rhonda – looks like you had fun, yet were good and kept away from those bad foodie things. Good for you. Amazing range of stalls … I used to got the Ideal Home Exhibition in London when I was a kid and we were near London … I worked at one in South Africa …
We have them here in Eastbourne … but they’re usually so crowded I can’t be bothered .. lazy I guess. Interesting about the Kumara … I love beetroot and think you can eat that raw too – I bought some the other day and cooked them up – so delicious to have them freshly cooked like that. I love roasting them too …
Enjoy the show tomorrow if you get to go again .. the olive oils look delicious … cheers Hilary
Rhonda Albom
I imagine this show will be pretty crowded over the weekend. We were there on Thursday, which was the opening day and had a 4000 ticket limit. It sounds like a big crowd, but aside from trying to find parking, it never felt crowded.
As for beetroot, I use a hand shredder and add this strips of it raw to salads. It’s quite good for you. Personally, I don’t like it cooked.
Lisa
great write up, I found so many inspiring people there – GoodBuzz and Wilder+Hunt really stood out for me x
Rhonda Albom
Yes, I agree, the were so many passionate exhibitors there. For me it was the kumara that stood out amongst the crowd, but overall, it was a great show. I may go back again today.
Lexa Cain
I thin k I’m less of a “Foodie” and more of a plain old glutton. I love food and for a long time I had to diet because my work was on stage. After years of not being allowed to eat things like bread, french fries, potato chips, or chocolate, I’ve now retired and eat anything I darn well please!! I’d have loved the show. Thanks for the awesome pics! 🙂
Rhonda Albom
LOL – there was plenty of exhibitor who could speak to your gluttonous side. Hubby tried anything that looked great, but wasn’t in my current food plan. Your old “no” list is quite close to my current list, only mine has much more on it.
stevebethere
That looked like fun loved the photos of it all and if your going back Saturday don’t eat too much heheh!
I went to one here years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it too.
Have a yumyumtastic day Rhonda 🙂
Bethany
I am going on Saturday. Can’t wait.
Jenny
I didn’t know the food show was this weekend. I am so going! It looks really great. Glad you enjoyed the healthy treats, I think I am going for the sweets.
Alex J. Cavanaugh
I would’ve camped out at the olive oil place.
Never heard of kumara, but it looks just like potatoes.
Wish we got trade shows like that here.
Rhonda Albom
Kumara is a Maori sweet potato, similar to an American Yam. When I lived in the states I used to eat jicama raw, but I didn’t know until today that it was a Mexican yam. I always thought it was a turnip.
Comedy Plus
Looks like a great place to visit if you love food shows. My husband would love this. I wouldn’t. Just not something that interests me. Now the garden show would be more my style.
Have a fabulous day. 🙂
Rhonda Albom
We are the opposite, hubby would enjoy a garden show a lot more than I would, although we both loved the food show, even though we had completely different experiences, together.