Local Time: 8:31 PM
Pegasus Bay Winery Restaurant has proved once again that it’s much more than just a vineyard, by taking out the top winery restaurant award for the second year running.
Owned and operated by the Donaldson family, Pegasus Bay winery was awarded New Zealand’s best winery restaurant for the second consecutive year in the prestigious Cuisine Magazine’s Restaurant of the Year Awards. This year it shared the winning honours with Hawkes Bay’s Craggy Range Winery restaurant, Terroir.
Pegasus Bay is set within the Waipara Valley, which is now internationally acclaimed as a wine-growing region.
The Pegasus Bay Winery restaurant is understated yet welcoming. It is set in a gorgeous garden hidden behind a hedge beyond the winery and at the entrance to the property a row of sugar fig trees stands high above a well-crafted stone wall.
The Donaldson family has been seriously involved in wine since the early 1970s and were pioneers of local grape growing and wine making. Therefore, it is no surprise that they make some of the most prized wines in the region, with exquisite food to match.
Chef Oliver Jackson relies on crafting seasonal produce, often sourced from the property or from the local farmers’ market, into delicious dishes designed with the wines in mind. The result is something nearing perfection … organic figs with gorgonzola, roasted walnuts, goat’s curd, mint and local honey is the perfect way to start your meal. Follow that with confit duck pie with shallots, garlic peas and Pinot jus, accompanied by Pegasus Bay’s rich, dark Pinot Noir and you will probably think you’re in heaven!
The restaurant has diners comfort top of mind all year round - in winter it’s very cosy, while in summer outdoor dining in the gorgeous garden is a must.
One of the Cuisine Magazine’s Restaurant of the Year judges said of Pegasus Bay Winery restaurant, “I will go back there without hesitation.” But you be the judge of that!