We met up with him while touring Taranaki at Christmas and offered him a place to lay his head when he was in Auckland before departing New Zealand.
Well what fun we’ve had. Finn spent 10 days with us and in that time we showed him some of our beautiful, local scenery, took in a movie (Ironman 2, very suitable for a 20 year old!) and introduced him to Thai cuisine, filo pastry, pure berry icecreams and the $12 lunch at Basalt in Howick village.
I just have to say that our Basalt lunch was excellent value and very filling. Daughter and I opted for pasta of the day – tasty and generous – hubby went for old-fashioned gurnard and chips and Finn discovered the stonegrill. Cooking his own meal of chicken skewers on a hot stone was a novel experience and one he enjoyed.
We were on a bit of a time frame having 10-month old grandson in tow but he appeared to be happy chomping his way through mandarins, raisins, a cheese sandwich, apple custard plus a taste of fish, pasta and chicken all washed down with a bottle of water – how’s that for an appetite? But where was I? That’s right, lunching in Basalt. Cheap, appetising and accompanied by a glass of sauvignon blanc, the lunchtime fare was excellent value.
Basalt remains a contemporary, social venue we like very much – the buzzy atmosphere lifted our spirits and made us forget the drop in temperature outside. However, the food left me thinking 40 winks would be nice. Well done, guys!
Leisurely Mother’s Day
We were seven all told – no, I lie. We were eight counting our grandson and it was all because of him that we were up at 6.15 am, showering and readying ourselves for a 7am Mother’s Day breakfast at the Novotel Hotel in Greenlane.
We chose the latter because we knew the hotel dining room would be open early, was spacious enough to accommodate our group and also to give us a corner where our wee man could be comfortably seated in a high chair without intruding on other guests.
The buffet breakfast suited because it allowed plenty of choice and was an affordable option especial as two couples held Accor Advantage Plus cards giving us four breakfasts for the price of two thus reducing our total account.
Early though it was we had a lovely time especially as all four grandparents were there to dote on their grandson who performed beautifully. Yet again he ate heartily from his own pre-prepared breakfast through to a taste of all sorts from our diverse plates. The scrambled egg was huge hit!
On this occasion we all enjoyed ourselves. The buffet contained regular items such as hotcakes and maple syrup, bacon, eggs, mushrooms, baked beans, eggs Benedict, potato bites and more as well as fresh and preserved fruit, bircher muesli, yoghurt, cold cuts, toast, Danish pastries and croissants. And, praise be, there was a croissant crisper in place so these tasty pastries could be served warmed through with just the right amount of crispiness.
By time we departed, around 9am everyone was full and the little fellow ready for his morning sleep. It was a pleasing start to the day and didn’t require us eating again until dinnertime!
If the start to Mother’s Day was a happy one so was the end. After an afternoon of grand-parenting with a mix of shopping thrown in, I arrived back home not at all in the mood to cook and not very hungry either.
However, by time 6pm had come and gone hubby and I thought we could manage a little something, but what? In the end the easiest thing to do was whip up the road to our neighbourhood local, Pavia Italian Restaurant in Gossamer Drive.
There we shared a child’s size pizza (usually reserved for children) some garlic pizza bread and an entrée of six large peeled prawns sautéed in garlic butter.
We downed it all with a couple of glasses of red wine then spotted some friends and spent a little time chin-wagging. The busy, happy atmosphere was cheering, the food simple but satisfying and the only thing missing were our slippers.
