Wellington loves a good tag line. Whether it’s ‘the coolest little capital in the world’ or ‘you can’t beat Wellington (on a good day)’, or even ‘New Zealand’s culinary capital’, the city enjoys a good flex.
But the recent Tripadvisor Travellers’ Choice Restaurant Awards has thrown some unexpected shade at foodie Wellington’s dining establishments.
In three top 10 lists of the best fine dining, everyday eats and hidden gems in New Zealand, Wellington received just a single entry – a number 10 spot in the everyday eats category for Oak And Vine situated inside the Oaks Hotel on Courtenay Place. Two Auckland establishments were listed in the world’s best, The Grove at 13th and Sails Restaurant at 14th but there’s not a whiff of a mention for any eateries south of the Bombays.
READ MORE:
* Two Auckland restaurants named among best in the world on TripAdvisor list
* Dunedin features on list of world’s top ’emerging destinations’
* Nelson hotel tops Tahiti but pipped by Taranaki in travellers awards
So how come Wellington faced a near total wipeout?
Stuff’s Food Editor Emily Brookes thinks that the city’s diners just aren’t that tuned in to writing reviews for Tripadvisor.
“Honestly I never hear Wellingtonians talk about using Tripadvisor as a way of finding restaurants. Literally never,” said Brookes.
“My impression of Tripadvisor is that it’s used almost exclusively by international tourists, so it probably has more to do with Wellington not being as well-trafficked a tourist destination as Auckland than anything.”
She doesn’t believe the awards are a snub to the city but that “it is a shame given the calibre of Wellington’s restaurants”. Brookes is quick to point out that “no shade on Auckland which also has great places to eat”.
Kalliana Kong, who runs food blog Wellingnoms on Instagram, also agrees that Tripadvisor “is just not really a thing in Wellington”.
“If you look at the main places featured on the lists it’s the big tourist attractions – Rotorua, Auckland, Queenstown – and that makes sense to me. The one Wellington place that features is inside a big hotel in the middle of Courtenay Place – a great spot for someone who is visiting to stay.
“I don’t use Tripadvisor for recommendations for restaurants and I don’t really know anyone who does.”
Wellington food writer Lucy Corry doubts many of the city’s restaurateurs “will be crying into their coffee over this” adding: “They’ve got bigger fish to fry, like rising costs and staff shortages, for a start.”
She said word-of-mouth probably plays a bigger part in recommendations: “It’s a small place, so it’s highly likely you can ask a friend for a trusted recommendation instead.”
When contacted, a Tripadvisor spokesperson said they couldn’t share the exact number of ratings and reviews that were collected for New Zealand this year, but that “the quantity (of votes) isn’t the only deciding factor in the awards”.
”The algorithms are proprietary, but primarily take into account quality and quantity of traveller reviews and opinions, popularity among travellers, and ratings on Tripadvisor specific to each award category.”
The spokesperson added that “the Travellers’ Choice Best of the Best awards are Tripadvisor’s top honour, and the winners make up a tiny fraction of the businesses on our site. With just 665 awards out of over 4 million restaurants listed on Tripadvisor globally, the awards are extremely competitive”.
WellingtonNZ chief executive John Allen said he wasn’t “going to lose sleep over” over the awards “based on reviews from a travel website while the borders were closed”.
“Anyone who has dined at Rita, Hiakai, or Hillside recently knows Te Whanganui-a-Tara’s edible offerings are top of the class in Aotearoa,” said Allen.
"The proof is in the pudding – and the pudding to me is twofold. One – what I am hearing from my friends, family, co-workers and peers – that they are clearing every little morsel off their plates when they’re dining out.
"And two – when our food is being judged on merit, we are punching above our weight.” He cited Bellamy’s chef Joshua Ross who recently finished third in the world at the International Jeunes Chefs Rotisseurs (the Young Chef of the Year competition), as well as the Cuisine Good Food Awards where 14 of the city’s eateries scooped hats and a number of restaurants and chefs were given top awards.
Brookes agrees there are plenty of world-class venues in the city, as well as more tasty, humble offerings.
“Rita is one of my favourite restaurants in not only Wellington but the whole world. Highwater, WBC, Field & Green are also top-notch. One of the great things about Wellington is its cheap ‘n cheerful ethnic restaurants. Places like KK Malaysian, Little Penang, Dragons and Rams all do what they do exceptionally well and deserve a mention.”
For Allen, he said he would defend the local food scene ferociously.
”Whether it is Wellington On a Plate or the Sunday markets on the waterfront, we have a thriving scene accessible to all, and I am happy to chew anyone’s ear off about it.”
© 2022 Stuff Limited