Creative fish sandwich wins diners’ votes 

1 May 2025

Mount Maunganui chef Nathan Turley was “pretty speechless” as he received his second People’s Choice Award during this year’s Flavours of Plenty Festival.

His Somethin’ Somethin’ café earned the most votes in the Plates of Plenty Challenge for a beer-battered fish sandwich and kūmara crisps dish it featured on its menu for a month, alongside the festival.

A few weeks earlier, Nathan claimed the People’s Choice title during the festival’s flagship Battle of the Snack event for his curry Malay-flavoured stuffed chicken wing and sambal mayo snack entry. 

Image: Somethin’ Somethin’ café award winners (from left), owners Ash and Nathan Turley, front of house manager Kirsty Stuart, and barista Bonnie Zhang.

It’s the first time Nathan’s been part of the annual foodie festival, which is now in its fourth year, and he says his team noticed a “huge” increase in weekend customers during the 18-day event.

“Straight after Battle of the Snack, like the next three or four weekends after that were just way bigger than previous weekends – I’d say at least 20 per cent bigger.”

His café’s Plenty O’Fish dish entry featured four of the nine locally produced Plates of Plenty Challenge ingredients, resulting in a beer-battered fish sandwich which was accompanied by an avocado and coriander mousse, crispy curry leaves, kūmara crisps, and the festival’s bespoke Sunseeker pale ale beer.

Image: The most popular beer-battered fish sandwich and kūmara crisps dish.

It attracted a fifth of all the diner votes for 24 different dishes which were entered in the Plates of Plenty Challenge by eateries throughout the Coastal Bay of Plenty.

“It was a big surprise to win. We were just happy to be part of it – to put out some good food. Hopefully, it gets our name out there a bit more. People will see what we’re doing in terms of our food and our style,” Nathan says.

A panel of mystery judges were also asked to select their favourite dish during the Plates of Plenty Challenge.

Image: The winning Surf Shack team (from left): head chef Brad Major, sous chef Mikayla Millar, front of house manager Courtney Bettink, and co-owner Jo Coombes.

Waihī Beach café Surf Shack won the coveted Judge’s Choice Award with its Te Reka o te Rā | The Sweetness of the Sun dish, featuring honey, soy and garlic panna cotta, hot honey hokey pokey, sourdough ice cream, kūmara syrup, olive biscuit crumb, pale ale, and blueberries.

Image: The Plates of Plenty Challenge judging panel was wowed by the Surf Shack’s Te Reka o te Rā | The Sweetness of the Sun dish.

The judges noted the dish had “savoury elements that were cleverly integrated into the dish, which worked exceptionally well together”.

“The dish was advertised well, and the staff came out and explained the dish, described the development, and spoke highly about Flavours of Plenty. The waitperson also mentioned and praised the origins of the ingredients,” the judges said.

Surf Shack owners Pip and Jo Coombes have been part of the Flavours of Plenty collective since it launched in 2021. Their café won the People’s Choice Award during the festival’s first Plates of Plenty Challenge in 2022.

“Winning the Plates of Plenty Challenge Judge’s Choice award this year, from among 24 incredible Bay of Plenty eateries, is a real honour,” says Pip.

“For us, it's always been about celebrating local – meeting the producers, sharing their stories, and showcasing the best of our region on every plate. This competition gave us a chance to make it our own and connect with so many amazing people along the way. The whole team is totally stoked and we're incredibly grateful to Tourism Bay of Plenty for their support and all their hard mahi.”  

Oscar Nathan, general manager of Tourism Bay of Plenty, says the Flavours of Plenty Festival and Plates of Plenty Challenge are highly visible examples of the work his team has been doing to develop a collaborative network of tourism and hospitality operators, including the region’s unique food and beverage producers.

“We always enjoy sparking new connections between growers, producers, and eateries during the Plates of Plenty Challenge. The ultimate goal is to inspire these venues to keep utilising these food and beverage suppliers in the future, to ensure the positive impact that our annual festival generates continues well after the final event date.”

Eateries were tasked with utilising at least three ingredients from a Plates of Plenty Challenge box to produce their bespoke dish entry. The box consisted of Bay Farms Avocados, Excelso Mexico Chiapas Coffee Beans, Kiwi Artisan Manuka Wood Smoked Olives, Mauri2Holdings Red Kūmara, Mount Brewing Co Sunseeker Pale Ale, Mount Sourdough Batard Loaf, Nanric Road Manuka Honey, Soy & Garlic, Nukuhou North Blueberries, and Pepper & Me Sweet Sesh Hot Honey.

Flavours of Plenty Festival director Rae Baker says this year’s Plates of Plenty Challenge was another huge hit with diners, and she’s grateful for sponsor Southern Hospitality, which provided prize vouchers for both award winners.

“It’s so rewarding bringing all the elements of the festival together and then seeing people having a great time and tasting new things as they support our local businesses.

“We’re catching our breath, now that this year’s festival has ended, and we’re looking forward to doing it all again next year.”