How Dunners does dairy differently

13 December 2019

Part Two of guest writer Toby Bennett’s blog series for Dunedin Online on the city’s food scene is an epic love letter to local dairy.

You have that eureka moment - the brain bulb flashes. Could I get out of the rat race and make money making stuff, doing something I actually love? Then you dismiss the idea (because if it was that easy everyone would be doing it, right?) and return to the humdrum reality of getting stuck in that all too familiar rut. But what if you gave up a steady income, turned your back on a well-established career, didn’t play it safe and had a go? Well that is exactly what is happening right now right here in Dunedin. We all increasingly want to eat local and meet the locals who made it. Yeah, it tastes great but, more than that, it feels good supporting your own. Cutting down food miles, knowing what’s in, what’s going down. What’s not to like?

Olive Tabor is one those pioneers who dared to dream and hats off to her because it’s quite simply spreading happiness and showing us all what you can do, not getting bogged down in what you can’t. Inspired by a trip to the States (well, we all borrow ideas); could homemade handmade ice cream work in her hometown not known for the sun having its hat on that often and whipped by those dastardly southerlies? But a bit more research revealed we’ve got a bit of a hankering for ice cold creamy concoctions even in the heart of the deep south winter. For one thing you can savour every last mouthful without resorting to having to constantly lick your fingers, rushing to scoff it before it turns to gooey mush.

Olive had been the manager at natty Nova in downtown Dunedin for five years but gave it all up to chase her ice cream dream. Yep, she tried the traditional route of setting up shop in town but couldn’t find a site, so bought an old Bedford van (of course it’s got a name – “Betty”) instead and converted it into a one-stop-shop on wheels and Bob’s your uncle. Well, actually, it wasn’t quite that simple spending months trialling, testing and tasting as, guess what? She’d never done it before. You never know until you give it a go. How could she possibly afford the cost setting up a commercial kitchen, compliance, food registrations and all that jazz? It’s over before it’s even started. Well thankfully, no. We all hear about how communities can come together to help their own and Kaikorai Valley Rugby club let her use their kitchen to explore, experiment and so much more. The club fling open their doors to budding entrepreneurs keen to have a go, knowing that yes, they’ll probably move on, but others will hopefully follow in their slipstream, giving locals a chance to shine.

Fast forward two years and Pattis & Cream is not only a firm favourite in St Clair (who doesn’t love an ice cream watching the white capped waves lapping the sandy shore?). Every Thursday night she’s dropping off tubs and waffle cones across the city, a true dairy fairy (and yes, it is free delivery in the city). Surely she had enough to do you might rightly think? But no, she’s the real deal - even making all her cones from scratch!

Queuing for Pattis & Cream at St Clair. Photo: Toby Bennett

Olive is all about keeping it local and has teamed up with the new gals on the block at Alimental (two lovely ladies who decided earlier this year to have crack at delivering Dunedinites with bespoke catering, from breakfast to dinner) by delivering their handmade cookies so you can have an ice cream sammy. Glorious -genius! They promote each other on social media. It’s easy to be cynical about the book of face and the like but sometimes it’s hard to knock it.

Olive has also collaborated with the Bay Road bros. They had a yummy, scrummy peanut butter ice cream at their first open evening at their factory and cafe. The likeable lads (who roast their own nuts and do it all by hand) wanted locals to get a true taste of what they do and why. This nicely nutty number has proved such a success that Olive now sells it direct to discerning Dunedinites. These people are loving local, living local and working together to make things happen!

Bay Road HQ. Photo: Bay Road

They always say there’s no substitute for quality but it hasn’t been all plain sailing. Olive not only toiled away making ice creams, cones and burgers (that’s the Patti’s bit) but also initially had two part time jobs just to pay the mortgage and business loan. Talk about dairy dedication. I know what you’re thinking - was it really all worth it? The sacrifice, stress and sleepless nights? Well, just have a gander at the long line of salivating souls down by the beach (at least you can queue with a view.)

Olive now employs three people to give her a hand and has had to move out of the rugby club so she can make more (and more). But surely you’re now back to square one, needing your own all-singing, all-dancing commercial kitchen? That doesn’t come cheap. Well, no, because yet again, some damn decent Dunedinites have created a space as a base for our young guns so they can keep on firing.

Artisan Food Producers in Kaikorai Valley Road is the brainchild of two southern stalwarts and passionate pasta masters who have been involved in the local food scene for 30 years. They sold their pasta making business (the largest on the mainland, which was moved up to Christchurch) but rather than just flog the site and drift off into well earned retirement, they have turned it into a hub helping locals take that next step or few on what is otherwise a notoriously slippy ladder. Start-ups get access to a fully equipped kitchen, refrigeration and even storage at ridiculously reasonable rates. It’s pretty obvious that Vito and Penny love local. These guys don’t just provide the facilities but also share their knowledge, nous and know how. They’ve also opened the Artisan Cafe and Pantry, a locavore store showcasing our city’s cracking produce and plans are afoot to open another one on Rattray Street. Has that whet your appetite? Well there’ll be more on these fantastic folk in a future blog.

So where does Olive go from here? She’s just piqued the interest of national news providers, which is great for the Dunedin food scene. It’s increasingly getting noticed nationwide. About time too! Not one to rest on her laurels, Olive is now working out a way to open an upmarket scoop shop and diner in town - so cool! But don’t panic, she’ll still be dishing out her van-fuelled flair in St Clair! And the collaborations continue with a rose and pistachio number using petals from Dunedin florist RocknRosie. Oh, and a milk stout offering with Arc Brewery’s decadent darkness.

Single-use plastic bags have finally been banned in our supermarkets, but what about all the other plastic packaging? Well, two young local bright sparks have come up with an ingenious way of doing their bit and tackling the downsides of our much-loved coffee culture. Just stop a minute and consider all those empty milk containers destined for landfill as we sup our flat whites (imagine life without coffee adorned with meticulously fine foamed fantastic frothiness? No, actually, don’t. It doesn’t bear even thinking about).

Luka (18) and Jo (22) have founded Spout Alternatives working with Holy Cow and Merrall MacNeille’s (marvellous moniker for a farmer) Jersey herd at Port Chalmers to deliver milk in kegs, cutting out plastic altogether. Easy to clean, reusable, recyclable, it just makes sense. How come no one has done it before? These trailblazers have partnered with The Corner Store Cafe to show how well it works. Does it make a difference you might cheekily ask? Well just one keg gets rid of five big plastic milk containers. Go on, you do the maths. It’s a brilliant idea! We doff our metaphorical caps to you.

Our fabulous citadel is coming up with all sorts of ways to reuse, recycle and compost waste, championing natural materials and solutions. Which is exactly what the fine farming folk of Holy Cow are doing - old school but cool. They use glass bottles which are washed and reused with punters paying a dairy deposit encouraging them to bring back their bottles, getting a better price - nice. Organic and sustainable, with just 24 cows, each with their own name and stall. It gets even better, as they are milked to the soothing sounds of classical music. Because they are Jersey cows, the milk is richer and creates a creamy cocktail with the good stuff settling at the top (ah, just like the old days). All it takes is a shake to make it the milk we grew up with, bringing on back the good times.

Meanwhile, up over the hill from the increasingly shabby chic (a compliment, not a criticism), bohemian backwater of Port (charming) Chalmers, where perhaps the grass is greener, is Purakaunui - home to another heavenly herd at Goat Island Dairy. No wonder the milk tastes so damn good! The goats are blessed with sea views and drink only fresh spring water. No chemical sprays or antibiotics, here it’s all about proper produce. Dunedin is not a place to gloat but hey, we’ve got goat to float our boat. It’s the milk mission of three mates and neighbours who are selling gorgeous, glorious goat juice, soft cheese and yoghurt across town.

They started small, selling from a market stall, coming up with a nice niche idea. But are they actually making money from such a boutique business? Ultimately it’s all about quality not quantity but it’s gone down so well that they’ve just quadrupled the number of goats from 30 to 120. They’re now looking at leasing extra land, which they will then try and buy in a few years time. They’ll be rolling out some more harder cheeses as well, having struggled to keep up with demand, although selling out sort of speaks volumes. As this goes to press they are in the process of doing a deal with some supermarkets. Start small but dream big!

Shaun from Goat Island Dairy at the Otago Farmers Market. Photo: Toby Bennett

I can already hear the naysayers proclaiming “cow’s milk only please”. Go on, though, give it a go. Okay, but what does it really taste like? Its flavour is a bit like the smell of goat. That’s a good thing? You say fusty, I say funky, combining sweet and sour (a well-known winning formula). There is nothing else quite like it. Oh it’s dreamily creamy as well and, trust me, once you’ve tried it there’s no turning back. Quite simply, goats rock and might even rule the roost - but you be the judge.

Both these dairy delights from the north of town are also on offer every weekend at the Saturday smorgasbord that is our very own Farmer’s Market. More cheese please!

Live local, love local and go on - dare to dream!

Cheers, Toby

(Next up I say “cheers to local beers”)

Toby Bennett

Toby and his wife Debs are collectively "Catlins Kitchen" & "Catlins True Brew". They sell at the Otago Farmer's Market and love their city fix each week. Catlins True Brew is NZ's only rainwater eco craft beer, where they just let mother nature do her thing. They also sell homemade dips, pates, vegetable chips and pastry delights. Everything is made from scratch using goodies from their garden, foraged favourites and the best ingredients from Dunners and Otago.