What it takes to make a Love Bite
Chefs in Hamilton CBD’s daytime eateries have been inspired by nostalgia and culture to create special snacks for Love Bites, a hospitality initiative running throughout August.
Participating restaurants and cafes had to consider one rule when planning and crafting their ‘Love-Bites‘; their bite had to be picked and eaten with your hands.
The small size hasn’t limited the scope of their creativity and inspiration though, with some bites holding as much of a story as the chefs that made them.
At Moo’s Table on Alexandra Street, chef Robin Moo decided his bite of an apple turnover was going to be sweet. Despite not having a preference for eating apples himself, chef Moo has created an apple filled triangle pastry.
He said his restaurant prides itself on nutritional dishes, but said it was time for people to enjoy “simple dishes and not feel guilty from any added sugar”.
Dot and Winnie’s cafe owner Laura Pritchard, who named the establishment after her and her husband’s respective grandmothers, decided to keep the nostalgia theme going with a cinnamon oyster from her grandmother Dot’s old recipe book.
She says the sponge cake filled with marscarpone and whipped cream came from “wanting to do something sweet, which is what we’re known for here… and I thought what a perfect thing to have [for love bites]”.
Others drew their inspiration from their cultural backgrounds.
At Le Rendez Vous Crêperie on Alexandra Street, the inspiration behind their Canelé de Bordeaux came from owner Samantha Wiria’s childhood growing up in Bordeaux, France.
The baked vanilla custard is a popular staple with customers morning coffee and Wiria said they made the pastries small to be “more attractive to customers, and cheap so they can be bought” to experience a part of her childhood.
Mr Twist owner Dave Murray found himself taking inspiration from his many visits to the US with his American wife, creating a bagel made from pretzel dough. Murray said this is then toasted, and covered in butter and cinnamon sugar.
He said “I hope they [the love bites] make people happy… that’s the thing really, if food can make you feel good and happy then it’s a good thing for everyone”.
Owner of Markyles, Gautam Patel, is originally from India, and says their gulab jamun is a “traditional Indian dessert that a lot of Kiwi people already like.” They hope that the street food type donut, soaked in cardamum sugar syrup and toppedwith whpped cream, will “help people discover a bit more about their culture.”
Their are 32 Love Bites available for purchase from participating eateries in the city centre until August 31st. For more information, visit https://www.lovethecentre.co.nz/love-bites/
