Marlborough is the gourmet province. You'll find wherever you go that the locally produced food is of world-class standard. Marlborough is known the world over as the home of award-winning Sauvignon Blanc.
Sample it either at one of the numerous restaurants from the Marlborough Sounds to Picton to Blenheim to Havelock to Kaikoura, or visit a winery and enjoy fine food while you sip fine wine.
Marlborough has the full range of food providers to please any palate, from fully licensed restaurants to local taverns offering informal bistro meals and small café-style eateries.
Marlborough Wine and Food Festival
The Marlborough Wine and Food festival is now an established show-case for the region's bounty and draws people from all over the world to taste and see for themselves the excellence that is Marlborough.
Marlborough Wineries
Marlborough is the largest wine growing region in New Zealand. Currently there are more than 9000 hectares of vineyards. Predominant varieties grown are sauvignon blanc, chardonnay, riesling, pinot noir, pinot gris, and Gewurztraminer.
The original grape plantings were on the southern fringes of the plain, but have since spread across the landscape onto the river flats of the Rapaura district, west to the Waihopai and lower Wairau and further south into the Awatere Valley.
From these plantings has come a string of national and international awards, vindicating the region's excellence in producing both still and sparkling wines. The jewel in the Marlborough crown is undoubtedly its sauvignon blanc wines, critically acclaimed as among the best in the world.
Those same climatic and soil qualities that ensure the success of the region's wines, also help to produce fine fruits and vegetables, seafoods, meats, and dairy products which have collectively earned Marlborough the title "Gourmet Province of New Zealand."