Morrinsville, aka Cow Town, New Zealand

Recently I made a day trip to Morrinsville, (population 7000) purely because I had never been there before. Less than two hours from my home city of Auckland, Morrinsville is a rural service town set in the lush, productive and prosperous, dairy farming area of the Waikato.  It is a busy, bustley sort of place, a genuine hub for the local farming community.  It is not known as a tourist destination, nevertheless, I was still keen to find out what it had to offer.

First step was to go to the local information centre to collect maps of the town and a list of points of interest. Then I headed off full of the excitement I always feel when exploring a new place.

The Nottingham Castle as it was in 1877.  See how it looks today in photo below

I went straight to the Morrinsville Heritage Centre, a small but very well curated museum, where I learnt a lot about the history of the town and the surrounding area.  I found that the town was named after an Aucklander, Thomas Morrin, who owned a vast estate there. It was Thomas who laid out the plans for the town.  Interestingly, Morrin Road, near where I live in Auckland, is also named after him. Inside the museum is an original and complete colonial cottage dating from 1874, which was moved there and is incorporated into the museum building.  I enjoyed this museum, taking my time to read and study everything. Regular readers of this blog will know I have a penchant for small, local museums.

Next, armed with a map, I set out to do the Heritage Walk. As is not uncommon in New Zealand many of the sites of interest are now occupied by utilitarian, modern buildings, the heritage lost to progress.  I found the walk a bit disappointing to be honest.  Stand out, though, is the category 1 heritage listed Nottingham Castle Hotel (1914) which holds a prominent position at the end of the main street.

It started to drizzle so I sought refuge in the excellent Loxy and Co cafe (read about it in my previous post) and once fortified with a good hot coffee wandered through town to look at the Herd of Cows street art.  Many small towns try to make their mark by coming up with a theme. Morrinsville, since it is in the middle of a dairy farming area, has chosen 'cows' as its symbol. Drawing on that theme there are  60 full size painted cows, many with witty titles, and painted appropriately to their location, dotted throughout the town.  The piece de resistance is 'Mabel the mega cow' on the road leading into town.  Mabel is 6.3 metres high. This street art is a bit twee but the cows are bright, quirky and cheerful and I would suggest a 'hunt the cows day' as a fun activity for the family. Children would love them.

Mabel the mega cow is 6.3 metres (21Ft 3ins) high

Cow in police uniform at the police station.  Note the red and blue horns (lights)
Below a small selection of the 60 cows dotted around town

Unfortunately, the day I was there the Wallace Art Gallery was closed but I am told it is good and the town is proud of it.

There are many small towns like Morrinsville in New Zealand and some of them look tired and dreary but what I liked about Morrinsville was that it had a busyness, a spring in its step, and a sense of pride in its importance to the surrounding farming community.  Would I go there again? Probably not, because I would have no reason to, but I'm glad I've been.

6 Cafes worth a visit, North Island, New Zealand

 I love going on road trips and one of the things I really enjoy on these trips is stopping off at cafes for coffee, a snack or lunch.  I am pretty fussy when choosing a cafe and will often wander the streets of a town until I find just the right one because I'm a cafe lingerer. I find cafes are great places to write up travel notes, catch up on emails or trawl the net for sight seeing ideas. I also like to chill out and relax and watch the comings and goings of people. As someone who travels alone it is always good to be surrounded by happy, chatting people even for a short while.    As far as I'm concerned, since I'm going to linger, a good cafe has to be clean, have an inviting ambiance, a good selection of food, appealing decor and be popular.  I know being popular means busy but popularity also usually means it's good. The way I see it is if you are going to stop and spend some time in a cafe it might as well be a good one!

I have gathered together 6 excellent cafes that I have discovered on my travels around the North Island of New Zealand which you might like to try.  Some are old favourites and some are new discoveries. Here they are in no particular order:

DIXIE BROWNS 38 Roberts St Taupo

I had wandered round Taupo looking for a good cafe and ended up right on the lake front.  There seemed to be a steady flow of people heading for Dixie Browns so I thought "this must be good"and followed them in.  It was a very happy accident.   The cafe is large and although busy it didn't feel crowded. The decor is modern and clean. Being on the lake front its large picture windows provide views right down the lake to the snowy mountains.  I was wet and cold from steady rain but managed to get a seat right beside the fire.  I was warmly welcomed, service was excellent and my steaming hot soup was delicious.  Sitting by the fire with a glass of  red wine was bliss and I didn't want to leave.  There is an outdoor area with warm rugs provided against any chill but the weather wasn't good enough to be outdoors that day.  This was my first visit to Dixie Browns and it will stay on my list of "go tos". Vegetarian and Gluten free available.


CAPERS EPICUREAN 1181 Eruera St, Rotorua

I love this place.  It is almost worth the three hour trip to Rotorua just to go there and is on my 'must do' list each time I visit the city. It is extremely popular so it can be hard to get a seat at busy times, like Sunday brunch, but so far I have never had a problem. It is large and cosy with a stunning array of cabinet food as well as menu food. Part of the cafe is given over to a shop selling food products made by New Zealand artisan producers and it also houses a T2 speciality tea shop.  In one corner of the cafe is a glass walled room especially for children so parents can enjoy a peaceful chat while keeping their eye on their little ones.  The play area provides colouring in, interactive toys, a TV showing child appropriate films and a kids menu.  It is a wonderful idea more cafes should follow.  Happy parents, happy children! Vegan and vegetarian catered for.

LIME CAFFETERIA 1096 Whakaue St, Rotorua

This is another cafe I have frequented many times.  It is very handy to the hotel I usually stay in, also it is close to, and has views across, Lake Rotorua.  I often have breakfast there and have never been let down. Located on a corner it is bright and airy with windows on two sides and an outdoor seating area.  The decor is clean and modern. It is a small, friendly cafe offering good food, a selection of magazines to enjoy and warm, welcoming service. Recently I was stopped in the street by a couple who couldn't get into Capers for Sunday brunch and asked for my suggestion as to where to go.  I told them to go to Lime.  I saw them again later in the day and they told me they had loved it. Vegetarian option available.

DOMAIN COTTAGE CAFE In the Domain, Te Aroha

The tiny town of Te Aroha is packed with heritage buildings from the Victorian and Edwardian era so it is fitting that The Domain Cottage Cafe is housed in an old cottage high above the town in the very picturesque Domain. It is rated number 1 eatery in Te Aroha on Trip Advisor. Several rooms in the cottage are used by the cafe and it has a charming, cosy, old world atmosphere with a fireplace for chilly days and wide views out over the town. There is plenty of outdoor seating, too, for summery days. When I visited there was a knitting group of half a dozen women enjoying a knit and natter in one of the rooms, they added to the down home charm of the place.  Service was friendly and my passionfruit cake was delicious.   This was my first visit and it is certainly a place I would visit again. The cafe offers vegetarian, vegan and gluten free options

LOXY AND CO EATERY 292 Thames St, Morrinsville

This has the reputation of being  the best cafe in Morrinsville.  It is large and popular with a big city, industrial decor and vibe. The day I visited the patrons included business men having meetings, a mothers group with toddlers and  assorted couples enjoying morning tea.  It is clearly a go to place in Morrinsville.  The staff are outstandingly friendly and welcoming, calling greetings to everyone who walks in.  They serve great cafe food and have a very enticing array of cakes, muffins, biscuits and sandwiches in the cabinet.  It is very hard to choose. Excellent service and a kind farewell.  The only thing I would criticise is the rather out of place and shabby looking artificial flowers on the walls...they need to go. Vegan, vegetarian and gluten free available.

Last, but not least, one of my favourite cafes in all New Zealand and one I have frequented many times over the last 20 years. It is a compulsory stop for me when passing through the town of Matamata, often planning my trip to coincide with a meal break just so I can have it there.

WORKMAN'S CAFE AND BAR 52 Broadway, Matamata

This cafe is fantastic.  Don't be fooled by the name, it is the surname of owner Syd Workman, the most welcoming, outgoing, generous and friendly host you could imagine.  He has had the cafe for 26 years and when I spoke to him recently he told me "I just love it".  It would be easy to say that Syd makes the cafe, and in a way he does, but the food and service are excellent as well and the decor is quirky and interesting. On a recent visit I had mushrooms on toast and it was the best I have ever had. Workman's offers a Kiwi Retro menu while also keeping up with the times. They also offer vegetarian and gluten free options. Part of the cafe is a bar where you can pop in for a drink in the evening or before your meal.  

So there you are, 6 great cafes worth trying.  Please note that none of them have paid me in any way to write about them.  This is purely my view. Also be aware that cafes do change from time to time although I have frequented 3 of the 6 over several years and they have been consistently good. It would also be wise to check their opening hours as some of them have days they are closed.  Happy cafeing!