There are an amazing number of cafe and restaurant options in and around Mapua: food, coffee, wine tasting, craft beer. They don’t call the cycle Trail the “Great Taste Trail” for nothing! The Wharf, the Village, the Leisure PArk, and of coruse the Wineries in Upper Moutere, Kina and the Waimea valley.
…on the Wharf
The Jellyfish, on the Wharf – open year round. The newly refurbished Jellyfish is great!
The Appleshed, on the Wharf – open 7 days a week, year round. (Mapu41south guests receive a 10% discount voucher at the Appleshed with purchases over $50)
Do yourself a favour: try breakfast or brunch on the Jellyfish , catching the morning sunrise and sparkle of the Waimea looking towards Rabbit Island, then and evening meal or dessert at the Appleshed, catching the setting sun over the Waimea basin to the south. Then reverse the order on another day. 
Alberta’s on the Wharf on the Wharf in the new Shed 4 complex – smoothies, ice cream, coffee, healthy food – our fantastic neighbours, Julia and Klaus, are the new owners. You must try their flamed salmon on a Friday night!
Hamish’s on the Wharf – great burgers shakes and fresh fruit ice cream at family affordable prices.
The Smokehouse on the Wharf is everyone’s favorite fish and chip shop, and has a wide variety of premium smoked seafood (buy your ketchup at the 4 square in the Village to save a few shekels) – Golden Bear and Rimu Wine bar are happy with you eating your fish ‘n chips on their premises as long as you buy a drink too. A win-win.
Golden Bear Brewery on the Wharf – open every day from 3pm and from 12pm Friday, Saturday and Sunday – music during the summer> Friday nights is buzzing the whole year ’round, as locals and visitors alike gather to socialize.
Rimu Wine Bar on the Wharf – open all year round. Terrific selection of “wine trees” for tastings with an amazing selection of regional wines and good wood-fired pizza (Mapua41South guests receive one 15% discount voucher for the Rimu Wine bar) ! Family friendly (as are all the cafes and restaurants on the Wharf) .
Did you know?- you can enjoy a beer or a glass of wine with your fish and chips right on the Wharf. Both Jim at the Golden Bear and Patrick at the Rimu Wine on the Wharf bar welcome you to buy your drinks with them, buy your fish and chips from the Smokehouse then bring the goodies back to eat at their venues, with their drinks!. Fantastic cooperation between businesses here. A win win strategic solution for customers and these sellers!
..in the Village
The Java Hut
– Paul and Manu serve up great coffee – a definite favorite with the locals, and visitors in the know. Great for that early morning caffeine fix (open from 7-30am) .
Sprig and Fern Mapua – open 7 days; Mon-Fri 2pm till late, Sat and Sun from 12pm to late.
The Mapua Village Bakery is now up and running, after purchasing the space formerly occupied by The Naked Bun. The coffee is good (Jason is back as baristra) , the range of breads and other baked goods is fantastic, and they have a gourmet baked pie menu that would have to be the most impressive I have seen in my 40 years at New Zealand – 2 A4 pages, freshly baked, and all at reasonable prices . My favourite though is the Danish pastry ….so good I wrote a blog post about it!! BCanadian I’d also give their apple pie a 9 out of 10!
in the Leisure Park…
The Boat Shed, in the Leisure park – open from 10:30am till late , Thursday through Sunday. At times the blue colours to the sky and the sea are simply stunning – as this photo attests. Great coffee.
…nearby in Upper Moutere…(during winter months please check winery websites for opening hours….)
Neudorf is now open for tastings – bookings are adviseable for small groups so that you can receive vip style treatment .
Mahana – Wine tastings typically open , 11am-4:30pm weekdays, 10am-4:30pm weekends (brunch too) . The kitchen was closed during the winter but is now open and under new management Forsters at Mahana
Kahurangi Estate – open 7 days a week from 10:30am-4:30pm for wine tasting, but food options limited until the summer arrives: olives, almonds or biscotti are available with the wine tasting or, as part of Kahurangi’s special “Port board” (3 imported Portugese ports) – check website during the winter for opening hours.
Moutere Hills vineyard and cafe is open Friday Saturday & Sunday , with meals in the wine bar on Friday nights-check website during the winter for opening hours.
Moutere Inn – 7 minute drive away , on the upper Moutere Highway – NZ’s oldest pub, 13 local craft beers on tap, great food.
*Note : most of these great cafes/restaurants are open every day of the year and are no more than a 4 minute walk from us here at Mapua41south 🙂
Of course there are many other great things to do in Mapua and the Tasman Region over the winter (besides eating and drinking) and we will let you know about some of these in one of our next blogs!
