Free Range Chef

I managed to secure 2 VIP tickets and took my foodie partner to the show.

Rick Stein has always been a food hero of mine, his attitudes towards good simply food and of course his love for seafood. I like many have watched him on TV for many years, starting with the Taste of the Sea in 1995, since then Rick has done eight more series, with the latest series still being shot on the food of Spain (another favorite food and place of mine) due to be finished in summer 2011.

I have enjoyed making many of his recipes over the years and have been influenced by his enthusiasm for fresh ingredients, celebration of seafood and his philosophy on the sustainability of our seas. So to see him live and to finally meet him here in Auckland was a great experience.

We started the evening in the VIP room with great New Zealand wines, canapes and a quick pre speech from the man himself.

We left there to the main room with a bag of goodies, a signed his cook book Coast to Coast, a Rick Stein apron and bag and lots of other bits and pieces.

Mark Sainsbury hosted the evening, to a packed Aotea center. The stage was elegantly done,with a home style feel to the kitchen and big screens to be able to see what they were doing, and a dining area where a few lucky people got to go up on stage to try a few dishes.

The 2 hour show comprised of hand picked best bits from his TV series some of his favourite recipes, stories from his travels around the globe. Starting with his home town of Padstow (just over a two hour drive from my home town), moving on to the recipes of French Odyssey, then to the Mediterranean Escapes and finishing in the Far Eastern Odyssey.