When Kadin and Kitty Conner returned to Stewart Island they initially planned on opening a restaurant, but settled instead on a food truck.
The truck is doing brisk business, Kadin told Kathryn Ryan.
The menu at Fin and Feather Eatery food changes monthly, reflecting what seasonal produce is available on the island.
Local and seasonal ingredients include a pest seaweed harvested by local school children and crayfish-flavoured salt.
The couple also make donuts, which attract queues every Saturday.
The truck based at Half Moon Bay offers more flexibility, he says.
“I think a lot of people are going for the food trucks because you need less staff, you don't need as many people to wait tables and clean dishes. It's quite a flourishing industry.”
They got their truck custom made, he says.
“Look around second hand and there's a lot of ones that have seen a bit of wear and tear.
“And you want it to work for you, especially when it's first time business owners. You don't want to have to flounder through and make it work.
“But the main thing we needed was something that wouldn't rust with all the salt water here.”
They enlist the help of local school kids to collect seaweed, Kadin says
Undaria or wakame is a noxious seaweed pest that arrived in New Zealand in the 1980s.
“When it's on the menu, I flick them some money and they go get me a bucket or two of seaweed and we process it and pickle it up.
“You're turning what is a pest into food which is great, and the kids get pocket money, so you can't you can't complain with that one.”
The salmon on the island is exceptional, he says.
“The salmon grown down here id one of the freshest, cleanest salmon you can get around New Zealand.
“It's just got that pure salmony flavour, there's no muddy flavour to it.
“We had salmon gravlax last menu, which is just raw salmon and it really highlighted the beautiful nature of it and, you know, this month we soaked it in a brine and then smoked it and put it through some kumara and turned it into croquettes and away you go - you've got a lovely, different way to eat salmon.”
Saturday is donut day, he says.
"We do coffee and donuts. And I'll be there quite early in the morning making about 100 donuts by hand," he says.
“They just fly off the shelves. The flavours like everything else we change weekly and reflect seasonality and what's around, we like to do fruity ones and chocolatey ones.
“I can't actually keep up with demand. There hasn’t been a day that we haven't sold out in months.”
