Feted by the critics and loved by its regulars, Wynyard Quarter restaurant Baduzzi is a true labour of love for owner Michael Dearth, who also owns fine dining establishment The Grove.
Dearth came to New Zealand with a dream to open his own restaurant, beginning with The Grove. What he had planned was a place that would show off the vibrancy and freshness of seasonal produce, paired with exceptional wines from around the world, and amazing service. The customers flocked to the elegant Wyndham Street spot and so did the awards, and whilst chefs came and went, Dearth’s attention to detail held everything together with aplomb.
A few years later he opened Baduzzi, which directly honours the Italian American culture that he grew up amongst in Connecticut, United States. “Baduzzi was always going to be an expression of the type of food that I grew up with,” Dearth tells me, “and I have always felt that Italian food has always been one of the most loved but also misinterpreted, cuisines. At Baduzzi we have set out to show how special it is, and that Italian is not just the cuisine that is easy to cook at home, so why go out and pay for it.”
Key to that is the picture perfect wine matches to be made with Baduzzi’s dishes, which Dearth, as a sommelier, has a particular passion for. He started out in his career as a dishwasher and then bartender and chef, before spending time as a waiter and maître d’ and then eventually, sommelier. “I fell in love with wine and started to study it a little later in my career,” he explains, “and soon started to see how many incredible Italian wines there were out there that needed to be celebrated.”
He tells me that if you were lucky enough to spend a year travelling through Italy, you could literally try a new wine variety every day, “but still not even scratch the surface of how many they really have there.” His pursuit of provenance at every touch point at Baduzzi has seen him incorporate as many unique wine varieties from Italy into the resident wine list as possible, and honour the certain sense of place that they bring to the dishes. “In Europe they don’t separate food and wine,” he tells me, “and I think there has been a real disconnect in our new world that needs to be righted. People need to be reminded of that, and not being limited in their approach to what is appropriate to eat or drink.” He talks about restaurants - and their diners - who limit themselves to just a couple of seafood options when we there are lesser-known and lesser-used varieties that are just as worthy of experimentation, “and the same goes when it comes to wine. So many New Zealanders will limit themselves to just two varietals that they know of, and are missing out on some beautiful discoveries and matches.”
He cites the island of Ischia off the coast of Naples as a perfect example of where provenance is done well, starting with the oily fish options that make up a lot of their dishes. “We do a similar thing here with our super-popular flame grilled sardines with pinoli, feta and white raisins, which make perfect sense when paired with a glass of Ischia Bianco white wine. It really makes you realise the importance of the provenance of food and wine and how well they can work together, even if at first the wine may seem really unfamiliar and odd to you.”
He is excited by the growth and popularity in New Zealand of artisanal growers and producers who are devoting their lives to creating special moments in produce that he and his kitchen are more than happy to take advantage of. “Our goat ricotta supplier is a dedicated woman with a farm of just 25 goats who delivers our order to us personally, while another woman keeps us stocked exclusively with her zucchini flowers,” he says with a smile on his face, “and that is what keeps us doing what we do.” (HELENE RAVLICH)
Baduzzi, Corner of Jellicoe Street and Fish Lane, North Wharf, T: 09 309 9339,
www.baduzzi.co.nz