One of the many great things about New Zealand is the individualism in buildings. Some are designed and built by the famous like the Hundertwasser toilets in Kawakawa and others are just the imaginings of ordinary folk.
We visited a newly refurbished cafe in Kaiwaka on our drive up to Ahipara from Auckland. Eutopia has taken five years to renovate from its previous incarnation as a boat to a wonderful Hundertwasseresque treasure trove.
There are not many words (or sewing) to this post only photographs of our amazing surroundings. Not even pictures of our lunch because we were far too hungry to think about taking pictures due to a few travel challenges, no breakfast and not arriving at Eutopia for lunch until 2pm. Plus I never really understood the point of taking photographs of your meal and showing others. In case you are wondering lunch was delicious as was the coffee, so it isn't only pretty scenery that make stopping at Eutopia worthwhile. A recommended stop off point for the hungry or the curious.
 |
| Outfit of the day: Horizontal Hold Victory trench, self drafted DKNY leggings, Moochi dress and United Nude Issey Miyake Step shoes |
The exterior
 |
| Entrance archway presided over by a large seagull |
 |
| Exterior wall and a better view of the seagull |
 |
| The exterior wall with some of its fancy finials |
 |
| Eutopia in the past (2014) with the boat exterior, still watched over by the seagull Photo from the Eutopia Facebook page |
The interior
 |
| Street facing courtyard |
 |
| Entrance courtyard facing the kitchen |
 |
| Entrance courtyard by the external wall |
 |
| Entrance courtyard facing the external wall |
 |
| Booth mural painted by Lori Salisbury |
 |
| Glorious mural in one of the booths |
 |
| The fountain |
 |
| Help yourself to a knife and fork! |
 |
| View of the fountain from the unfinished courtyard |
The unique carpentry
No boring wooden doors here - channelling the Hobbiton vibe. |
| The ordering counter with the door to the kitchen on the right |
The swanky bathrooms
Not quite up to the level of opulence of the Hundertwasser toilets but a lot more fancy than your average bathroom and not just because it included a urinal!
The unfinished courtyard
The new look café has been five years in the making and there are still a few unfinished areas. The courtyard we sat in (all on our own) is definitely a work in progress with its unfinished booth and slight building site appearance but it still has some of the quirky furniture and carved plaster walls |
| Unfinished booth on the left leading through to the entrance courtyard in the middle |
 |
| Wall carving by Marijke Valkenburg |
The Horizontal Hold Victory Trench looks very much at home. Would love to visit Eutopia some day.
ReplyDeleteIt was truly an amazing place with the creativity and especially as the food and coffee were good. I'm sure you'll get here one day and the cafe was busy enough to still be here too.
Delete