A yawn is just a silent scream for coffee

View of the vineyards at Ascension.

On a roadtrip from Auckland, NZ we stopped to have dinner at Ascension Osteria, a local vineyard's restaurant that serves delicious food -- complemented by their own wines -- in a lovely setting.  Ascension is just down the road from the town of Matakana, which looked like a charming place when we drove through on our way to dinner.  So the next morning we headed back to get a closer look at the town and have breakfast.  We chose The Black Dog from several good looking options.  The Black Dog served up an excellent version of poached eggs with traditional sides of roast tomatoes, spinach and mushrooms, enhanced by flavorful little quinoa cakes with herbs and chopped veggies mixed in.  And of course, a great cup of coffee, as one would expect from the message scrawled on their chalkboard: "a yawn is just a silent scream for coffee."  An excellent way to start the day!

We were not visiting Matakana on a market day, when there would have been lots of organic veggies, fresh bread, honey and homemade jams and local crafts on hand.  But there was still a market presence: a complex of laid-back stalls and nicely designed outdoor seating tucked behind a building filled with alluring retail stores. You can still get delicious baked goods and more good coffee while browsing locally made clothing and accessories.  

Colorful textiles designed by Ingrid Anderson and printed in New Zealand, available by the yard or by the hat.

A high point:  a booth of colorful hats and patterned textiles made in New Zealand designed by Ingrid Anderson.  Her son and a friend were staffing the stall, one of them wearing my favorite: a floppy sun hat boldly emblazoned with monarch butterflies.

You can see more of Ingrid Anderson's fabrics and work at www.iatextiledesign.co.nz
More information about Ascension Osteria's menu at: www.ascensionwine.co.nz