Sprig + Fern Tahuna
What makes your venue the Best Gastropub in New Zealand?
Sprig + Fern Tahuna is a beloved venue in the beautiful suburb of Tāhunanui, only a stone's throw from the world famous Tāhunanui Beach.
Our venue is a hotspot for both locals and visitors to the region, owing to our terrific location, extensive craft beer and cider menu, and ever-evolving range of locally sourced (and, dare we say, delicious) food menu curated by head chef Tim Comber.
Whether tucked in to one of the cosy corners inside, mingling in our main bar area, or soaking up the sunshine in the large beer garden - all paired with a calming sea breeze and inviting atmosphere - Sprig + Fern Tahuna is a destination of its own.
Describe the experience your customers have at your establishment – what is your food and beverage offering and why do people come back for more?
Passing along the white picket fence and entering through a large gateway, customers are welcomed to our venue with a quintessentially Sprig + Fern experience; customers of all ages coming together to enjoy quality conversation amongst award-winning craft beer and food, without the distraction of pokies, pool tables or screens.
Customers are given a warm welcome and invited to take a seat where they can comfortably flip through our food menu. Our food offering is classically ‘gastropub’ in style, with a crowd-pleasing and time-tested range of small plates, larger meals, bar snacks, sweet treats, and - of course - a kids’ menu. Popular items include our range of pizzas, house-made burgers and pies, bangers and mash, trio of tacos, and our simple-but-done-to-perfection house cut chips. We run regular ‘blackboard specials’ where our kitchen team take inspiration from fresh, local produce to craft a dynamic range of dishes, meats are infused with indelible aromas through our in-house smoker (our rubs and spices are made by our kitchen team, too), and we work with local producers (plus Sprig + Fern craft beer) to create incredible flavour combinations.
At the bar, our friendly staff are on hand to walk customers through the nineteen taps, if needed. Master Brewer, Tracy Banner, ensures a wide variety of styles are offered to cater to all tastes and pair beautifully with their menu item of choice - whether a crisp pilsner, juicy cider, rich porter, or one of the limited-edition brews showcasing all manner of styles and flavours.
With a food order in and proper pint in hand, punters can sit back and soak it all in. There’s a terrific indoor/outdoor flow at our venue with views across the Tāhunanui Playing Fields, which are often buzzing with sports and events. Amongst the conversation and laughter heard around the bar, the sounds of seagulls and beachgoers feature in the background. Occasionally, heads turn as plates make their way out of the kitchen, leaving mouth-watering aromas in their wake.
We take a lot of pride in our offering, and given our customers keep coming back (for more of their favourite or to try something new) tells us we must be doing something right!
Tell us how you showcase NZ produce / offerings? Does your menu change with the season and how is it locally influenced. How do you accommodate allergy and dietary requirements?
Firstly, our beer and cider is all locally-produced and this regularly makes it’s way in to the food menu – whether a fresh hop infused aioli, a hearty splash of Grizzly Porter in one of our pies, Apple Cider batter for our fish of the day, or the Tasman Reserve Premium Lager sausages we have specially made by our local butcher at Raeward Fresh, where we source all of our meats.
We offer two menus which change with the seasons – one for the warmer months (which, in Nelson, takes us from November to around May) and one for the colder, cosier seasons. Each features items befitting the time of year, with a wider range of small plates for sharing across the summer, and staples such as bangers and mash in the winter.
Our garnishes are grown, spices and rubs created, and meat smoked on site.
A large proportion of menu items are suitable for those with allergy and/or dietary requirements as standard, and many more can be amended to suit – all of which is clearly laid out in our menu.
We take care to showcase local products wherever possible, some of which are only a stone’s throw from our front door. This includes Chia Sisters’ range of drinks (made right here in Tāhunanui), Proper Crisps from our neighbouring suburb of Stoke, plus local wines and spirits from the likes of Brightwater Vineyards and Spencer Hill in Nelson, Giesen in Marlborough, and Rogue Society just down the road in Canterbury.
What are your key points of difference and how have you managed to deliver them?
Sprig + Fern Taverns set themselves apart with a primary focus on customer created atmosphere – not relying on loud music, multiple screens, pool tables and pokies to bring the entertainment. Conversation and quality catch-ups are kept front and centre at Sprig + Fern Tahuna, with food and drink as the centrepiece.
We have taken care to lay the venue out in a way that enhances this, with a range of open areas and cosy nooks, high and low seating, large tables for groups and smaller leaners for individuals and pairs. All of these are kept within close range of the bar, meaning it’s never a hassle to pop up and order another plate, or carry a round of pints back to the table.
For those needing a little distraction from the day or are eager for some entertainment, we carry a handful of board games – each chosen to add a little fun and spur on some banter between mates. Quiz nights are another popular addition to the week, with teams making the weekly appointment to test their trivia knowledge – all the while raising funds for local sports clubs, community groups and other causes.
Best Known for:
Stones throw from the world-famous beach
Blackboard specials
Quiz nights & board games
Please describe your commitment to sustainability.
Wherever possible we ensure our food and drink is locally sourced – which, given the produce available in Nelson Tasman, is often easily done! Our garnishes, spices and rubs are also grown/produced on site, reducing our reliance on buying in what are often packaged products.
Have you won any awards in the recent past?
Most recently we were named finalists in the 2023 Great NZ Toastie Takeover, and picked up three finalist spots in the Nelson Hospitality Awards 2023 - Outstanding Bar, Outstanding Host Responsibility, and Outstanding Bartender. We have been a runner up for Outstanding Host Responsibility in every Nelson Hospitality Awards since opening, and won the Award in 2017.
Please describe how you create ambience.
As above, customers are the key provider of ambience at Sprig + Fern Tahuna – the mixture of quiet conversation, glasses and cutlery clinking, belly laughs, and sounds from the playing fields and beach combine for a soundtrack that’s uniquely ours.
This ambience is complemented by low-level background music which is relaxed, family friendly and quintessentially Kiwi, and we also feature local musicians for live acoustic sets at the weekend. Recent acts have included Kaylee B, Billy Benson, and Duke and Midge McCleary.
As mentioned, our quiz nights are a popular addition across the year, offering a combination of trivia and entertainment, led by our local quizmaster and Tavern-regular, ‘Geeza’.
Sprig + Fern Tahuna was recently highlighted in a promotional video by Nelson Tasman New Zealand, as one of the must-visit venues of the Tāhunanui area – chosen, we believe, for our incredible food and drink offering, unbeatable location, and commitment to the customer experience.
