Hey!

My name is Britney and I’m a first-year studying Law and Commerce who absolutely loves food: eating it, cooking it, photographing it, reviewing it- everything. I run a food Instagram (@foodie__bee) and when approached about writing a column for Craccum, I knew it was an opportunity to continue sharing that love! 

Often, I get asked, “why food?”. Why bother going to a café/restaurant, ordering a meal and spending a solid minute capturing that perfect pic? As my friends will put it, they live the ‘cold food life’ (that is, waiting for me to get the gram). However, there are many of us ‘foodies’ out there. According to the reliable source that is Wikipedia, a foodie is someone “who has an ardent or refined interest in food and who eats food not out of hunger but due to their interest or hobby”.  The reason why we even have this definition, this ‘refined interest’ is because of what food can do. It brings people together, it’s a conversation starter, it’s an educational experience and it just tastes really bloody good.

Getting out of your comfort zone and trying something different from the local neighbourhood café that offers your standard eggs on toast or corn fritters will open you up to new adventures (for your taste buds). You’ll acquire a greater understanding of what you truly like and don’t like, because there’s nothing more frustrating than describing a meal to someone and having them say “ew” when they haven’t even tried it (butter chicken fries from the quad being a case in point).  Plus, if it helps you sleep at night, you’re contributing to the local economy, supply and demand and whatnot. 

We are so lucky to live in Auckland, arguably the foodie capital of New Zealand (arguably because Wellingtonians will dispute that). So, make the most of it! This column can act as a guide for you to do just that, where I’ll be sharing hot tips like the best weekly specials on offer, where to get a solid feed for under $10, where to go when you want to treat yourself and more. Because being a foodie isn’t an elitist club where you must photograph and document every meal you eat. It’s about appreciating the creations that can be so cleverly crafted from raw ingredients because we weren’t given the ability to taste for nothing. We’re all foodies, even if your reheated Uncle Ben’s rice for lunch says otherwise.

– Bee