Volcanic Kitchen
Pasta in Taupo

Volcanic Kitchen is Taupo’s original multi International Award Winning Wood Fired Pizzeria!

Back in 2005 Volcanic Kitchen became New Zealand’s first restaurant to qualify for the prestigious America’s Plate at the International Pizza Expo in New York and placed 3rd in the World Champs with “Swimming Upstream”. This house cured salmon, red onion, cream cheese and capers pizza with a drizzle of avocado creme is still available today along with all the other flavours that have become so loved by locals and visitors alike! Placing 3rd again in Las Vegas in 2007, Chef/Owner - Sean Wakelin, continues to push culinary boundaries with his uniques twist on pizza toppings as well as Gourmet Burgers and simple yet inspired Pastas!

Now in a newly fitted out Tuwahretoa Street site with comfortable booth seating, twin glass blown chandeliers and playing familiar retro sounds; Volcanic Kitchen has partnered with some of our best producers of boutique beverages to create New Zealand’s first “Wood Fired Craft Bar”. Stocking the entire Tuatara Brewery, Tohu Wines and Zeffer Cider portfolios either on tap or by the bottle as well as a bountiful cocktail list that’s growing by the day, there’ll only be a few people that won’t find a drink to their liking - and as the adage goes, "You can't please all of the people all of the time"!

Volcanic Kitchen is the kind of place where "you" matter as a customer. "Your" appreciation and enjoyment of our meals, wines, beers, cocktails and surround is important to us. Easy enough to say and quite often said too much, but here it's the people that are saying it that are making your meals and pouring your drinks! 

Speaking of drinks, I'll touch on our two main suppliers. Good old Kiwi companies that stand tall and proud on the world stage and we're stoked to have a strong positive business relationship with them!

Tuatara Beers - A brewery that began as a backyard operation in the hills above Waikanae. It was founded by Carl Vasta, an engineer with the tastebuds of a wine critic. There’s a degree of loose talk in New Zealand about “kiwi ingenuity”, most of it from people who’d struggle to change a tyre, but Carl is the living, breathing epitome of that noble philosophy. If he needed a shed or a bottler or a tank, he’d just go ahead and build one. Before too long, he’d managed to brew a superb range of ales, porters and pilsners for his friends under the name Tuatara.

Tohu Wines - Tohu is the world's first Māori owned wine company. Since 1998, Tohu have been making their mark on the world with wines produced from New Zealand's premier grape growing regions.Our winemaking philosophy is to create wines that reflect the region and the vineyard from which they came.True to Māori culture, Tohu have a strong spiritual connection to everything they grow and a responsibility to ensure their land is passed onto future generations in pristine condition.Tohu wines have been celebrated with numerous national and international wine awards, and are available throughout New Zealand and internationally.Tohu are proud to be New Zealand's premier indigenous wine company.

So... With dine in, takeaway or delivery options all on the plate, make sure you call in to raise a glass, rest your bones or to fill an empty belly next time you’re in the Central North Island!

  STARTERS     1. Breads and Spreads (V) 9.5 Toasted house breads with a trio of dips. Hummus, basil pesto and sun-dried tomato relish.   2. Pizza Bread (V) 8.5 Wood-Fired pizza bread with your choice of either Garlic and Herb or Grilled Mozzarella.   3. Soup of the Day (GF) (V) 8.5 Bowl of home made soup (well made here really) with warm Ciabatta.   4. Whole Baked Brie (V) 12.5 As it says – whole baked Brie drizzled with Olive Oil & fresh herbs, served with warm ciabatta and sweet onion marmalade.   5. Skillet Mushrooms (V) (GFA) 9.5 Mushrooms roasted in our wood fired oven with rich Caramelized Onions coated in herbed breadcrumbs and mozzarella.   6. Crispy Onion Blossom (V) 8.5 A large whole onion sliced to “blossom” then dusted in spiced flour and fried to perfection! Pull apart the “petals” and dip into your our lemon garlic Aioli!     HOUSE SALADS     7. Caesar Salad
(GFA) 12.5 Crisp Cos Lettuce, oven baked Garlic Croutons, Bacon, Anchovy’s, Parmesan and our signature Caesar dressing with a poached egg perched on top.   8. Spinach & Apple Salad (V) (GF) 11.5 Fresh baby Spinach, sliced red onion, crisp Cut Apples and Candied Walnuts tossed in a Sweet Apple Vinaigrette and topped with your choice of either Feta or Blue Cheese   9. Roast Vegetables (V) (GF) 10.5 Wood-fired roast vegetables with balsamic dressing, feta and olives   10. Ranch Wedges (V) (GF) 10.5 Iceberg lettuce wedges with crisp bacon, sweet baby corn, hard-boiled egg, shave Parmesan cheese and our signature ranch dressing.       PASTAS (GF Pasta extra 2.0)       11. Salmon Pasta 22.9 Our own house cured salmon in a creamy white sauce with capers, red onion and fresh herbs. Tossed through fettuccini with baby spinach.   12. Mac Attack 17.9
 Cheddar, Mozzarella and Parmesan cheese sauce with bacon, with Penne. Topped with crispy panko breadcrumbs and herbs.                       13. Spag-Bol 20.9 As traditional as it gets! We slow cook twice ground beef in our own tomato passata and add a touch of fresh herbs, mixing it all through classic spaghetti strands and finishing with shaved parmesan to create a hearty crowd pleaser!    14. Tuscan Chicken 22.9 Succulent slices of chicken breast, sun-dried tomatoes and a touch of sweet chilli with penne pasta in either a creamy sauce or house made tomato passata.   15. Seafood Locker 21.9 Mixed seafood with mussels, prawns and fish in a creamy curried white sauce on spaghetti.   16. Lamb Shank Ragu 22.9 Succulent chunks of slow cooked red wine and rosemary lamb shank in a rich tomato based red wine sauce with Penne.   17. Garlic Chilli Prawns 20.9 Prawns sautéed in garlic butter with red Chilli, fresh herbs, EVO, cracked pepper and sea salt in spaghetti.   18. Risotto of the Day 20.9 Just as the name suggests, it changes daily so check with your wait staff as to what today’s culinary variety is.       CLASSIC DISHES     19. Fish & Chips 23.5 Freshly battered fish fillets served with crisp chips, mushy peas and house made chunky tartare sauce. Accompanied by chunky house slaw.   20. Char Grilled Chicken Parma 25.5 Chargrilled chicken breast smothered in rich passata and with streaky bacon and mozzarella cheese. Served with crisp steak fries, flat mushroom and grilled tomato. Accompanied

Tuatara Beers - , A brewery that , began as a backyard operation in the hills above Waikanae. It was founded by Carl Vasta, an engineer with the tastebuds of a wine critic. There’s a degree of loose talk in New Zealand about “kiwi ingenuity”, most of it from people who’d struggle to change a tyre, but Carl is the living, breathing epitome of that noble philosophy. If he needed a shed or a bottler or a tank, he’d just go ahead and build one. Before too long, he’d managed to brew a superb range of ales, porters and pilsners for his friends under the name Tuatara. , http://tuatarabrewing.co.nz

Tohu Wines - , Tohu is the world's first Māori owned wine company. Since 1998, Tohu have been making their mark on the world with wines produced from New Zealand's premier grape growing regions.Our winemaking philosophy is to create wines that reflect the region and the vineyard from which they came.True to Māori culture, Tohu have a strong spiritual connection to everything they grow and a responsibility to ensure their land is passed onto future generations in pristine condition.Tohu wines have been celebrated with numerous national and international wine awards, and are available throughout New Zealand and internationally.Tohu are proud to be New Zealand's premier indigenous wine company.
http://www.kono.co.nz/kono/kono-beverages/wine/tohu-wines/