North Island was originally mined for its large amounts of rich guano deposited on the plateau by flocks of seabirds that had nested on the island in centuries gone by. The remaining deposits add greatly to the fertility of the soil, resulting in an abundance of fruits and vegetables all over the island: Mangos, bananas, breadfruit, bitter oranges, soursop, starfruit and guava grow wild – some endemic and others left behind by pirates and trade ships who planted food for return visits whenever they stopped over. Vanilla and tamarind can be found by those who know where to look and our organic planted gardens are filled with limes, lemongrass, lettuce and every type of herb that you can imagine.
We strive to utilise our island produce on every plate and manage to do so whether it’s in salads, on fruit platters, for jams and chutneys, ice creams and sorbets, to flavour dishes or just on their own. Of course, we also have the coconut trees that were planted in the days of North Island’s tenure as a copra plantation and they provide us with cool rehydrating coconut water or nutty flesh that is delicious to snack on.
