About Plume
Situated just an hour’s drive from Auckland or Whangarei, Plume, the vineyard restaurant, Matakana is a must visit destination on any Matakana wine or food journey – we are all about fabulous local New Zealand wine and produce which together can celebrate “culinary diversity.” Plume is a small town, rural, rustic restaurant with friendly service from locally employed staff. It is a great change from the starchy fine dining service of a big city like Auckland yet is in a class of its own.
Purpose
At Plume we believe a great meal is not just about the food and wine, we believe it is a complete sensory experience.
People
Farida Cooper
Farida, as Owner/Director, has an overview of the Plume Collection companies; namely Plume Restaurant, Villas and the Cellar Door of Runner Duck Wines – and has a fine team under her comprised of the managers at each of these units.
Farida’s focus is on maintaining an extremely high level of service and meeting overall budgets. Farida’s personal commitment to the group’s experience along with her love for food and wine and hospitality ensures guests who choose Plume Collection products leave happy.
Sebastian Milles
Sebastian came to New Zealand nearly two decades ago from a background of managing bars and restaurants both in his homeland Germany and Ireland. Sebastian works closely with the Executive Chef ensuring our customers of the Restaurant are well looked after.
Sebastian supports the groups IT needs hands on besides also being a great “jack of all!” When not at Plume, Sebastian is likely to be pursuing his love for deep sea diving and fresh seafood as well as gardening and living on his own garden produce.
John Tan
John Tan has over 27 years of experience and has worked under chefs such as Tetsuya (Sydney), Chong liu (South Australia), Burswood Crown Casino, 5 star rated under Sean Marco (executive chef) (A Lure) and also had the opportunity to work alongside celebrity chefs as they attended demo cooking classes at Burswood. John has also worked on high end game fishing vessels such as Reel Screemer in Port Douglas. These are some of the people and businesses that have influenced him not only as a chef but as to how to perform and grow within these businesses.
John’s experience of cheffing has extended from Perth Australia, through Port Vila and then New Zealand where he has spent the last 10 years. He is passionately fond of fishing and all matters related thereof. He has done numerous private events cooking for major celebrities in New Zealand and abroad. John has a passion for food and always aims to create tasty and wholesome dishes that he believes his customers want and will enjoy both from an aesthetic visual and palate sensation.
John loves coming out of the kitchen and visiting tables and meeting our guests!
Plume Villas
Nick and Denise manage the day to day functions of Plume Villas and report to the Owner Directors. They have multi-faceted experience in the Hospitality business managing one of New Zealand’s first bakeries, then moving onto their own cafes and then into accommodation management.
Nick keeps the property neat and clean and manages the facilities, while Denise handles the office work and ensures customers are well looked after!
