New Hire: Simon Wright, Ex-The French Cafe, is Now the Executive Chef at Tauranga’s Clarence Bistro
Words by Alexia Santamaria · Updated on 14 Sep 2023 · Published on 28 Feb 2023
Whangamata's loss is Tauranga's gain, with the news that Simon Wright has made the move from the Coromandel and taken over the stoves at Clarence Bistro.
For two decades until 2018, Wright was best known for being co-owner and head chef of renowned Auckland fine diner The French Cafe (now Sid at The French Cafe). Today, the chef is excited about his new role at Clarence – which is owned by couple Noel and Kim Cimadom (who also have Picnicka nearby and Alpino in the Mount) and encompasses a boutique hotel, bistro and casual bar. Broadsheet caught up with him to find out more about the new appointment.
You’ve only recently made the move to the Bay of Plenty, how is it going so far?
It’s been great. My wife, the kids and I left Auckland in 2018 after running The French Cafe for so long and decided to move to Whangamata to enjoy beach life for a year. We ended up staying four years and starting a food truck called Gather & Roam which was really successful but, now the kids are older and need better schools, we knew we had to move on. We wanted something a bit more cosmopolitan but without returning to Auckland. The Bay of Plenty has been perfect – it’s still big enough, but laid-back too. We’re living in Papamoa, which we are loving.
What are you enjoying about Clarence Bistro so far?
It’s such a great building with history [ed’s note: it used to be a post office and was built in 1905] so always feels like a special place to be. We’re taking it slowly with the menu – I’ve only been there since January, so it’s a work in progress, but there’s just so much potential for it to have its own identity.
And what identity will that be?
At this point, the basis of the menu is European food with Kiwi ingredients. If I had to define it, I would say it’s southern European: the Mediterranean coast – French, Italian, Spanish, with a touch of North African and Middle Eastern flavours. The day I first met with the team it was really sunny and sitting outside it definitely had that southern European vibe.
Will you be making changes to Clarence’s bar, Centrale , too?
I’ll be overseeing both menus and we love the idea of creating something that feels like a hip Italian bar focused on cocktails and good small plates and snacks.
The food scene in the Bay of Plenty is evolving, especially with exciting festivals like Flavours of Plenty coming up in March. Are you enjoying being part of this coming of age?
We’ve come here on and off for a number of years and have really noticed the changes. There’s been huge growth in the region – and with that, more people looking for different food options. Even in this short time, I have seen so many customers at Clarence Bistro who used to live in Auckland and would have come to The French Cafe all the time. So many of them live around here now because they decided to get out of the city.
Have you made any exciting food discoveries in the area?
Having only just moved here, and spending so much of that time working, we haven’t been able to eat out as much as we’d like. We’ve been exploring around where we live – places like Pearl Kitchen , Lantern and Gather cafe. Clarence has other restaurants in the same group, and Alpino and Picnicka are always great. I’m slowly getting to know local suppliers – like veggies from a collective in Katikati – and it’s always so good to have Vetro down the road for imported ingredients. I’m looking forward to truffle hunting in Te Puke too.
