Sugar Boat
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The Sugar Boat is a stylish cocktail bar and restaurant. The restaurant is a smart, elegant dining room created in the hold of this original sugar lighter.
The onboard menu reflects flavours from the Mediterranean, made with fresh New Zealand ingredients and love.
The open air bar on the top deck is a perfect place to begin your evening with an aperitif - choose from a selection of tasty cocktails, delicious wines or a long cool beer.
Some history of this interesting boat:
1889 : 1955 Chelsea Sugar Company
The Sugar Boat (Tui) is one of six Lighters built in 1890 by the Chelsea Sugar Refinery in Birkenhead Auckland, NZ. Each was 96 feet long, made of Oregon and Kauri, and carried up to 200 tons of sugar from the isolated Birkenhead township to the Auckland wharves, for distribution throughout New Zealand.
The building of the Harbour Bridge in the 1950s marked the end of the lighter fleet. By 1961 the Chelsea lighter fleet had been sold into private ownership.
1955 : 1970 Opua : Artist and Potters Retreat
The Tui became a houseboat in Opua for artists and potters for 15 years. Resting on the mudflats near the port in Opua until the enterprising Kelly Tarlton (creator of Kelly Tarltons underwater world in Auckland) acquired her to showcase his collection of treasures from shipwrecks around NZ
1970 : 2002 Kelly Tarltons Museum of Shipwrecks
Kelly Tarlton, a New Zealander synonymous with the 'number 8 wire attitude', a man with boundless energy and enterprise, who became a legend for his many adventures with treasure hunting and marine archaeology in his 47 years.
After persevering with local body and government beureacuracy Kelly opened this boat at the base of the Waitangi Bridge as the museum of shipwrecks on 12 January 1970, entry fee 30c. His museum became a founding Bay Of Islands tourist attraction in the 70s until 2002.
The masts you see on the Tui are from the Endeavour II, a square rigged Barque which was shipwrecked at Parengarenga Harbour a few miles south of the North Cape on 22 Feb 1971. The Endeavour II was built in Canada originally called Monte Cristo. This 94 foot 3 masted Baroque enacted the part of her namesake in the bicentenary celebrations of Captain James Cooks landing at Botany Bay in Sydney in 1770. Kelly acquired these masts and fitted them onto his museum.
Kelly died in 1985 shortly after completing the famous Kelly Tarltons Underwater World in Auckland. Rosemary continued to run the museum until 2002 when she retired and sold the boat to two young New Zealanders.
And now its a restaurant, The Sugar Boat - come and experience some of her history whilst treating yourself to a delicious meal.
2002 : Today - The Sugar Boat
Today the Tui has been recreated into The Sugar Boat, a stylish cocktail bar and restaurant. The open air bar on top deck is a perfect place to begin your evening with an aperitif. Choose from a selection of mouth-watering cocktails, delicious wines or a long cool beer.
The restaurant is a smart, elegant dining room created in the hold of this original sugar lighter. In the dining tables you will find small relics from Kellys adventures.
The menu reflects tastes from the Mediterranean made with fresh New Zealand ingredients and love
flickr photos of Sugar Boat
- RSS feed for sugar boat
- Waitangi Bridge, Te Karuwha Pde, Waitangi, northland, NZ
- www.sugarboat.co.nz
- +64 9 402 7018
- Fax+64 9 402 7021
- S 35° 16‘ 23", E 174° 4‘ 45"
- download vcard
vcard for sugar boat
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reviews of Sugar Boat
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Bay Of Islands.
over a year ago : 7th January 2007
STAYED AT: The Copthorne Waitangi. 4 star service at 2 star prices - and the only place with vacancies when we were there ATE AT The Sugar Boat. Old clipper turned into new restaurant. Waitangi is also the place where the Maoris agreed...