Rutherford Hotel Nelson and OCEANO’s Chef’s Table

I think it’s fair to say most Nelsonians see the Rutherford Hotel Nelson as a landmark hotel as well as a leading conference venue rather than a place to visit for a wonderful dinner.

As the hotel has evolved over the years the dining experiences have evolved too. There is the Atom Café on the ground floor, the perfect place for a coffee and light lunch or as a relaxing spot for a meeting. OCEANO on level two beside the Port O’Call bar has been reimagined as a destination restaurant for locals and visitors alike.

Executive Chef Volker Marecek told me about one key change; “the restaurant’s Chef’s Table concept is built around a deceptively simple belief: some of life’s most meaningful connections are made around the dining table. We see the table as being like dining with family; relaxed, filled with conversation, and designed to bring fun and laughter into the restaurant.”

Volker’s international career could easily dominate the story. He began with a rigorous three-year apprenticeship in Germany, where classical technique and exacting standards became the foundation of his cooking. His career then saw him refining his chef skills in leading hotels and kitchens including The Savoy in London, Schlosshotel Berlin, The Langham in London, the Hyatt in Canberra and the Berkeley Court Hotel in Dublin. He later helped open Swissôtel Tallinn before moving to New Zealand.

For 16 years at Cordis Auckland, formerly The Langham, Volker led a kitchen team of around 60 people and oversaw restaurant dining, room service, high tea and banqueting for more than 500 guests. That scale demands discipline, consistency and calm. At OCEANO, Volker’s skills are being brought to a far more relaxed, refined, setting, but with a quality dining experience. Guests can see the craft of the chefs at close quarters in the open kitchen beside the Chef’s Table and speak directly with the people creating the meal.

Volker told me that he is using the many years of international cooking skills he has gained delivering a complete dining experience with the chef’s table at OCEANO to bring guests together around a communal table overlooking the open kitchen. “Every seat offers a front-row view as the chefs prepare and present the food, we can explain the ingredients and share stories about the local producers and ideas behind each dish as we cook for guests.”

He says “there is theatre in that, but not formality, the table is like a family table. It works for families and groups of friends as much as it does for solo diners and couples as the shared seating format creates a natural sense of occasion without forcing anyone to perform.

“At the beginning of the evening, the people around the table may be strangers but as the courses unfold, conversation begins to flow and the meal becomes about more than what is on the plate.”

However, at OCEANO excellent food is at the centre of what they do. All the experience of Volker and his team is now being delivered to us on plates at the Rutherford Hotel Nelson. Volker told me he likes to be creative and use regional ingredients. “In Nelson we have wonderful producers and ingredients and at Oceano we want to use seasonal products so every three months we change the menu.”

When Karen and I dined at OCEANO as guests of the hotel recently we were able to enjoy the exceptional skills of Volker and his team.  We enjoyed the dining experience they have created, not just the food, but we do need to talk about the food!

The menu does change to reflect the seasonal ingredients Volker sources locally and then adds his creative touches, making sure diners can be curious about elements of the delicious food and encourage conversation between guests and the chefs.

Things like dehydrating mushrooms grinding them into a fine powder and then using that mushroom powder to craft beautiful mushroom toiles to decorate the charred mushroom dish, a dish that hasn’t been over-processed. This means the charred oyster mushrooms have a lovely textural chew and are bursting with flavour. ($25)

At OCEANO the chefs use a charcoal-fired hibachi grill to bring flavour to many of the dishes. Cooking over fire is a favourite cooking method for Volker, “it brings another layer of flavour to the food” he says.

While cooking meat over fire is quite common at OCEANO he also prepares some of the vegetables on the grill. For my main dish I had a beautifully cooked venison loin ($40) that was served with slices of charred celeriac. The whole celeriac bulb had been baked in a salt crust then sliced and charred on the hibachi. Adding layers of flavour to the succulent venison.

Not everything is cooked this way, Karen started with seaweed cured trevally crudo that was cured with bull kelp, served with burnt mandarin, smoked buttermilk, picked fennel, coastal herbs and manuka oil ($18).

Karen’s main of Duck Confit ($45) with fondant potato, pinot poached pear, braised red cabbage with walnut jus was cooked beautifully with elegantly balanced flavours.

Of course we had to taste a dessert, so we shared a dark chocolate sorbet with a melting chocolate fondant, all served with a succulent, sweet gorse wine. Yes, gorse wine. We were very pleasantly surprised by the layers of floral, herbal and resinous flavour in the wine – it became a talking point with others at the chef’s table.

It is also worth noting that almost every dish is either gluten free or has a gluten free option.

Our dining experience reminded me it’s time to stop thinking of the Rutherford Hotel Nelson as a place for visitors and conferences, the food is exceptional and the service perfect, we will be back at OCEANO soon, or maybe just for a drink in the comfort of the Port O’Call bar where they have more than 60 whiskys!

While Nelsonians may remember OCEANO as a hotel restaurant the reality is quite different, it has been reimagined into a wonderful dining experience.

Published in the Nelson Mail 05-09-2026