PASSION LED BY PURPOSE

Ode was created as a space for us to connect with and live our truths, to collaborate, to grow and generate change.

We care about and respect our environment, our whenua, our communities and our tamariki and are conscious of the impact our choices have on them and their long term wellbeing.  

LUCAS PARKINSON

The up’s

In 2017, Chef / Owner Lucas Parkinson established Ode Conscious Dining in Wanaka, after spending over a decade developing his skill & passion for food in Aotearoa & overseas. Lucas quickly gained recognition after Ode was named one of New Zealand’s Top 100 restaurants at both the 2018 & 2019 Cuisine Good Food Awards, receiving ‘the one to watch’ & ‘1 Hat’ accolades - the southern hemisphere equivalent of 1 Michelin star.

Lucas is known for celebrating the purity of ingredients & using food to tell a story. His style and narrative are inspired by his experiences growing up in Aotearoa, his present reality & the future of our home, land & sea.

Committed to influencing ethical food decisions within Aotearoa, Lucas is vocal about encouraging long term sustainability & wellbeing in the food industry & inspiring others to overcome doubt, fear & systematic barriers, to cultivate a future worth fighting for.

The down’s

Ode has been shaped by not only Lucas’s skills & vision, but also by his struggles & hardships.

On the 12th August 2018, people of Wanaka and throughout Aotearoa were shocked to hear that top local restaurant Ode, had been engulfed in a severely damaging fire overnight.

Chef / Owner Lucas Parkinson posted an emotional video on social media announcing that Ode would be closing for the foreseeable future, never imaging just how long that closure would be.

349 days later, the doors of Ode 2.0 opened once again. The first four dishes on the opening menu are a testament to Ode's incredible journey to starting again.

In this film, Lucas shares the story ‘behind the menu’ and just what the 12 months of closure were like for him, his whanau & his team.