Aosta

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

Where the 45th Parallel Meets the Southern Alps

Arrowtown and Italy's Aosta Valley share more than dramatic mountain scenery — both sit on the 45th parallel, and both are defined by a deep, unhurried relationship with exceptional food. That geographic and cultural coincidence is the founding idea behind Aosta, a restaurant on Buckingham Street in historic Arrowtown, about twenty minutes from Queenstown.

The kitchen is guided by acclaimed chef Ben Bayly, whose love of Italian cooking was shaped by time spent in the Aosta Valley itself, absorbing alpine traditions and rustic flavours before returning to New Zealand. He leads the restaurant alongside Head Chef Josh Phillips, named Clyth MacLeod Rising Talent 2025, and together they've built a menu that is firmly rooted in Northern Italian cuisine while drawing on the seasonal rhythms of Central Otago's farms and producers.

The Food

The menu reads like a conversation between two mountain regions. Woodfired focaccia arrives with toppings ranging from mascarpone cream and truffle to stracciatella brûlée with wild shot game sausage. Seasonal plates push further: Red Deer Ossobuco Raviolo with boudin noir and celeriac, Cavatelli cacio e pepe with the restaurant's own pepper blend, and Pappardelle with paua, hen's yolk, and crispy leek. Lake Ohau Wagyu ribeye and Royal Burn lamb appear alongside pasta that carries the weight of genuine Italian technique.

Those subtle French influences the restaurant speaks of — a nod to the Aosta Valley's own Franco-Italian heritage — show up in the refinement of technique and the care with which local produce is preserved and prepared across the seasons. The signature AOSTA Tiramisu closes the meal, and a chef's selection of seven courses offers the full range.

Brunch runs daily alongside dinner service, and walk-ins are welcome.

Recognition

Aosta has earned serious attention in a short time. The Cuisine Good Food Awards named it a 2 Hat restaurant for 2025 and awarded it the Yellow Brick Road Regional Restaurant of the Year 2025 — recognition that places it firmly among New Zealand's most compelling dining destinations. Gambero Rosso has also acknowledged the restaurant in its international guide, a rare distinction for a room in a town of Arrowtown's size.

Sustainability is woven into the operation: ingredients come from local Central Otago farmers and producers, waste is actively minimised, and the menu shifts with the seasons rather than working against them.

The dining room sits among heritage buildings with mountain views close at hand — a setting that suits the cooking exactly.