Words Vicki Ravlich-Horan Images Ashlee DeCaires
Morrinsville will have you going to the cows, and it’s a good thing! Whether you are simply driving through or lingering longer, like we did, the fabulous town cows in their various decorations make for wonderful spotting.
The town boast 60 life-sized cows, each celebrating the town’s history and growing arts scene in their own unique way. For a map of their locations, and a full list of the cows along with their descriptions go to herdofcowsmorrinsville.co.nz or pick up a pamphlet from the info centre.
The day we spent in town was a wet one, thankfully the VW T-Roc’s triple zone climate control had us feeling warm and cozy. The automatic wipers and exit warning + blind spot monitoring kept us feeling safe in treacherous driving conditions. The mustard yellow colour helped, too, but I am told you have many options if this shade is not to your liking.
The T-Roc is a mid-size car. The perfect size in my opinion – plenty of boot space but still easy to navigate around town and snap up those tight parking spaces. It is also super-efficient; the brand-new model has mild hybrid technology, which helps improve efficiency by supporting the engine during acceleration and recovering energy when you slow down. It works seamlessly in the background, allowing you to enjoy a smoother, more responsive drive with no extra effort.
Wanting to escape the rain, we headed for Loxies.
Loxies
In the middle of Morrinsville’s bustling main street is Loxies Cafe. This heart of the community has been owned by the enthusiastic Liam Aberhart for five years.
Liam is a local lad, having moved to Morrinsville at age four. His dad, a local cop, entrenched the value of community, while his mum, who trained at London City Guilds Culinary School, passed on her love of food.
Liam’s first job was washing dishes at Council Cafe in Morrinsville. By 17 he was working at the Woodbox under chef Mat Cooper and from there followed stints with a number of well-known Waikato chefs and operators, which all added to Liam’s experience and knowledge. Between kitchen jobs he squeezed in two years chef training at Wintec.
After the first Covid lockdown, Liam started looking around for his own space. “I was sick of working for other people and wanted to be a better example,” says Liam. He first looked at coffee and food carts along with various other operations and locations before a broker approached him about Loxies.
“I had never eaten here before,” admits Liam, who says he was too much of a Crazy Cow fan. (The Crazy Cow Cafe was an institution in Morrinsville, one of the town’s first great cafes.)
Loxies, originally opened by Michelle Bishop, had once been considered the best cafe in town. It had been sold a few years before and since lost its shine. Liam was keen to return it to the best cafe in town, so took on the challenge.
And he admits it has been a challenge. “You have to work hard for rewards,” Liam says, smiling as he remembers that first year when things could change on a dime. He had gone from being an employee to an employer of 14 people. And this responsibility was not lost on Liam, often faced with the unexpected – like a private dinner for 40 pax prepped and ready to go when the country went into its second lockdown.
While the perils of epidemics and nationwide lockdowns may be over, running a hospitality business in the past five years has not been easy. Liam takes this in his stride, focusing on the people that make such a business great: his team as well as the people that walk through the door every day.
The team now consists of around 17, covering the seven day a week operation along with their various events and growing catering. Liam is proud that the majority of the staff are locals from Morrinsville, and I think this adds to the vibe of the cafe. As we sit chatting, there is a steady stream of guests, all greeted with smiles and banter from the staff. It’s clear some are here every morning for their mid-morning caffeine fix, others using the space as a meeting room, while some have travelled to enjoy a meal at Loxies, no doubt their favourite stop in Morrinsville.
Liam says the menu has a real focus on fresh ingredients and they endeavour to support local wherever possible. Liam’s love of Asian flavours comes through with dishes like their hawker roll with BBQ pulled beef, nam jim and slaw. Very aware he needs to cook for the audience, the hawker roll is a perfect addition to the menu.
The French toast is a regular star on the menu, sometimes being swapped out for waffles. Served with poached pears, spiced maple mascarpone and orange-infused maple it fits Liam’s rule of keeping things simple with no more than seven elements.
The banana toast is an innovative option. Loxies’ banana loaf is served with their with house-made peanut butter, chocolate crumble, brûlée banana, cardamom mascarpone and spiced maple.
The lunch menu has the classics like fish and chips and burgers, and Liam is proud of their ever-evolving vegetarian salad. At the time we visited it was a pumpkin salad – a roasted wedge of pumpkin is served with sundried tomato hummus, crunchy quinoa salad with house dressing, pickled onions and cucumber ribbons.
Add to the innovated menu there is a cabinet bursting with sweet treats and easy pick-up options. You can see why this is a local favourite and needs to be the stop you make on your next trip to Morrinsville.
With our tummies full and armed with some tips from Liam, we headed out into the rain to discover more of Morrinsville. The weather put paid to the walk Liam had suggested along the river from Holmwood park to Studholme. Unfortunately, we also passed on the Sculpture Park at Waitakaruru Arboretum.
Morrinsville
But we did pop our heads into the info centre, where we found out more about the Morrinsville Museum as well as great local artists we needed to visit.
Located on 41 Canada Street, the Morrinsville Museum is one of those small-town gems. This is not a cold town hall with dusty displays but a purpose-built building with a well thought out and presented display of the district’s history, including 130 years of dairying. Alongside static boards, there are interactive touch screens allowing visitors to delve deeper into the stories that have shaped this town.
After you have wound your way to the back you will find yourself in McDonald’s Cottage, an 1873 house that allows visitors to immerse themselves in a 1900s home.
If the cows didn’t satisfy your artistic side, a visit to the Morrinsville Art Gallery surely will. Boasting 12,000 visitors in 2025, the gallery holds everchanging exhibitions as well as workshops and events.
We also heard Heather Olesen’s Gallery 153 needs to be on our list of places when we visit next time. We might just have to borrow the VW T-Roc on a fine day to come again.
Thanks to Ebbett VW & Skoda for loan of the TRoc
