Happy Birthday Puke

This month the Pukemanu tavern celebrates its 35th birthday.

The Pukemanu was the New Zealand’s first neighbourhood tavern, a new style neighbourhood tavern concept as envisaged by the 1974 Royal Commission into the liquor industry. Being first of a new generation of hotels the opening of the Pukemanu created much interest both within and outside the industry.

The Pukemanu replaced the 80 year old Club Hotel which previously stood on the site and the name was taken from the very successful television series ‘Pukemanu’ which was shot in the old hotel.

The planned new taverns were described as ‘a new type of establishments to take social drinking and eating into a new dimension for particular neighbourhood communities into which they will fit easily’. Martinborough was chosen as being just such a community which would appreciate a comfortable, club like atmosphere tavern. Time has surely proven this to be correct.