Today’s search for the best breakfast in Greymouth – or frankly any edible, reasonably priced breakfast in Greymouth – led me to Greymouth’s best restaurant and Greymouth’s best coffee shop, at least according to TripAdvisor.
Perhaps astonishingly, that site advises that these are one and the same and they come in the form of an old lifeboat which has been turned into a coffee cart and located somewhere near the end of the earth.
The Lifeboat, as it is fairly called, is run by Dutchman Richard Mons who came to New Zealand 25 years ago. You can find it parked at the end of the breakwater in Greymouth, a position which uniquely shows off the harbour, trecherous bar and seas.
The Lifeboat serves only two items: filter coffee made individually by the cup and the Dutch stroopwafels. These are thin, waffle discs which are stuck together with a gooey caramel-like substance in the centre. Both the coffee and waffles are delicious.
The story behind the Lifeboat is that Richard came on hard times and was left only with a lifeboat, a gift from a friend for whom he had restored it. By installing a traditional Dutch waffle iron (which he imported from Holland) and making Dutch stroopwafels to a recipe sent to him by his sister, the Lifeboat coffee cart was born.
Richard is happy to share his story with customers – and his dream of establishing more lifeboats for others who are struggling in New Zealand.
While at the Lifeboat, you can stand beside the mouth of the Grey river for which the city of Greymouth is named. If the weather is like it was when I was there (and it probably will be) you can also marvel that both city and river were not allegedly named for the colour grey but rather after Governor George Grey.
Surely someone was taking the piss with that one.
On a final note, the Lifeboat itself dates from 1908. Made in Glasgow, it was a lifeboat on a dedge that worked the mouth of the Grey River for many years. Now fitted out with a waffle iron, it has in many ways come home.
