- TV chef Michael Van de Elzen is stepping back after 40 years in hospitality.
- He is selling his Muriwai property, 376 Taiapa Road, which includes a cooking school.
- The property now has consent for up to 104 events a year, expanding its potential uses.
After 40 years in hospitality, TV chef Michael Van de Elzen is stepping back. The high-profile chef and host of Eat Well For Less and The Food Truck has poured the last 12 years into 376 Taiapa Road, in Muriwai, turning the historic homestead and farm into a paddock-to-plate destination and cookery school that has hosted thousands of guests.
Start your property search
Van de Elzen has had a tough few years. He battled throat cancer in 2019, opened his cooking school just as New Zealand went into lockdown as a result of the Covid pandemic, and in 2023, his neighbourhood was hit hard by Cyclone Gabrielle.
But the chef and his business have survived the ups and downs, and he has decided to put 376 Taiapa Road and Good From Scratch on the market for sale while the going is good.
“After 40 years in hospitality this year, we [Van de Elzen and his wife Belinda] feel it’s the right time for us to take a step back from the tools. We have poured everything into this amazing location, and we’ve pretty much achieved a decade-long dream, which was to create a space that educates, entertains, and provides delicious food grown right here on the premises,” he told OneRoof.
The main house dates back to the early 1900s. Photo / Supplied
The cookery school was set up just before Covid struck. Photo / Supplied
“We’re pretty proud of what we’ve established. It’s in a great position for someone to take it over and create their own space, whatever that may be.”
He added: “While we are closing this chapter, we are looking forward to what’s next because we are not out of the industry, we’re just changing the way that we do it somewhat.”
Van de Elzen said the cooking school had hosted some “amazing events”. “It’s had my 50th, it’s had Belinda’s 50th. We’ve had a multitude of events.”
Naturally, there are some moments he’d rather forget, including the time he nearly butchered a cow in front of a children’s cookery class. “We have our own cows, and this particular cow was to be home-killed.” The home-kill person was due to carry out their task at the same Van de Elzen was hosting a children’s cooking class. “So, the kids would have been looking out at this big animal hung dried,” Van de Elzen said, adding that they quickly rescheduled the events.
Discover more:
- Inside Richie and Gemma McCaw’s home - stunner up for grabs
- Bach for sale as 'Willy Wonkas' outgrow their chocolate factory
- Couple quit eco-lodge for 'Hollywood' adventure on the high seas
Van de Elzen would also rather forget the time the family’s pet sheep, Pop Pops, got caught up in Cyclone Gabrielle. “She was born on the farm and kicked away by her mum, so we raised her ourselves. During Cyclone Gabrielle, she got blown down the hill, caught upside down, and wedged upside down in the fence.”
The Van de Elzens were completely focused on feeding and helping their community in the immediate days following the cyclone and didn’t realise that Pop Pops was missing. “We just assumed that Pop Pops was down the bottom grazing, but she was down the bottom upside down with her feet in the air for four days. We found her pretty much dead and brought her back to life.”
Pop Pops later survived a parasite attack. “She’s still here, and Pop Pops will come with us.”
The Van de Elzens have a homely kitchen in the villa. Photo / Supplied
The 5.25ha block comes with a working farm. Photo / Supplied
Van de Elzen plans to shoot the next series of Eat Well For Less with his co-host, restaurateur Ganesh Raj, later this year, and he encouraged Auckland families who might be interested in applying to come forward.
He said previous episodes of the programmes had highlighted some sad stories. “We had one family who thought KFC was healthy because it had chicken in it.
“We see, when we go into each house, different challenges every single time, from food hoarding through to a lack of knowledge around what food is, through to budget restraints, through to just absolute wastage.”
He added: “A lot of households may only have one or two dishes that they’re confident in cooking. You get sick of those one or two dishes pretty quickly. It’s just easier to go down the road and buy fast food.
The Van de Elzens’ 5.2ha block comprises a 1905 home, a farm, and the cooking school. Until recently, the consent only allowed the cooking school to be used for educational purposes. “The market for people wanting to buy a cookery school was always quite small,” Van de Elzen said. “The new consent allows up to 104 events per year, and [to] operate seven days a week as a hospitality venture. That opens the doors to a multitude of uses.
Van de Elzen with his Eat Well for Less co-host Ganesh Raj. “We see different challenges every single time." Photo / Supplied
“We’ve built it in a way that it’s sustainable and it’s also manageable. We have our own water supply, we have 180,000 litres of water storage, we have a septic system that can pretty much handle all of Muriwai, and it’s rock solid. In the 12 years we’ve been out here, nothing has ever happened to our property, so it’s safe.”
The Van de Elzens plan to stay in the Muriwai area, where their children grew up, and where they have made friends. “We’ve been involved in thick and thin out here.”
Bayleys listings agent Chris Head said the property was a landmark estate that would suit “a lifestyle buyer wanting scale with options for income, an experienced hospitality operator seeking a turnkey venue with growth potential, or a high net worth purchaser looking for a private destination estate close to Auckland”.
Head told OneRoof that the interest had been “huge” so far. Two serious buyers had inspected the property and a third one was due to view it shortly.
“She’d use the pavilion as a beauty salon and a wellness retreat. She has lots of horses. Her partner is an ex-farmer, so they’ll run a bit of cattle as well.
“The other one is a businessperson. She’s ex-marketing. And she’s going to be looking to exploit the new consent and have a multi-event for the pavilion. Plus, she has horses, and her husband owns his own business in town.”
- 376 Taiapa Road, Muriwai Beach, Auckland, has a set sale date of April 14
