Dave Harré

The Harré family has a long history in west Auckland and is linked to a number of early pioneers. Uncle and nephew writing team Dave and Drew Harré spent 12 years working on their book Roadhouse Days, a record of the restaurant that once went by the same name in Oratia.

The Roadhouse restaurant was run by Dave’s late mother Marge Harré. Dave slept upstairs from the restaurant kitchen as a child and remembers hanging a microphone down a kitchen vent as a nine-year-old.

The eatery has long since closed but the building remains and is home to Dave and his clan. Marge, who died in 1985 aged 84, loved her kitchen so the family preserved and shifted it to another part of the property. Dave is involved extensively in various restoration projects.

By this author

Roadhouse Days

The Town and Country Roadhouse was a ‘pioneer fine food restaurant’ located in the Oratia Valley at the foot of the Waitakere Ranges from 1948 to 1968. It was a mecca for the bohemian of Auckland and for visiting celebrities of the time. This is its history, along with recipes.

Uncle and nephew writing team Dave Harré and Drew Harré spent 12 years working on this book.

Fully illustrated with historical photos from the family and recipes photographed by Mark Smith.

Published by Albion Vale Books, 2009, 2017
Distributed by Little Island Press

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