A recent one night stay in Oamaru proved to be a surprisingly pleasurable experience.

The town's heritage limestone buildings — built between 1865 to 1885 — have been totally refurbished attracting tourists and locals alike. They house a range of businesses including the classical Victorian Criterion Hotel plus artists and craftspeople.

Fleur Sullivan, Otago's renowned chef and restaurateur, has just opened a unique eatery in the historic Loan & Mercantile building near the boat harbour — named, not surprisingly — the Loan and Merc. She offers ploughmans' lunches, pies and soups midday and her signature wild rabbit, venison and pickled walnut pie, colonial goose and a carvery in the evening. Fleur is expanding the business to include a function area. When we visited her she was accepting old padded pews from the Salvation Army to place at rectory tables.

It's not Oamaru's only foodie attraction. The Whitestone Cheese Company was started in 1987 by Bob and Sue Berry "when the bottom fell out of farming." And, "It's more fun than shearing sheep," says Bob. They now employ 60 people and have won awards every year for a variety of cow, sheep and goat's milk cheeses. Windsor Blue is the flagship cheese having won 10 trophies including NZ Supreme Champion in 2006. You can visit the factory and savour a range of cheeses at the adjoining café.

Whitestone cheeses are also served at Riverstone Kitchen, 12 kilometres north of Oamaru at the gateway to Waitaki Valley wine country. Riverstone was named Cuisine Magazine's 2010 Restaurant of the Year being praised for its use of local produce. Bevan and Monique Smith established the restaurant in a paddock on the family farm about four years ago. Next door is a plant nursery and a rambling gift shop where you can buy everything from the latest in trendy French tableware to fun headstones for the garden.

Thirty kilometres south of Oamaru is Moeraki and Fleur Sullivan's iconic seafood restaurant. British television chef and restaurateur Rick Stein, when told he could go anywhere in the world to write a travel article, chose Fleurs Place. Surrounded by the sea on three sides, Fleurs can choose the freshest of the catch from fishing boats when they return to the harbour. It's one of New Zealand's premier culinary experiences. Not to be missed.