One of the quieter pleasures of staying at 175° East is what’s just down the road.
Great Barrier Island isn’t short on character, but even by island standards, our immediate neighbours punch above their weight. Five minutes’ walk from Medlands Beach, Mason Road is home to a zero-waste craft brewery, New Zealand’s only off-grid coffee roastery, a rotating food kitchen, a community native plant nursery, and a private conference venue with ocean views — all within a short walk of each other, all doing things the right way.
This is what passes for a neighbourhood on Aotea Great Barrier Island.
Aotea Brewing Co. — Great Barrier Island’s Craft Brewery
There’s a particular pleasure in drinking a cold beer that was brewed five minutes from where you’re sitting, in an off-grid brewery, on an island with no traffic lights.
Aotea Brewing is exactly that. Founded on Great Barrier Island and powered entirely by renewable energy, Aotea Brewing makes craft beer the way the island does everything — independently, sustainably, and without much fuss about it.
What makes Aotea Brewing genuinely distinctive isn’t just the beer (though the beer is good). It’s the commitment to zero single-use packaging. No cans. No bottles. You bring a vessel, they fill it fresh from the keg. It’s a model that makes perfect sense on an island where every piece of waste has to be shipped back to the mainland.
The Solar Charged APA is the island staple. The Daily Grind coffee stout — made with beans from next-door Aotea Roast — is worth seeking out.
Open Thursday to Sunday, 12–6pm. Five minutes’ walk downhill from 175° East. There’s a spot to sit, a rotating lineup of seasonal brews, and the kind of unhurried atmosphere that makes one beer quietly become three.
Good Neighbours — Food at Aotea Brewing
Inside the brewery, chef Lucia runs Good Neighbours — and it’s worth going out of your way for. Lucia brings genuine craft to what she does: seasonal, considered food made for the place she’s cooking in. The menu rotates, so check ahead for current days and what’s on. When she’s open, it’s cold beer and proper food in one stop. On an island where dining options are limited, Good Neighbours is a genuine highlight.
Aotea Roast Co. — New Zealand’s Only Off-Grid Coffee Roastery
The same ethos — off-grid, sustainable, small-batch — extends next door to Aotea Roast, New Zealand’s only off-grid coffee roastery.
Every batch is roasted using renewable energy, sourced from fair trade organic beans. It started as a local operation — supplying the island — and has since grown into an online store delivering to the mainland, which tells you something about the quality.
If you find a blend you love while you’re here, a monthly subscription will keep it coming once you’re home.
Motu Community Native Plant Nursery
Alongside the brewery and roastery sits the Motu Community Native Plant Nursery — restoring native species across Aotea Great Barrier Island, one plant at a time.
The nursery grows native species for replanting across Aotea — and nothing goes to waste on Mason Road. The spent grain from Aotea Brewing feeds the nursery plants as part of the production process. It’s the kind of circular thinking that feels completely natural once you’ve spent a few days on an island that’s been figuring out sustainability long before it was fashionable. Worth stopping in if you’re passing.
The Boardroom at Mason Canyon
Just along Mason Road sits Mason Canyon — a private lake, Boardroom: a purpose-built meeting and event space with ocean views.
If you’re bringing a group or planning a corporate retreat, party or wedding The Boardroom pairs perfectly with the three houses at 175° East next door — meeting space sorted, accommodation sorted, food from Lucia at Good Neighbours, craft beer from Aotea Brewing, and 35 minutes from Auckland. Hard to beat.
Come Stay. Meet the Neighbours.
There’s a rhythm to a good day at Medlands Beach. Coffee in the morning from Aotea Roast — properly roasted, brewed slowly. Then a surf or a walk or nothing at all. An afternoon beer at Aotea Brewing on the way back, still cold from the keg, watching the light change over the island. Dinner from Lucia at Good Neighbours if the timing’s right.
This is what’s on your doorstep when you stay at 175° East. We’re five minutes from all of it — and we think it’s one of the best reasons to come.
Pītokuku House sleeps 10. Ruru House sleeps 7. Tree House sleeps 8. All off-grid, all solar powered, all 8 minutes from Medlands Beach.