More a piece of art than food, "Shiny Fella the popular gelatin traincat" is a large aspic feline, listed for sale on the Uber Eats menu of Dunedin eatery Pearl Diver.
Nestled between the jalapeno poppers and samosas, and costing an eye-watering $85, Shiny Fella comes chock-a-block with peas, boiled eggs "for wheels", gherkins, peppers and luncheon.
"We put champagne in him and that’s why he’s so expensive and there is a bit of labour as well," Pearl Diver co-owner Jenny Duncan said.
The traincat was an item "just for someone that might want something a bit different for a special occasion. Like a birthday," she said.
They had wanted to make an aspic menu item because they had a lot of 1970s influence in their decor, and when she saw the recipe for the traincat in an old Edmonds cookbook in an op-shop, Duncan knew she had found just the thing.
Even though listed on Uber Eats delivery, Shiny Fella would be better enjoyed dining in because he was "not as presentable in a box", she said.
One could not just come in and order him either. A traincat has to be made a day in advance.
She had not tried Shiny Fella herself, because she was vegetarian, but there had been quite a bit of interest in the jelly cat since it was added to the menu two weeks ago.
No-one had ordered one yet even despite him being "so cool".
"What you see is what you get, like you can see what is inside him."
Shiny Fella would feed four and was best served cold.
