The CRU - Charcoal relief Unit
Born from the Ashes.

What we do:

The C:R:U is ready and able to offer a memorable, unique and most importantly delicious focal point to your next event.
Each and every menu is customised to your specific event.
We love flame, fire and flavour and focus on classic American BBQ technique given a kiwi twist.
All our meat is carefully selected from small, local owned, free range and organic farms.
We love to roast whole animals to add a showstopping centre piece to your occasion.
We cook over charcoal, pinot noir vines, manuka, plum and apples woods to impart genuine flavour.
All our menus are enhanced by the finest selection of salads, proper pickles, BBQ condiments and bread using the finest local, seasonal ingredients.
We can offer plated puddings, ice cream bars, sweet pie stations and Willy Wonka inspired lolly counters to wow your guests.

History Of The C:R:U

History of the C:R:U The Charcoal Relief Unit
Originally commissioned after the Russian Revolution in 1917 The Charcoal Relief Unit or C:R:U were used to boost morale within the army as they
marched on their stomachs, literally. The flavor of the charcoal grill kept the Imperial Army focused after tasting bland homogenized
fast food served from its Cold War enemy. The Charcoal Relief Units were the main reason the whole of the Military did not
defect to the west.

The C:R:U design was such that they could be moved into place before the attack and the cooks would guide the Red Army to its new location.
The team assigned to the units could travel virtually unnoticed through towns and villages. It was often whispered in folklore that these humble
charcoal cooks had magical powers for their effortless ability to transform simple cuts of meat into reasons to be alive.
The Soviet
Army would endure the hardship of the Siberian Ice Desert, the quagmire of the eastern front and the torture of the German accent, as
long as they had the sweet smell of charcoal in their nostrils and the lingering scent of grilled meat in their moustache.The C:R:U design was such that they could be moved into place before the attack and the cooks would guide the Red Army to its new location.
The team assigned to the units could travel virtually unnoticed through towns and villages. It was often whispered in folklore that these humble
charcoal cooks had magical powers for their effortless ability to transform simple cuts of meat into reasons to be alive.
The Soviet
Army would endure the hardship of the Siberian Ice Desert, the quagmire of the eastern front and the torture of the German accent, as
long as they had the sweet smell of charcoal in their nostrils and the lingering scent of grilled meat in their moustache.
The units remained unchanged in their original design through two world wars.
Their crowning moment was not until the Cuban Missile Crisis.
It was Che Guevara's lesser-known brother Chef Guevara's
responsibility to nourish the Guerrilla Fighters. Through the
Soviet connections his brother and Fidel Castro had formed, Chef
was able to take delivery of 12 of these Units and formed the
Cuban Charcoal Relief Unit. He enlisted the assistance of 12 of Cuba's finest Cigar Aficionados, got them
drunk on Scotch and set about forming a crack team of Charcoal Cooks.


Chef had missed the interdepartmental memos, as he had been on
three-day rum fueled bender. The telex he received lost
some of the information in translation and Chef believed
the Bay of Pigs to be a festival of swine and all
things pork and bacon related. He immediately sent the Charcoal Relief Units hoping for his moment of glory and his
brother's respect. Unfortunately, neither of these were achieved,
the Units scuttled and Chef was exiled.


The Units sat, abandoned, for the next 40 years. Our original
version was discovered in Cuba and sea-freighted to Christchurch;
the Charcoal Relief Unit is now ready to bring the flavour
and to be part of the history once more.