Mr Shadbolt met Mr Burke and his wife Sue when he was on "sabbatical" after being voted out of Invercargill's top job in 1995.
Not knowing what to do, the Bullshit and Jellybeans author came up to the resort (his family has a crib at Frankton) and leased the breakfast slot at the Burkes' old Burkel burger bar on Shotover St for three entertaining months.
"He did a pretty good breakfast - he went organic and free range with free world coffee . . . it was bloody theatre every day," Mr Burke said of his celebrity sidekick.
Mr Burke reckons Mr Shadbolt (voted in again for a fifth term in August) was "just picking up the reins to keep his culinary skills" when he popped into the Camp St pastry kiosk yesterday - perhaps to safeguard against the possibility his political career ends for a second time.
"I'm just keeping my hand in in case I get booted out again and I can ask Mike and Sue for a job again - I can't put all my pies in one basket," Mr Shadbolt joked, triggering fits of laughter in the pair.
Between howls, snorts and tears of mirth, the two traded pie puns;"I'll eat humble pie," the mayor said.
"It's all a bit pie in the sky," Mr Burke retorted.
