Waikato Business News January/February 2020
Waikato Business News has for a quarter of a century been the voice of the region’s business community, a business community with a very real commitment to innovation and an ethos of co-operation.
Waikato Business News has for a quarter of a century been the voice of the region’s business community, a business community with a very real commitment to innovation and an ethos of co-operation.
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THE FAT KIWI CAFE<br />
WAIKATO BUSINESS NEWS <strong>January</strong>/<strong>February</strong> <strong>2020</strong><br />
17<br />
concrete floor is the original,<br />
but there is little else to remind<br />
locals of the sports bar from<br />
back in the day.<br />
“At our opening people<br />
were just blown away at what<br />
we have achieved,” Jaimee<br />
says.<br />
Jaimee, whose background<br />
includes working for Chris<br />
Rollitt at The Cook in Hamilton<br />
East, and then going<br />
into business with him at The<br />
Homestead in Hillcrest, is<br />
working six days a week in the<br />
Fat Kiwi, mostly in the kitchen.<br />
Meanwhile Melanie, who has<br />
been in the food industry 30<br />
years and also has a motel and<br />
a bar and restaurant in Piopio,<br />
divides her time with a focus<br />
on Fat Pigeon.<br />
As if the cafe itself isn’t<br />
busy enough, they offer catering<br />
and are developing a line<br />
in pre-ordered take-home dinners.<br />
They are active on social<br />
media, and also have a Fat<br />
Kiwi app, which people can<br />
use to order and pre-pay.<br />
“I think we are way up there<br />
- I think we are as good as any<br />
cafe anywhere,” Melanie says.<br />
Their extensive connections<br />
in the industry see them sourcing<br />
Ozone coffee from Craig<br />
Macfarlane in Taranaki.<br />
“They are the most amazing,<br />
supportive coffee supplier,”<br />
says Melanie. “We wouldn’t go<br />
anywhere else. Craig has been<br />
like a mentor for us.”<br />
As for the quirky name<br />
- with Fat Pigeon already flying,<br />
and with Otorohanga well<br />
known for its kiwi house, that<br />
As if the cafe itself<br />
isn’t busy enough,<br />
they offer catering and<br />
are developing a line<br />
in pre-ordered takehome<br />
dinners.<br />
was a given.<br />
Developer Alan Buckman<br />
says he always knew the Fat<br />
Kiwi site would be perfect for<br />
a food outlet because of the<br />
volume of traffic from Auckland<br />
and to Waitomo, and he<br />
approached Melanie early in<br />
the piece.<br />
He bought the former hotel<br />
site, which had been lying idle,<br />
Continued on page 18<br />
PROUD TO BE<br />
ASSOCIATED WITH<br />
THE FAT KIWI CAFE<br />
AND WISH THEM<br />
ALL THE BEST<br />
Farm Maintenance / Cowsheds<br />
New Homes / Alterations / Rewires<br />
Kurt Dunn Director<br />
M 027 4436 878 | E kurt@kdelectrical.info<br />
7 Lawrence St, Otorohanga | PO Box 42, T.A 3840<br />
203788AA<br />
The team at Murray Hunt Furnishers are proud<br />
to be associated with the new Fat Kiwi Cafe<br />
Murray Hunt Furnishers<br />
63 Maniapoto Street, Otorohanga P 07 873 8640 • 220 Alexandra Street, Te Awamutu P 07 214 2161<br />
www.murrayhuntfurnishers.co.nz<br />
www.flooringxtra.co.nz
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