with her business partner Jaimee Poole, she opened the aptly named Fat Kiwi Cafe in Otorohanga, which has been bustling ever since. Filling catering orders takes up another big chunk of her day, whether that be for weddings, birthdays or local farming meetings. She is one of those humans that somehow has access to a few extra hours in their day. As a massive Rick Stein fan, Mel has been super fortunate to have travelled the world attending and hosting international food tours, which have helped her stay inspired and continue to learn. “I’ve made some special, life-long food friends on those trips, and to this day, I’m a proud member of the ‘Tarts on Tour’.”
potential for a new member of the ‘Fat’ flock, but she’s keeping that under her wing. Fascinatingly, the New Zealand pigeon is known for its role as a seed disperser, an important responsibility in the life cycle of our native trees. In many ways Mel shares a similar talent — an innate ability to scatter cafe concepts throughout the Waikato region and ensure they flourish. To her it’s all about fresh, honest food and that warm, unpretentious kiwi hospitality. “I just love feeding people — it makes me very happy.”
When asked of the success of her thriving Waikato cafe flock she shares, “You have to move with the trends and constantly evolve, so you have options for everyone.” Mel knows better than most that she is nothing without her team and the massive support of her equally food-loving family, now up to 11 grandchildren. Her current kitchen manager, Ulanda Taylor, started with her at Bosco’s in Te Kuiti, which she managed back in 2001, and new manager of the Night Owl, Deiresa Ratima, used to manage the Fat Pigeon. The team will attest she is often heard saying, “The only people who pay your wages are the people that walk in the door — without them we’ve got nothing.”
Kate Underwood Kate is a freelance Food Writer and Communications Specialist for Eat New Zealand. With a background in human nutrition and food communications, she has her finger in a number of NZ food-related pies - including sitting on the Executive Committee of Food Writers New Zealand, judging the 2020 Outstanding Food Producers Awards and was named Emerging Food Communicator at the 2019 NZ Food Media Awards. Born and bred in Te Puke on kiwifruit, whitebait and avocados she now spends most of her days discovering, eating, cooking, grammin’ and writing about great food and the glorious humans behind it. You can follow her on @relishthememory and @eat.newzealand on Instagram.
There are exciting future plans for Fat Pigeon, including extensions to allow for the busy weekend trading, an open market kitchen and a take-home product range. Plus a little birdy tells me there is
Fat Pigeon's
The Fat Pigeon 41 Moa Street, Piopio
FAMOUS PUMPKIN, FETA, AND SPINACH SCONES
(makes 12)
4 cups self-raising flour ½ cup red peppers, diced
Sieve flour into bowl and add diced peppers, feta, onion, pumpkin, herbs, spinach, grated cheese, and a good seasoning of salt and pepper.
½ red onion, thinly sliced
Mix till just combined. In a glass measuring jug, mix cream and lemonade together and add to dry mix, and mix till just combined (you just want a nice dough, not too wet, not too dry).
½ cup fresh herbs (parsley, sage, thyme)
You may need extra flour to roll the scone mix.
½ cup tasty cheese, grated 100g feta cheese
1 cup spinach, chopped 1 cup cooked pumpkin, diced 300ml cream 1 bottle dry lemonade (330ml) salt & pepper ¼ cup Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on scones before going in the oven
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Once mixture is ready, split in half, roll each half, and cut 6 pieces out of each log, to make a total of 12 pieces. Place on a greased and floured baking tray cut side down. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and bake at 200°C for 20–25 minutes.
