Chef Feature: Fat Kiwi, Otorohanga

Fat Kiwi Café sits in the heart of Ōtorohanga and is part of the wider Fat Birds family of hospitality businesses. What began as an opportunity during a maternity leave has grown into a busy, much-loved local café that also supplies wholesale food to Fat Fantail in Te Kūiti and runs the popular Roaming Kiwi Caravan at rugby.

We caught up with co-owner and chef Jaimee to hear about her journey, the kitchen, and how Volare fits into the food they serve every day.

How did you come to work at Fat Kiwi and what’s your culinary journey?

I was actually on maternity leave when the old Royal Hotel in Ōtorohanga was being renovated. I got in contact with the owner of the building and asked what was going in there. Lucky for us, the pizza shop that was planned had fallen through, so we had the opportunity to open Fat Kiwi Café.

I’ve worked in hospitality since I was 16. I started as a high-school student working for my now business partner Melanie Simpson at Bosco in Te Kūiti. Hospitality has been part of my life for a long time.

What’s the size and shape of your team, and how do you balance service, catering, and any retail/take-home products?

We have a relatively small crew in the kitchen, about eight staff, some part-time and some full-time. We work different hours so we can manage café service, the catering and wholesale food we supply to Fat Fantail in Te Kūiti, and the take-home dinners we offer.

How do you approach menu design, especially balancing customer dietary needs, kitchen flow at volume, and keeping some true classics?

There are dishes that have been on the menu since day one — our Fat Kiwi Big Breaky and Eggs Bene. We change the rest of the menu twice a year and keep an eye on trends.

We know what sells really well here, like Lamb’s Fry & Bacon and Mince on Toast in winter, but we also like to offer a few different options, Green Eggs & Salmon in winter, and of course Smashed Avo in summer. It’s about balancing the classics people come back for with a bit of seasonal variety.

Which dishes are customer favourites right now, and how do Volare breads feature in them?

One of the most popular bread items out of the cabinet is our Ham & Cheese Toastie made on the Volare Garlic Pide. These are well known to locals, who often grab them on a cold Saturday morning from our Roaming Kiwi Caravan at rugby.

What’s your favourite Volare product to use in the kitchen (or eat yourself) and why?

We love the Grain Tin Loaf, we’re using it on our Chilli Scram at the moment.

Any recent menu wins or experiments with Volare items?

People really love the Volare Turmeric Loaf when they try our Reubens.

We’ll be planning our summer menu before we know it, and the Turmeric Loaf will feature on there with our mussels.

If another chef or stockist was thinking of trialling more Volare lines, what would you tell them?

I find it hard to recommend only one product. We love using a range of different breads in our cabinet, reach out to the team they are always happy to recommend options.

What’s next for you and the business?

We’re focusing on the summer menu and continuing to grow the catering, wholesale and take-home side of things while keeping the café running smoothly for our regulars.

Fat Kiwi Café is a great example of a busy local kitchen that values consistency and quality. If you’re in Ōtorohanga, stop in for a coffee, a classic Big Breaky, or one of those well-known Ham & Cheese Toasties on Garlic Pide. You’ll find Volare breads doing solid work behind the scenes every day.