Ngāti Rakaipaaka, Ngāti Rangi, Tāne-nui-a-Rangi
Ngā Tamariki 60 is a whānau owned business which is jointly owned by the Bryant whānau members including Mum (Pani), Dad (Mike) and son (Sam), along with cousin Antonia Brell.
Each member plays an important part in the success of the business. Pani is the face of the business, and you’ll often find her having a big kōrero with customers and a listening ear for staff. Cousin Antonia, manages marketing and always ensures the restaurant looks beautiful. Mike usually does what he’s told, and as for Sam, he makes sure everything runs smoothly.
As a business the whānau aim to inspire rangatahi (younger generation) to dream big and work hard.
The business name, Ngā Tamariki 60, was inspired by a whānau group chat where they would keep in touch as well as discuss their business ideas. The business operates two restaurants & bars in Rotorua.
The Greenhouse Kitchen & Bar opened in the summer of 2019-20 (before COVID-19 first hit Aotearoa). It offers breakfast and lunch on the weekdays, and dinner on Friday and Saturdays evenings. They also provide catering and venue hire.
The support of the Rotorua community has been the main reason that the Greenhouse has been able to remain in business and expand. After six months of opening, they went through the first COVID-19 lockdown. This halted progress on building their customer base, however the Rotorua community came together and supported many of the local businesses during this time which is what helped the Greenhouse get through this difficult period.
During lockdown the business also used that time as an opportunity to expand The Greenhouse and opened an upstairs mezzanine which is now known as the Treehouse. Throughout these ever changing times, Rotorua have continued to support the business and in turn, the local hospitality industry has been able to survive and thrive.
With funding assistance from Poutama, the business has expanded and opened a new restaurant in Rotorua, called The White Tiger Restaurant & Bar. This is an Asian fusion restaurant featuring all you can eat dumplings alongside many other Asian fusion favourites. It is often very challenging for a small business that is still relatively new to get enough funding and support to continue with its growth, however the support from Poutama comes at a vital time and ensures they can get the new restaurant open for all to enjoy.
As a Māori business, Ngā Tamariki 60 dreamed of being able to create opportunities to directly support people towards success, the business has allowed them to do just that. They have hired whānau and people within the community to work as front of house staff and kitchen hands. They’ve also hired whānau to gig at their special events, as well as commission them to create beautiful art to display in both restaurants. Most recently their first Head Chef returned to them after 6 months of opening his own business, and after a hui they decided to merge their businesses together and are so excited to have the Head Chef as part of the management structure.
Being Māori it has always been really important to create a business that truly represents Ngā Tamariki 60 as a Māori whānau. They believe that some keys to their success have come through the values of whakawhanaungatanga (relationships) and manaakitanga (hospitality). Living these values has helped them build strong relationships with staff and customers. They always aim to make their staff feel supported and valued, and in turn that ensures their customers always feel welcomed and receive the best service. After all – He aha te mea nui o te ao? Māku e kā atu, he tangata, he tangata, he tangata.
For more information about both restaurants, check out their Facebook pages – The Greenhouse Kitchen & Bar and The White Tiger Restaurant & Bar.
