Latest news with #MalishaKumar
NZ Herald
07-08-2025
- Business
- NZ Herald
Main Street Cafe Huntly wins award for rhubarb and raspberry pie at NZ Pie Awards 2025
After the award announcement, pie sales skyrocketed and they were sold out two days in a row, Linton-Brown said. While Linton-Brown couldn't remember how many pies she made on the days they sold out, she believed it was hundreds. Linton-Brown, originally from Auckland, fell in love with pastry when she was still in high school. But it wasn't until 2022 that she opened her own cafe. It's a family-run business, with her children heavily involved as well. For the family, the awards win came after 'rough' times and challenges, which meant Linton-Brown had been almost ready to close the cafe's doors. 'We've been broken into, which cost us a lot of money, and recession for our business was tight too. Huntly's Main Street Cafe won Gold for their rhubarb and raspberry pie at the 2025 Bakels NZ Pie Awards. Photo / Malisha Kumar 'It was either dig my heels in further or close my doors,' she said. But closing up shop did not come easy to her. 'I'm no quitter. 'I don't want to give up, and I kept that capacity in me to keep pushing forward.' Having overcome those challenges made the national pie award win taste twice as sweet. 'We dug our heels in, and it was hard. But I'm incredibly grateful I did.' Other Waikato winners were the Baker Tīrau, taking silver for its steak and cheese pie and Hamilton's High Bakery and Cafe, which won silver for its vegetarian pie in 2024, and this year won silver for its bacon and egg pie. The sign outside Huntly's Main Street Cafe. Photo / Malisha Kumar The High Bakery and Cafe posted on social media: 'We did it again'. 'Thanks [to] our loyal customers for believing in us, supporting, and enjoying our pies.' Lunchbar Eighty 8, also of Hamilton, won bronze for its creamy paua pie in the Gourmet Meats category. Auckland's Rosedale Bakery & Cafe won the Supreme Award for its potato top pie. The first Pie Awards were held in 1996 to inspire the baking industry to keep on innovating. The Bakels Supreme Pie Awards have now grown to around 600 entries across 11 categories, which are blind-judged by a panel of industry experts. Malisha Kumar is a multimedia journalist based in Hamilton. She joined the Waikato Herald in 2023 after working for Radio 1XX in Whakatāne.
NZ Herald
31-07-2025
- Business
- NZ Herald
Awatere Village, Hamilton, among New Zealand Property Awards 2025 winners
Last year, Oceania completed its $93 million redevelopment, including a 91-bed care facility, 131 independent living apartments, a cafe, cinema, gym and bar. Other features include edible gardens, planted by residents, a bowling green, and walking tracks. Village manager Kylie Hall said she was excited about the award win. Talking about the redevelopment, Hall said Trevellyn never 'lacked care, just amenities'. 'We've moved with the times and become modern.' The redevelopment occurred during the pandemic, with plenty of challenges, so completing the upgrades and winning an award was a 'significant achievement'. 'It's a development catering right from retirement, hospital, to the end-of-life side.' Resident Meryl, 87, who did not want to give her last name, has been living in the village's Trevellyn building for 11 years. Hamilton's Awatere Village manager Kylie Hall with resident Pat Stocks. Photo / Malisha Kumar Meryl said a lot had changed since she first moved in, but she loved meeting more people and having more opportunities for activities. 'It's been a big change and I was a bit apprehensive at first, going from a small place to a much bigger one. 'But I love it. 'This village has the convenience of everything close by. I needed that.' She never saw herself living in a retirement village but, when her husband died, their home in Thames, where she lived for more than 50 years, was too big. Now, she has 'no regrets' about moving to the village, a feeling shared by fellow resident Pat Stocks, 81. Stocks became an Awatere resident five years ago and lives in one of the new independent units. She lived in Hamilton with her family before her eyesight deteriorated. 'I couldn't drive anymore, I was isolated. My son and I started looking at retirement villages, then Covid hit,' she said. Between Covid waves, her family booked an appointment at Awatere, and Stocks hasn't looked back since. '[There are] bus stops just outside, and a parade of shops with a chemist, takeaways and dairies.' Awatere Village residents planted these edible gardens themselves. Photo / Malisha Kumar Stocks keeps herself busy by running the village bar - something that reminds her of home. 'I worked in a pub in England for 15 years when I was a police officer. I worked the bar for extra pocket money when my boys were little.' Hall said the village was special. 'It's about community and environment. This isn't just a building, they've come to a village.' The Property Industry Awards, now in their 35th year, are run by the Property Council New Zealand and celebrate achievements in property development, design, and investment. Christchurch's Burlington Village was named Best in Category in the Retirement Living and Aged Care Property Award. Awatere Village, whose owner Oceania Healthcare sponsors the awards, received an excellence award, alongside Auckland's Summerset St Johns. Woburn Masonic Care in Lower Hutt received a 'merit' award. Malisha Kumar is a multimedia journalist based in Hamilton. She joined the Waikato Herald in 2023 after working for Radio 1XX in Whakatāne.
