Rachel Mako

Representing the levels and forms of aroha that can be found throughout our lives across our many communities. We acknowledge the wide range of obstacles and the journey it takes to overcoming everything that stands in our way to expressing aroha within.

Ko wai koe? What are your strengths/weakness?

Ko Takitimu te waka 

Ko Mihiroa, Ko Haungerea, Ko Teraia ōku marae  

Ko Waipuka te hapu, me te Pakipakitanga o Hine te moa tōku kainga 

Ki te taha o tōku papa
No Rarotonga ia 

No Ngā Tangi ia 

Ko Takitima tana waka hoki.  

I’m Cookie Māori but not Māori Cook Island and based back here now in Pakipakitanga o Hine te moa. I did tipi haere and now here in Kahungungu and very happy to be home.   

I am Front of House for Pacifica Restaurant. 

I was just 17 years old, when I had my oldest son Ngarimu. I have three sons, and they have three dads, and I am very fortunate to be good friends with all of them. Ngarimu became a single dad last year, and his son is now 14 months old, Te Awatea. My middle son is 16, Taiaha, and he lives with his father in Palmerston North. Years ago, he asked me if he could live with his dad and go to high school with his brothers. His dad and his wife are cool, I agreed.  

My youngest, Teina, lives at home with me. He is 14, and is enjoying his time at Hastings Boys’ High School and his new journey with kapa haka. He’s even had the chance to travel a bit this year.  

They are a definite pou in my life and stability.

Seeking guidance from our kaitiaki Hiwa-i-te-rangi, we take a journey through our different aspirations, goals and dreams. This tohu acknowledges hard work, wisdom, the reach of ones goals and the desire that comes from this mahi.

What were/are your career aspirations leading into your chosen career path?​

I got my diploma in 2018, but there wasn’t always a plan. I never intended on being a chef; I was always a tūtū.  

I was brought up here in Hastings. We moved to Palmy when I was 12, so I did my high schooling at Freyberg.  

My mother was studying at Massey University, and I didn’t realize we were struggling because they never let us see that side. We always had kai, we always traveled, and we always had things, so I never knew we went without. She got her master’s in business and property development. She works for Ngā Whenua Rāhui, a government department, where she manages the rāhui and finances behind it. 

Where I am now, I am genuinely happy, and it does not cost any money for that. Navigating around my career as well as being at home, I definitely think I know what I want from my life. 

I know my life is not about me; it is about what I can give back to my whānau and the community I live in. 

With adventure comes challenges as well as obstacles to overcome. We stand proud as we overcome these obstacles. This tohu draws inspiration from the Niho Taniwha and Aramoana patterns. We acknowledge reaching our destination and preparing ourselves for the many new adventures ahead.

How wīwī wāwā has your career adventure been?​  

There are many tribulations along the way. The journey is all to make you stronger, isn’t it?  

I lived in Australia for seven years and owned my own cleaning business there, so when I moved home in 2016, I thought I’d be a cleaner at Mangapapa Lodge, and I ended up being a chef at Mangapapa Lodge. 

When I moved home, I started working at the Hastings Golf Club. I signed up for wine and viticulture at MIT because I had seen how many Pākehā were making so much money on our whenua growing grapes, but I told a career advisor I’d rather own a café in Rarotonga rather than a vineyard. He suggested I do the basics of a cooking course. To pay for that, I did Te Ara o Takitimu, which was a scholarship.  

I did two years – my Level 4 and Level 5. My level 5 was actually amazing (in Culinary). We had all these challenges during the year, which I really enjoyed. I had my first chef’s job at Mangapapa Hotel, which is a lodge at the back of Havelock North.  

The idea is overall to fix our people through kai… I want it to be as normal as salt and pepper. Like it’s just the things that we grab for. You know, it’s not a diet. It’s whakapapa. 

I ended up leaving Mangapapa in 2020, because I already had studied and worked before, and it’s not easy to study, work, be a mum, still want to play netball, you know?

These patterns represent bravery and being strong in the face of adversity. We strive to be persistent and positively challenge anything that threatens to alter, restrict, and put a barrier in the way of our desired pathway.

What was your defining moment?  What words of wisdom or change in heart, changed your stars?​

I remember a friend of mine asking me “what are you doing, Rach?” and I said, “I don’t know, but I’m gonna get an opportunity next week.” She’s like, “Oh, what is it?” I said, “I don’t know.” 

And then the week after I got a phone call from Rob from (the band) 3 Houses Down. He said, “do you know any chef in Auckland? We need a chef for (singer) Fiji for a month.” I moved to Auckland for a month and I was privileged to work for Fiji and his manager, Bernice. I was blessed and I learned so much.  

Then I moved to Kinloch Lodge (near Taupo). What I loved about serving there was there were only four to eight people at any given time. It was very personal. I was there two years. 

A bit later, Mum said, “Hey, you should sign up for MasterChef.” I worked hard to prepare for my audition, preparing a dish multiple times to get it right. I’m so grateful my audition was the third up because I don’t know if I could have handled the anxiety for three days. 

I learned a lot on that show. I made some beautiful friends. I placed 13th overall. And the show I got voted off on was one with Monique Fiso. She’s a female chef, Māori, Pacific Islander. And what she has done with her career is just amazing.  

Fast forward to now, I’ve officially been at Pacifica Restaurant for two years. I’m front of house. I’m working with my tohunga, Jeremy Rameka. He’s someone I see as a mentor.  

I also have a side hustle, “I Got The Paua”. I had made tops for our indoor netball team and they said, “Oh, that’s too nice to wear,” so they wore just plain white tops. When I got home, other people wanted the tops, so I started making more to sell. I thought, “I better trademark these just in case someone sees it and steals it, and that would really upset me.”

Here we are drawing inspiration from the Pūhoro pattern.  The pūhoro is used here to represent the strength, speed and agility needed to move forward and accomplish ones goals.

What future actions/recommendations do you have for those who want to be in a career like yours?​ 

Listen! And definitely have a balance or an outlet. I think that’s important with everything.  

I work out every day. I go to the gym most days, and on the days I don’t, which is usually the weekend, I’m gardening or doing something active.  

I make sure I’m grounding myself somewhere and getting the best sleep I can, though it’s hard with hospitality because the hours are long. But now that I’m front of house, it’s a lot easier. I don’t have the pressures of being a chef. Our chef is there from 8:30 every morning doing mise en place every day, prepping all his ingredients, getting ready for the night, and all we have to do is show up. I’m so organized. I do my job. 

I’ve got some beautiful people around me and I think you need those people around you with every pathway you take. I have learnt “your vibe is your tribe” because I have the same friends and close whānau around me and everyone wishes me well and I wish them all well. I’ve never felt so much peace and happiness in my life. 

Success, best mentioned in the whakatauki “Tūwhitia te hopo, mairangatia te angitū!” Feel the fear and do it anyway!

What are some the failures/challenges in your life that have helped with your chosen career path? What are some memorable wins for your chosen path?​ 

With “I Got The Paua” it’s expanded a lot. We’re having a website launched. It started with my first products, T-shirts, hoodies, and then it was aprons. Aprons became huge. I’m learning everything behind the scenes of business with my own retail. 

Having “I Got The Paua” by day and hospitality by night keeps me in part. The direction I’m going with “I Got The Paua” will be my money-making while I’m sleeping. 

I still want to be a private chef for six to eight people. So me and one other front of house, preferably bilingual, will be my kitchen hand and my waiter and my dear friend, and I will look after them. 

Some other wins include when we had one of the Laughing Samoans (comedy act) come to the whare, Tofiga Fepulea’I, and a show in 2018 called Kai Safari (a show which is very similar to Hunting Aotearoa) with my friend Kirsty Bebington – her partner is Darryl Thompson from Upper Hutt Posse. 

I’m also very passionate about netball and especially men’s netball and the physicality of it. So the last two years I’ve got to sponsor the Hawke’s Bay men’s team. That’s something I’m really proud of too.