ABOUT US

After working in Wellington and Taranaki, Richard’s first stop was Melbourne’s vibrant restaurant and cafe scene in the mid 90’s. He worked in some of the city’s stellar establishments whilst also completing a Bachelors Degree in Tourism and Hospitality Management. Following this, Richard went to Australia’s Gold Coast to be part of the Pre-Opening Team of the first Palazzo Versace Hotel where its fine dining restaurant, Vanitas, won numerous awards and accolades.

In 2002, Richard was approached by the Shangri-la Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to helm the newly renovated dining concept, Lemon Garden and its associated satellite outlets, Cinnamon and Lemon Garden 2Go. Designed by the renowned Adam Tihany, Lemon Garden features Malay, Chinese, Italian and Contemporary cuisines presented in live cooking stations. This was to become an emerging trend in hotel dining environments.

Since 2004, Richard has been part of the luxury hotel market with General Hotel Management Group (GHM) as an Executive Chef. In this capacity, he has managed and revamped many of the kitchens within the company portfolio including The Nam Hai in Hoi An, Vietnam, The Chedi in Muscat, Oman, The Andaman in Datai Bay on Langkawi Island, Malaysia, The Chedi, Chiang Mai, Thailand to name a few.

After decades abroad, Richard and his wife decided to bring their children home for their schooling and enjoy life in New Zealand amongst family and friends. Essence Catering was a natural step when he got back to Whanganui where he could take on a hands-on approach in the kitchen and enjoy the diversity that each event brings.  Richard strongly supports locally grown or farmed produce, enhancing them with cooking styles and influences from his extensive travels to bring a world class culinary experience to the region.

In 1995, Minnie had an opportunity to work in Melbourne and ended up spending five years there working in both the fashion and hospitality industry whilst completing her degree.  It was at university that Minnie and Richard met.

Throughout their shared travels around the world since then, and despite her finance training, Minnie has always gravitated towards the hospitality industry.  She headed the finance team at Palazzo Versace on the Gold Coast; was the Operations Manager at the uber-trendy fine dining restaurant, Frangipani Restaurant and Bar, in Kuala Lumpu. From 2004, Minnie managed a boutique private resort of restored antique wooded houses on Langkawi Island.   After having children, Minnie continued to work in consulting and supportive roles in the various countries that they’ve lived utilising her strong administrative, finance and organisational skills.

Coming back to New Zealand after so long away, Minnie loves the laid back lifestyle of Whanganui and its close knit community feel.  She looks forward to supporting Richard in Essence Catering and will look after accounts, bookings and manage the Front of House team at all events to ensure each and every one is as unique as their clients.