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Food has always been part of my story — even before I realised it would become my business.

I grew up on a farm, where food came straight from the land and meals were simple, hearty, and made to feed a big family. Mince, sausages, cottage pie — that was our normal. We weren’t adventurous eaters, and honestly, neither was I. I didn’t try seafood until much later in life, and funnily enough, I absolutely hated strawberries. Trying new food wasn’t really my thing.

But what I did grow up with was incredible women in the kitchen.

My mum, my Nanan, Nan, and Nan Elaine were some of the biggest influences in my cooking journey. They taught me that food wasn’t just about eating — it was about gathering, hosting, and making people feel at home. Watching them create meals with love, often from very little, shaped the way I see food today.

When I was 10, I was gifted a pasta machine, and I still remember making my very first batch of pasta. It was so thick it probably could’ve broken a window — but I was obsessed from that moment.

Years later, during COVID, I rediscovered that love for food while working for a boutique cakery in Auckland. Like many people, I found myself needing a creative outlet, and that became a little social media page I started called Hol Eats It Up. It was my way of sharing food, connection, and a bit of joy during a strange time.

I’ve always had a very social circle — we were the girls always trying the newest restaurant, booking the latest hot spot, saying yes to long lunches, good wine, and unforgettable dinners. Looking back, I probably spent way too much money eating out… but honestly, I wouldn’t change a thing.

Traveling through Europe a few times only deepened that love. Some of the best memories of my life are tied to incredible meals, tiny hidden restaurants, bustling markets, and cooking classes where food became the language everyone understood.

For the last 10 years, I’ve worked in food and hospitality, watching trends, learning from incredible businesses, and seeing firsthand what creates unforgettable experiences in New Zealand’s hospitality scene.

The Host is the result of all of that — the farm girl, the pasta machine, the family tables, the travel, the dinners out, the lessons from strong women, and the belief that the best moments in life happen around food.

Because for me, it has never just been about the food.

It has always been about connection.