"Where are we going for our kai?" my son and daughter asked simultaneously from the back seat of the car.
"Well you guys are in for a real treat this evening because I am taking you to a special eating place that is world-famous in Rotorua.
A few minutes later my young children were mesmerised as they walked through the Joe's Diner shutter doors. "Wow, this is way cool, my son exclaimed." My daughter looked under the table as she sat before saying aloud, "Look there's chewing gum under here." I quickly told her not to eat it in case we got charged extra which set the scene for a memorable eating experience full of laughs, me telling my Joe's Diner stories, yummy burgers and my tamariki (children) meeting more of their relatives who were also at the diner.
My tamariki have fond memories of Joe's Diner which replicate the many memories I have of a place that was always more than a burger bar. If the Rotorua town centre were the marae, then Joe's Diner was the wharekai where you never knew who you would run into, but you always knew you could get a delicious kai. Joe's Diner was not just an eating place, it was an experience.
Nga mihi nui ki a koutou ko to whanau Joe, Thank you Joe.
