Cafe couple take on new venture
Couple take over The Club’s bar and restaurant and give it a new name
Cafe owners Mickey Singh and Mani Kaur have taken over the bar and restaurant at The Club Katikati. It is now called Mickey’s Bar and Eatery and it’s open for business.
The new venture is one of the changes for The Club — formerly Katikati RSA and Citizens Club — while it is in a transitional phase. The Club’s acting secretary, Jim Hume, said plans are under way for changes which will be announced in April.
Mickey and Mani are the team behind Squeeze Cafe Bar and Restaurant which they’ve run in Cherry Court for more than a year.
“The locals are like family now, we know them and they know us . . . they’ve watched our baby grow,” Mani says.
The pair first came to New Zealand in 2015, settling in Tauranga where they both worked at former restaurant Takara.
Wanting a quieter life, they switched to Katikati two years ago and took on Squeeze.
Mickey has been a chef for 15 years and gained his qualifications in Europe. Mani is a chartered accountant with Giles and Associates in Katikati.
Mickey first ran his own cafe back in India.
Mani says they’ve put a lot of hard work into their business and working 12-hour days is not unusual for them.
“We are used to hard work and we’ve put a lot of hard work into Squeeze . . . we have been received really well.”
The Club decided to relaunch after difficulties and uncertainty last year. They had closed the doors in July with discussions about liquidation. But members preferred it to go into recess and changes are under way — starting with a new operator of the restaurant.
Mickey says their vision is to get The Club buzzing and make it a place for everyone, especially families.
“If people want to go out, we want them to think of us ‘let’s go to Mickey’s Bar and Eatery, because they have something for everyone’,” he says.
The Club has darts, snooker and pool tables. The pokies are gone and there is now a kid’s club. There are bingo nights, quiz nights and member raffle nights.
Mickey’s offers an all-day menu of bar snacks and the restaurant has all the favourites such as steak, lamb shank, pork belly, ribs, fish, coconut chilly lamb, pasta and more. They offer food and drink specials every day. Members receive discounts.
Mani says come April, they will be open for lunch as well.
At present, The Club remains a members’ club but all members of the public can be signed in.