The power of two
It’s 9am on a Tuesday morning in October, one week after the opening of Josh and Helen Emett’s new restaurant, Onslow. Josh jokes he’s had a sleep-in thanks to dish’s visit to their Auckland home. With sons Louis and Finn to get to school, an exceptionally cute and rambunctious dog to be walked, ongoing hands-on involvement in Waiheke Island’s Oyster Inn – which he and Helen purchased in February – and a newborn restaurant to nurture, there’s a lot going on.
But if Josh seems unexpectedly calm for someone who’s just launched a much-anticipated eatery in the midst of a global pandemic, that would be because he is no stranger to the practice.
“I have done this so many times – like 25 at least – where I have controlled the complete kitchen, had input into the wine list, the whole design of the restaurant.”
Because Josh Emett is not simply an excellent chef; he is a globally recognised brand. He’s our homegrown culinary celebrity, the Hamilton boy done good. Having honed his craft in the UK’s top dining establishments, he didn’t just stand the heat of Gordon Ramsay’s kitchens; he flourished in them. As head chef at the fiery restaurateur’s Savoy Grill in London, Josh earned the prestigious venue its first Michelin star in more than 100 years. Over their 11-year partnership, he opened restaurants for Ramsay in New York, Los Angeles and Melbourne – racking up a swag of Michelin stars along the way – before returning home in 2011 to launch Rātā in Queenstown, the first of a string of successful partnerships with Kiwi restaurateur Fleur Caulton.
Wife and business partner Helen, meanwhile, has trodden a rather different route, and until now been much less in the limelight. But their latest venture – in a beautiful heritage building on Auckland’s Princes Street – is an elegant distillation of everything they have learned about hospitality,
