Monica Galetti was born in Samoa and raised in the Hutt Valley. Now, she's the toast of London.
The chef has worked with some of the fanciest people in the business but her new cookbook is all about simple home-cooked grub.
After working with the best, she opened her own place, Mere, in London with husband David in 2017.
She's appeared on numerous TV shows, survived Covid closures and become one of the elite breed of Kiwi chefs who have made their stamp on the global stage.
Speaking to Seven Sharp, Galetti said her life was "full-on" and admitted it was difficult for her to handle slowly everything down when lockdown in the UK began last year.
While the first service out of lockdown was "manic", she said just hearing customers laughing while dining gave her goosebumps and was the happiest feeling she'd had since Covid began.
Her new cookbook focuses on home-cooked recipes from a variety of places Galetti had drawn inspiration.
"There's influences from my childhood, recipes that my dad used to make for us ... just some dishes I loved growing up with.
"I think for those that think I'm all about fine dining, it shows that you can relax, you can great food at home and keep it simple at the same time."
As for Christmas, Galetti plans on going back to her roots and making a pavlova, to go along with turkey burgers.
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