Ngāruawāhia's Durham Precinct's an incubator of sorts and not just for Phat Patti's.
For those in the know, it's where chef Rawinia Tupe serves up big burgers, the clear favourite being the "phat clucker".
"It's a chicken burger, chilli sauce is what they come for, so it's what they get."
A few years ago the precinct was a run down industrial lot but Amy Whetu and her husband saw the potential. They were also looking for somewhere to run their consultancy business out of and were hoping to find a space they could share with other like-minded business owners.
When Durham came up they jumped and purchased it.
"That was very scary for us, but it was a leap of faith and we just hoped we could meet with others in the community who felt they wanted to be part of something," she said.
Today, 16 businesses including a gym, boutique, kai carts, real estate and other small firms operate out of a section which once housed a shoe factory.
It's a model of small scale development the Whetu whānau wanted to explore - keeping the rental sections small so that small businesses - some of them first time owners - could give it ago.
"We are community builders, we firmly believe that mana motuhake is being able to build your own business."
The mayor Allan Sanson says it's a town that's had it's detractors over the years including one commentator who called it a town that was "rotting".
But that was based on the aesthetics of the part of town that State Highway used to cut right through, graffiti, rollerdoors and recently a burnt down pub.
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