If you live in Invercargill, you already know Kate French. And if you don’t, you’ll be able to spot her. She’s that smiley face behind the coffee machine at The Batch Cafe. Or she’s dressed as a cheese roll. Either way, she’ll make you feel like you’re in the right place. 

Kate owns the Invercargill institution perched on the corner of Spey and Deveron. For the past fourteen years, she’s been behind The Batch’s steady rise, not with a marketing campaign or a flashy fit-out, but with consistency, care and very good coffee.

There’s nothing secret about its success. According to Kate, it’s just Southern hospitality. The kind where strangers share tables, staff know your usual, and someone always has a recommendation if you’re passing through town. For the locals, a car park out front doesn’t hurt either. 

Kate grew up on a sheep farm, where food was never a performance, it was just life. Her earliest food memories are about swedes in the paddock, peeled with a pocketknife, and a freezer full of shared catches and gifted cuts. In Murihiku, she says, kai is a currency. A crayfish for a favour. Pāua from a mate. A meat pack for winning the quiz.

That way of thinking shows up in how she runs the café, how she talks about food, and how she advocates for the people behind it. She knows the producers by name. Knows what they’re growing, what the seasons are doing to the strawberries, and which cauliflower could feed a family. She talks about them with genuine affection and the kind of pride that feels like family.

“It’s such a huge risk to be a grower,” she says. “So if I can help build understanding around our food system, why that tomato costs what it does, or how incredible our seafood is - then I’m doing my bit.”

Outside of The Batch, Kate’s influence carries even further. She helped create the Good Food Roadmap through the Murihiku Kai Collective. She’s on the Southland Business Chamber board. She supports hospitality workers and small operators across the region. And she’s part of Eat NZ Kaitaki, a national network of food leaders pushing for a better food future. 

Earlier this year, her work was recognised by Cuisine Magazine, naming her one of Aotearoa’s Top 50 Women in Food and Drink. It was a quiet nod to something the locals already knew. Kate isn’t just feeding people, she’s helping shape how Southlanders connect with food, and with each other.

She’s the kind of person who can hold space for a policy yarn and host a gin tasting. The sort who’ll back a new hospo owner, share a recipe when you’re under the weather, or turn one flat white into a food system think tank before you’ve even buttered your scone. Generous, grounded, and quietly funny.

If you’re lucky enough to find yourself at The Batch, grab the window seat. Check out the special made from Murihiku produce. And if Kate’s around, say hi.