Krishna Botica

Krishna Botica is an Auckland restaurateur and co-owner of Comensa, the restaurant group behind some of the city’s most celebrated eateries, including Cafe Hanoi, Ghost Street and Perch.

Born in Auckland in 1971, Botica has been in hospitality since she was 14. She worked her way up from waiter and bartender through venues in Auckland, Boston and London, including stints at landmark Auckland restaurants Prego, Metropole and S.P.Q.R. She holds a BA in English literature and Italian from the University of Auckland.

Alongside business partner Tony McGeorge, Botica opened Cafe Hanoi in Britomart in 2010. The restaurant’s modern take on Vietnamese cuisine made it one of Auckland’s defining dining experiences and the pair have since expanded into Ghost Street and Perch, as well as co-founding Xuxu Dumpling Bar and Saan.

Beyond the dining room, Botica serves as Auckland branch president and national vice president of the Restaurant Association of New Zealand. She became a prominent public voice during COVID-19, advocating for targeted support for the hospitality sector and speaking plainly about what it takes to keep a restaurant alive through a crisis.

With more than 30 years in the industry, Botica’s profile is noteworthy because she has helped shape how Auckland eats and how New Zealand thinks about hospitality as a profession. Her career is a reminder that building great restaurants is as much entrepreneurship as any tech startup and often harder.

Sources: NZ Herald · Britomart · RNZ