Our History

The Polo journey began when local resident Valentina Dias teamed up with fellow Wellingtonian Andy Tse & purchased the then named Edwards Jones Cafe. After lots of hard work & dedication Andy decided to sell up his half of the business in 2007 to try his luck in Sydney.

The Head Chef responsibility then belonged to new owner, David Thurlow. David & Valentina decided it was time for a change of identity and the name Polo was born. After nearly three years of building Polo's great reputation alongside David, Valentina thought it was time to pursue an exciting business opportunity down the road in Miramar.

After recently returning from five years in the hospitality industry in Sydney, Josh Pointon stepped in to the co-owner/FOH manager role in 2010. David & Josh continued to develop & grow Polo for the next three years. In March 2013, after six years of blood, sweat & tears, David decided the time had come to pass the Head Chef reins over & the only choice was long time Sous Chef & friend Adrian Green.

Adrian and Josh continued to build upon the ethos of slow food and locally sourced ingredients which David had started. In 2014, self taught baker, Lisa joined the team to ensure the Polo cabinet was always looking top notch (and spend more time with partner, Adrian). Josh and friends opened the wine bar, Noble Rot, in 2016 and in 2018 had to make the hard decision to take a step back from Cafe Polo calling upon ex Polo team member Briar Thomson (AKA Bronnie) to take his place. 

Adrian, Lisa & Briar are excited about what the future holds & look forward to continuing Polo’s fantastic reputation in the hospitality industry.

We look forward to welcoming you soon.