Having disposed of that he ordered a small entree of grilled sausage; this he followed with an entree order of grilled steak. If he couldn't get his mixed grill in one order he was content, meanwhile, to get it piecemeal. When he paid his bill on departure the following day he mentioned to the manager his regret that he couldn't get a mixed grill with his meal. The manager seemed surprised. ‘There shouldn't be any difficulty about that,’ he said. ‘I'll have a talk with the chef before you come down next month, Mr Harangaote.’ But when Pineha ordered mixed grill on his next visit he again met with refusal. As before he made no complaint. As before he worked his way through the entrees and again, when leaving mentioned the matter to the manager without mentioning Heni's name. ‘I'm awfully sorry, Mr Harangaote,’ apologised the manager. ‘Old Heni's stuck her toes in for some reason. If it was something more important I'd insist, but Heni's been with us for years, she's worth her weight in gold. I just wouldn't dare to upset her by insisting.’ The stalemate continued for some years. With unfailing regularity during each day of his monthly visit Pineha ordered a mixed grill. With equal regularity Heni declined to supply it. Without fail Pineha ordered his succession of grill entries. The waitress reported to him that Heni was hopping mad. ‘She knows it's you gets all these little entrees,’ she told him. ‘She says one day she'll stop them. Me, I don't think she can do that. There just isn't anything she can do about it.’ There wasn't. The issue remained an issue until it became almost a tradition. The story spread from the dining room to the bar, from the bar it percolated through the town. Eventually Pineha's fellow members on the Education Board heard about it and fondly twitted the old man about it. He was a great favourite and their teasing was affectionate and mild. Old Pineha just smiled. There came a day when Pineha missed his monthly visit. ‘Where's that Ngati Manene taurekareka?’ Heni asked the waitress. ‘That old fellow give in, eh? Change his hotel?’ ‘I heard he's sick,’ the waitress said.