Our People
25 September, 2025
The journey to becoming a treasured local
EVERY now and then a community is lucky enough to have a character move to town whose positive presence makes people’s day better and in Stawell, one of those memorable characters is Giovanna Angelats de Monaghan.
Giovanna migrated to Stawell all the way from Lima, Peru, in 2006 and has warmly greeted customers at her tiny blink-and-you’ll-miss-it premises, Pachamama Café in Main Street for the past five years.
“I love it, I have really good customers here, they’re very nice people,” said Giovanna in her infectiously upbeat Peruvian accent.
Inspiration for the style of food on offer at Pachamama Café is rooted in the cooking traditions of Giovanna’s family, including a mouth-watering beef stew that has become one of Stawell’s must-try eating experiences.
“It comes from my grandma, I learned it from my mum,” Giovanna said.
“My mum didn’t cook beef stew, my mum cooked goat, we call it Cabrito, it’s very traditional in the north of Peru.
“Here I don’t have goat but I have beef, because the beef here in Australia is so beautiful which works perfectly.”
When talking about Pachamama Café, Giovanna makes a point of crediting staff member Mae, who has been an integral part of the Pachamama story.
“She’s from the Philippines, she’s a gorgeous girl, we have been working together for a long time now, our connection is great.”
While things are ticking along nicely for Giovanna now, the café’s early days were mired in uncertainty due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Pachamama Café opened in March 2020, just as the terrifying reality of the global catastrophe was dawning on people.
“It was very, very (sic) I didn’t know what was happening,” Giovanna said.
“We started, opened, and then a few weeks later we had to close down.”
For Giovanna, having to shut the doors to comply with Victoria’s lockdowns towards the end of March was as much a blessing as it was a curse, offering her a chance to gather herself after feeling overwhelmed with the first couple of weeks operating her new business.
“I took it as a process of learning, because for me, to have a café and food service like this, I had no experience and everything was new,” she said.
“I’d started just getting into the routine, to know how I can make easier myself (sic) and for the customers, so they don’t wait too long.
“When we had to close down, in way I said, ‘oh my god that’s a relief’ to give me a break.”
Giovanna used the time to critically analyse the customer experience in her café and came back strong.
“I had to go home and see how I can improve, things I can get better, so I did that instead of crying.”
The quiet life of regional Australia is completely opposite to life in the bustling coastal metropolis of Lima, and Giovanna says she fell in love with Stawell right away but admits it took time to adjust to her new surroundings.
“It was quiet, peaceful, safe, just beautiful” she said, “I came from the capital, Lima can be a bit dangerous sometimes.”
“But then, not everything is paradise, I got bored after a few years, thinking’ what am I going to do here? There’s nothing!’
“When I arrived here in Stawell, it was quieter, not many immigrants but we have a Vietnamese café now, we have Thai food, this has been a very good improvement for myself because I like food.”
Having established herself as a lawyer in Peru, the journey to building an identity in her adopted hometown was a lengthy process for Giovanna.
“It took me a few years to say I have to do something here,” she said.
“I used to dance so I started to teach Zumba here in Stawell, I love it.”
The Zumba classes became a hit with people in Stawell, with classes gaining a solid following while Giovanna juggled them with a job at Eventide Homes, and now ‘Zumba With Giovanna’ is as strong as ever with 6pm classes on Monday and Thursday nights at Stawell Tennis Club.
It was love that brought Giovanna all the way to Stawell almost two decades ago, after meeting her now-husband Matthew when they were both holidaying in a small town in Peru.
“I came here to Stawell for a few months to see if it’s happening or not, I went back to Peru and then I decided to come back, break everything, I left my job.” she said.
“My mum said ‘you are crazy, you can’t do that, you can’t just leave your career’.
“I left a lot there in Peru, I miss a lot of my country, I miss my family, my sisters, my friends, my language, my food, my everything but I’m lucky because I go back all the time.”
As much as Giovanna loves to talk about her business, nothing makes her light up more than talking about her daughters, Katia and Roxana.
“They both go to Marian College, one is finishing this year,” she said.
“I named them after my sisters, I have two sisters, Katia and Roxana.”
The day-to-day business of being a mum is something Giovanna thoroughly enjoys.
“My younger girl wants to be a policewoman, she has no idea how it will be, she probably just likes the uniform,” she said with a roaring laugh.
“Hopefully my girls find something they’ll really enjoy.”
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