New Zealand Fare Coming to the Slope

Park Slope may have its fair share of good eats, but Chef Mark Simmons recognized at least one gaping hole in the neighborhood’s gastronomic landscape: there are no New Zealand-themed restaurants.

Here, or, apparently, anywhere in New York City.

So in May, the former “Top Chef” alumni (not to mention chef at both and ) signed a lease on the short-lived Lucas Fine Foods space on Union Street near Seventh Avenue, and set about work realizing his dreams of bringing first class Kiwi cuisine to the good people of Park Slope.

“Park Slope has a lot of amazing restaurants, but I wanted to bring in something different,” said the New Zealand native, who lives a stone’s throw from his new eatery in the Slope.

So what exactly is New Zealand fare? It’s similar to Aussie cookery, though Simmons stresses it’s not quite the same. (There is a Kiwi bar, Nelson Blue, in Manhattan, that serves some food).

The eatery, to be called Kiwiana, is slated to open September 1, serving up New Zealand-inspired fare such as a Stewart Island Salmon Ceviche and the classic Kiwi burger, a lamb patty served with a fried egg and pickled beets.

Items like mussels, lamb and salmon will be sourced from New Zealand, while produce will be local. Vegetarians can look forward to creative curries, and meat lovers plenty of lamb – Simmons grew up on sheep farm.

But though Simmons grew up butchering and trapping, he first got a taste of the life behind the stove as a teenager, when he worked as a dishwasher traveling through Australia.

“I would taste the bottom of the pan and say ‘This is amazing, how do you cook it?’ He eventually got annoyed with me and told me to start cooking,” said Simmons.

And he did, working his way up in kitchens throughout Australia, Tokyo, California and then landing in New York – where a temporary stay turned permanent once he met his wife.

Simmons and a partner are retrofitting the entire restaurant themselves – from building Simmons his “dream kitchen,” to redesigning the area to channel his grandparents’ living room and dining room growing up.

The DIY ethos naturally extends to the kitchen, too, where he likes to make everything from scratch, from sauces to pickles and jams.

“I’m doing it all myself from scratch,” he said, “That’s how I do everything.”