Korea gets Kiwi cafe

The first New Zealand restaurant in Seoul, Korea, has just opened its doors.

In an interview with The Korea Times, head chef Jae Yoon hesitated when asked to define the our culinary culture.

"It's really complicated," he said. "A nation is supposed to have its own food but it's not like that any more in New Zealand."

Instead, what defines Yoon's menu at the Koru Cafe - part of the newly opened New Zealand Centre for Education and Culture in Yoksam-dong, south Seoul - is its multicultural character.

Yoon, who has returned to Seoul after working in Wellington restaurants for the past 13 years, takes standard dishes from different parts of the world like fried rice and fettuccine and gives them a distinctly Pacific flavour. Green-lipped mussels feature as well as New Zealand wines, fruit and cheeses.

Other a la carte favourites feature New Zealand beef, lamb and seafood, cooked in a fusion style of flavours from Malaysia to the Mediterranean.

The design of the Koru Cafe also has a unique New Zealand feel. The interior is painted a sleek black in tribute to the All Blacks, while its walls are adorned with Maori carvings and models of waka.