Jess Chisari-Sneeuwjagt and her husband Joel Sneeuwjagt are experts at transforming overlooked Perth spots. After selling their share of Someday Coffee Co in Floreat and contributing to Cottesloe’s summer pop-up kiosk Ol’ Buoy, the duo were ready for a new challenge. Enter Kith Eatery, the pair’s latest project, which will rejuvenate the long-neglected Jack Spratt’s Deli site in Nedlands.

“We had actually approached the business owners about four years ago, as we thought it would be a great location, but they turned us away,’ Chisari-Sneeuwjagt tells Broadsheet.

Three years later, her father noticed the site was vacant.
“After Dad called me, we contacted the landlords, and here we are now, about to get started on the build for a mid-August opening,” she says.

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Kith, meaning “familiar friends and neighbours”, aims to become not only a neighbourhood eatery, but also a gathering place for the Nedlands/Shenton Park community.

“We see Kith as a place that provides a meeting spot. The type of place you come to get a quick coffee, head back for some lunch, and then meet your friends for an after-work wine and pasta,” says Chisari-Sneeuwjagt.

The menu is still evolving but will highlight the duo’s Sicilian and Chinese-Malaysian heritage with cherished family recipes. Initially it will serve breakfast and lunch before extending to evening service once they secure a liquor licence.

Breakfast specials include chicken congee and nasi lemak, while the evenings will focus on Sicilian dishes including fire-roasted peppers, pickled green tomatoes, marinated eggplant and anchovies on crostini, eggplant parmigiana and cotoletta.

“My mum’s cotoletta was so popular with my friends, they would ask to pay me $5 a pop so I could bring some to school,” she says. “We’ll also feature a few rotating pasta dishes and favourites from my childhood. My parents owned a pasta factory for 30 years, so having fresh pasta was a daily staple and a huge part of my life.”

Daytime offerings will focus on made-to-order sandwiches on house-made focaccia or soft rolls. Fillings include mortadella, pistachio and stracciatella; hot-honey fried chicken; classic Reubens; and harissa-roast peppers and fresh green beans.

In the AM there will be standard breakfast classics plus sausage muffins with ’nduja mayo, vanilla pancakes and sides of maple bacon and miso mascarpone will grace the breakfast menu. Takeaway choices are also on the cards with salad, Bircher muesli and acai bowl options.

Quality produce from local suppliers include The Mushroom Guys, The Grocer, Dirty Clean Foods, [Fins Seafood] https://www.broadsheet.com.au/perth/food-and-drink/article/order-wa-rock-lobster-shark-bay-snapper-coffin-bay-oysters-and-fish-fillets-your-door-these-five-seafood-delivery-services), Pressed Earth and Path Coffee. Teeter Bakery, Natasha Brownfield’s sweets mecca in East Perth, will provide a variety of pastries, including morning buns, croissants, pains au chocolat, and fat slices of Basque cheesecake.

“We’ve been big fans of Teeter since it first opened and think Tash’s pastries and cakes are some of the best we’ve ever tasted. During our last visit, I mentioned we were opening a new venue, which prompted the possibility of collaborating,” she says.

A brand-new La Marzocco KB90 coffee machine from Five Senses will be featured, with plans to showcase guest roasters from across Australia. Signature drinks will include Bloody Marys, Greek-inspired frappes, matcha and a selection of evening spritzes and wines.

The 60-seat interior will be warm and inviting with tiled tabletops and upholstered seats. Additionally, a dedicated retail area will offer specialty pantry goods and knick-knacks from Tanchen Studio, Nonna’s Grocer, Pan After and Softedge Studio.

Kith Eatery (51 Aberdare Road, Nedlands) is opening mid-August.
@kith_eatery