Restaurateur Nic Watt and culinary director chef Darren Johnson have announced they will open a Peruvian-style eatery at Westfield Newmarket in Auckland.

The new restaurant, Inca, will join 10 other restaurants on the Rooftop on Broadway, Westfield Newmarket’s rooftop dining, lifestyle and entertainment precinct, later this year.

Watt and Johnson, who worked at known restaurants including Nobu and Roka in London, Tokyo’s Park Hyatt, and Huka Lodge and MASU by Nic Watt in NZ, said their new place will offer guests a smart casual, South American eatery feel.

“I first discovered the delights of Peruvian food in 2012, when I went to Peru to study ceviche and antichuchos and I fell in love with the cuisine back then and always had a vision to do something,” Watt said.

“There’s a huge Asian influence on food in Peru due to the large Chinese and Japanese immigration. Inca will be about those Latin American-meets-Asian flavours.”

The founders said diners can expect to find ceviche and Peru’s most popular street food, antichuchos, at Inca.

The 181sqm dining space will feature the terracottas, pinks and greens of Peru’s Rainbow Mountain with rammed earth walls, wooden tables and stone flooring. The restaurant will seat 110 diners both inside and out and open from lunch through dinner.

“Nic Watt and Darren Johnson are synonymous with New Zealand’s burgeoning food scene and two of the best chefs in the country,” said John Papagiannis, Scentre Group director for Leasing and Retail Solutions and NZ Development.

“We’re thrilled to be welcoming Inca to Westfield Newmarket in what will be a must-try experience for our customers.

Inca will join White + Wong’s & Sardine Cocktail Bar and Something & Social at the Rooftop on Broadway.

Due to open in multiple stages later this year, Westfield Newmarket’s $790million development project will feature more than 200 stores over five levels, including Auckland’s first David Jones, a new Farmers, Countdown and more.