A look at the revamped Zebra restaurant in SouthPark

“The potential is huge,” Kim said. “It was clear it just needed a little TLC.”

The interior was revamped, with new artwork and furniture. The restrooms went from looking like a “sports bar’s” to the kind of place with cotton hand towels. And they’re making a big bet on the patio as a way to bring the average customer age back down. Kim said they’ll experiment with happy hour-type food specials, brunch and afternoon tea.

The menu, too, has some more modern influences. Kim’s early career was as a chef and manager in French bistros in London, and Zebra’s French-American cuisine will remain the centerpiece. He came to the United States in 1992 and spent 20 years with The Compass Group, which ultimately brought him to Charlotte. He wasn’t impressed with the fine dining scene in the early 2000s when he got here.

“It was a wasteland,” Kim said. But Zebra was one of the few top-quality fine dining spots. Kim ate there once in his early years in Charlotte, and then did not again until it was time to buy the place. He’s now positioning it as not just a special occasion place, but as an alternative to spots like P.F. Chang’s.

“I just like fighting the fight of a family-owned and operated restaurant versus chains,” he said.

Take a look at some of the new items

The Zebra signature cocktail: Bacardi Silver and Gosling’s Dark rums, peach schnapps and orange juice, shaken and served with a salt and cayenne pepper rim.

Pre-course: Blood orange gelee and fennel spiced custard 

Organic red and golden beets with sheep’s milk roquefort, praline walnuts, and local Tega Hills micro greens

Jumbo crab cake with lime-infused smoked creme fraiche, harissa aioli and celeriac salad

Crispy pork belly with spaetzle sauce de veau, braised red cabbage and ragout of wild mushrooms

Bouillabaisse with wild-harvested scallop, green lip mussels, shrimp and flounder, drizzled with persillade and pearl cous cous

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