Anton Matthews, owner/operator of Fush restaurant in Wigram, Christchurch, was blown away when more than 600 people registered for his free te reo Māori class.

A small-scale Māori language class planned for a Christchurch fish and chip shop attracted more than 600 people, forcing organisers to book out a school auditorium to accommodate the crowds.

Fush restaurant owner Anton Matthews announced on May 12 he would be holding free te reo classes at his Wigram restaurant. Interest in the Facebook event skyrocketed – more than 3000 people said they were keen.

"There was just no way we could have had it at Fush. We asked people to register and once we got above 80 or 90 people, we started looking for somewhere else," Matthews said.

SUPPLIED More than 600 people turned up for Fush's first te reo class. Originally planned for their Wigram Restaurant, they moved it to Christchurch Boys' High School after massive interest,

The event was moved to the Christchurch Boys' High School auditorium and kicked off on Monday at 7pm. Matthews said it was "a really cool atmosphere".

READ MORE: 2000 register interest in free te reo classes at Christchurch fish and chip eatery

"I was very proud to be a Kiwi living in Christchurch [Monday] night," he said.

"I didn't think there was this much enthusiasm to learn te reo in Christchurch and I'm pleased to say I got this one wrong."

He planned to run three more Monday classes, all to be held at Boys' High, where Matthews used to teach te reo. He has a degree in te reo Māori, indigenous studies and teaching.

When he launched the classes, Matthews said the "preservation and normalisation" of te reo encouraged the project.

"I was brought up speaking te reo Māori at home and at primary school, but it wasn't until I got to high school that I realised how unusual I was," he said.

"It's one of Aotearoa's three official languages ... I only speak to my children in te reo Māori and we've always made it a part of the Fush culture too."

The lessons would progressively become more in depth, but that should not discourage people. A video of the first lesson was on Fush's Facebook page.

"If people came this week, there is a whole new class for them to learn next week," he said.

"We're committed to four one-hour lessons, and if there is still interest after that, well, we'll see what happens."