Chef Kaz Okochi gives his State of the Uni address. [WaPo] Michel Richard may soon join fellow D.C. chef Robert Weidmaier in opening a restaurant—perhaps even three of them—in Atlantic City. [Eater DC] Shaw's forthcoming Bistro Bohem could open earlier than Shaw's Tavern. [Prince of Petworth] Next week is D.C. Meat Week. Alexandria's Pork Barrel [...]
The District's fourth Whole Foods Market, a sprawling, two-story 36,000-square-foot emporium of organic and gluten-free goodness, opened its doors at the corner of 22nd and Eye Streets in Foggy Bottom this morning. Real estate blog UrbanTurf has photos from inside. Washington Business Journal notes how the new store is emphasizing its food-on-the-go selection, including Neapolitan-style [...]
Restaurateur Kaz Okochi's fast casual-style sushi joint Oh Fish! opened on Wednesday at 1103 19th St. NW. Its gimmick: Diners can build their own maki rolls the same way they would customize their burrito bowls at Chipotle. Washingtonian previously had the scoop on the place. On Thursday, WaPo's Justin Rude takes us down the ordering [...]
Moving Around the Corner: In case you thought the D.C. area's continued influx of new cupcakeries and other bakeries hawking frosted treats might be putting pressure on Warren Brown and his Cake Love enterprise, the veteran lawyer-turned-baked-goods empresario is not bending under the pressure! While he is shutting down his CakeLove location in Silver Spring, [...]
Even though Masa 14 plays more to the strengths of Richard Sandoval (Zengo, La Sandia) than Kaz Okochi (Kaz Sushi Bistro)— really, would it kill someone to put nigiri sushi on the menu?—the collaboration has proved beneficial for both chefs. It’s spread Sandoval’s influence beyond his two clownish local milieus (Chinatown/Tysons Corner Center) and dragged [...]
The rest of the non-profits around the metro area — you know, the ones that don't have their hand in Haitian earthquake relief — must feel like the location scout for Avatar. Really damn underappreciated. But in this economy, many non-profits are getting hit with a double whammy: The need for their services has increased, while [...]
Tonight officially kicks off winter D.C. Restaurant Week, which means that if you haven't already secured your reservations to the city's finest, priciest dining rooms, you're pretty much screwed. Because, let's be honest, if you're not hitting the most expensive restaurants, you're not getting much bang for your buck during RW. Once you start figuring [...]
One of the recurring complaints about Ren's Ramen in Bethesda, which I reviewed this week in Young & Hungry, is that its soups, starting at $10 per bowl, are way too expensive. A sample quote from Ren's Yelp page: Bowls start at $10 (!) with just one slice of pork, some bean sprouts, and one leaf of [...]
In doing research yesterday on my next Young & Hungry column, this one on ramen, two people asked if I had ever seen Tampopo. I had to confess that I had not. Until last night, that is, when I sat transfixed for nearly two hours by writer-director Juzo Itami's free-association comedy about one noodle-maker's search for the [...]
Y&H was talking to Kaz Okochi, the Asian half of the trans-continental fusion cuisine at Masa 14, about (of all things) ramen when we launched into the subject of his new restaurant on 14th Street NW. It seems that Okochi and his partner, Richard Sandoval, will be starting their brunch menu this weekend. "Brunch is [...]
