FoodieBuddha.com

Intown Atlanta has no shortage of burger joints and pizzerias.  Consequently, it seems that this reality costs us the opportunity to enjoy true ethnic food, as framed by our natural ethnocentrism, without having to haul booty up Buford Highway.  Enter Wasabi Grill, a new Japanese/Korean smörgåsbord in the Home Park section of The Westside.  While it may not be the most authentic endeavor, Wasabi Grill, like Miso Izakaya and Hankook Taqueria, is an attempt to give urban Atlanta an alternative to the Americanized sushi bars and assimilated Chinese restaurants that most of us think about when the words “Eastern cuisine” are used.

Having replaced Mosaic Halal Café, you’ll find Wasabi Grill on 14th street just across from Jimmy John’s.  Open just about a week and change, I strolled by a week ago yesterday for a little “Linner.”  While there isn’t anything about the place that makes me think we’re about to witness a renaissance, it did okay given the circumstances.

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Since my introduction to Yakitori Jinbei in late 2009 (thanks Spark Plug), the restaurant has worked itself into my regular rotation.  I’ve introduced several people to the joint, told countless others, and return whenever I get a hankering for some ramen. (occasional acts of indiscretion at Haru Ichiban notwithstanding).

Having successfully convinced many a foodie that I am not actually cuckoo for cocoa puffs, the newly minted Ramen Brigade set out late last week for a little Hi, Hello, and some much needed sustenance.  Having grabbed Spark Plug and @NoKungFu in route, we met up with Dea (website) and Weigy (website) for some good ole fashion yakitori.  Needless to say, I had no business at the table with people who might as well bleed Asiatic cuisine.  Still, I managed to sneak a seat, and the Ramen Brigade was up and running.

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Buckhead’s sushi scene is about to get a lot more crowded. A few months ago, word broke that Tomo was set to open in The Ritz-Carlton residences building,  At the time, owner/chef Tomohiro Naito was not sure if his namesake restaurant would keep its current location in Vinings.  Well, according to several of their servers, the Vinings location isn’t going anywhere.  As for the soon to be Buckhead joint, the details are still coming together.  As for now, Restaurants Consulting Group is handling the design, and they have said that the plans are to make the restaurant into a higher-end sushi bar.  There’s no confirmed word yet on an exact opening date, but end of summer was tossed around.

Two establishments, one building, and one curious story.  That’s the deal with two new eateries going in at Renaissance Walk, a struggling (aka foreclosed) downtown condominium complex just a few steps from Georgia State.  One Café and Yoeshi are siblings spots that have been in production for quite sometime.  If recent grumblings (spurred by self-promotion) are to be taken at face value, then the two newborns will say hello sometime in mid-February.  Still, details are muddled.

Tucked in at the corner of Auburn Ave. and Piedmont, the location for these two restaurants is not nearly as ideal as one would think.  In that same location, several restaurants have opened and closed faster than you can say recession.  Still, that hasn’t stopped one restaurateur from trying to open not one, but two, fast casual concepts.

One Café is purportedly set to offer a mind-boggling array of cuisines with everything from burritos to burgers and all the way through pastries.  They’ve actually named just about every restaurant in Atlanta as their source of unoriginality inspiration.  Speaking of names, according to the Renaissance Walk website, the name of the restaurant is actually spelled One Caffe.

As for that other gig, Yoeshi will serve Japanese street food as well as Japanese pastries and desserts.

According to their own musings, these will be a walk-up and order establishments with no service staff.  They have a chef, but no word on who that actually is at this time.  Anywho, there y’all have it.

One Cafe / Yoeshi Address:
171 Auburn Avenue NE, Atlanta, GA 30303-2552

As I hobble through life with a Droid as my sole camera, it’s time for another one of my first impressions that really isn’t a first impression.  Falafel King sits on the Emory campus just off the junction of Oxford and N. Decatur.  Though it’s purveyors are of Korean lineage, this shack sized, spit using restaurant actually sells the oddly married cuisines of Japan (in this case sushi) and the Mediterranean.  This odd mish mash of grub, combined with a distinct facade (displayed at right by babythekitten) and pocket book friendly prices, helps to draw customers from areas well beyond Emory.

In many circles, the King is treated as royalty.  The reality is closer to something more understated; however, for a place that freshly pats down their chickpea mixture, they do just fine.

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It’s been several years since Taka Moriuchi packed his knives, left his position as understudy to sushi God Sotohiro Kosugi (aka the dude who ran the much discussed Soto), and settled in as the leader of Taka Sushi Café.

Much like my father, it took me some time before I warmed to the idea of visiting Taka-san in Buckhead.  Even after Soto departed our fare city, something in me caused this undue shackling of obligations.  Mind you, nothing about that decision had anything to do with the kind and approachable Taka.

Time passed and wounds healed, and so began my long inevitable decent into complacency.  Yes, I finally started to drift in and out of this notable Buckhead establishment.  As it happened, 24-months had flown by since my last soirée, well before the young Buddha was born within.  Rather than try and recall experiences buried in the cobwebs someone might call “my brain,” a recent night cap inspired this infant impression.

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While playing with any convention is dangerous territory, it doesn’t mean it can’t be lighthearted and fun.  I believe that statement is a perfect representation of Taka Moriuchi, the facebooking blogger who also happens to produce some of the better sushi in the city.  Taka-san has a habit of mixing things up a bit, and his burger may just be his best attempt to date.

Japanese food is known for its artful simplicity and its tradition laden techniques.  Still, that doesn’t mean that the cuisine is the least bit static.  Many Japanese chefs, especially those of the sushi persuasion, are at the center of this movement.  Here at this precipice stands the Menchi Katsu burger from Taka Sushi Cafe, that ever popular neighborhood sushi joint located in the glitz of Buckhead.

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Adam (aka guest blogger dude) and I were milling around the Westside a few days ago looking for a place to eat lunch at.  Having spent the previous day gut busting around, I had a hankering for some sushi.  A cheerful banter arose, so back and forth we went until Adam suggested Zen on Ten, an Asian bistro and sushi bar located in the still fresh Ten Side apartment complex.

Having only seen the place in passing, and with no real concrete idea of what to expect, we both settled in on the assumption that Zen on Ten would fill the role of the fast dining sushi option; in other words, what Moe’s is to the burrito, we THOUGHT Zen would be to sushi.  Turns out, we were pleasantly wrong.

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It seems almost shameful.  Not only am I deeply passionate about Japanese culture and cuisine, but I pride myself on visiting most anything that resembles a Japanese restaurant here in the Dirty.  Such was the basis for my dismay as I met up with ChowDownAtlanta (website) for a little grub late last week.  After our usual game of who’s gonna make the call, we finally settled on the long standing Yakitori Jinbei for our lunch endeavor.  Located up Cobb Pkwy, just outside I-285, it is beyond shocking that I had never before ventured into the tiny strip mall eatery.  Open since ‘02, I lived not more than 3 miles from the place for many a year.

Walking into the 40 some-odd seat room, you can’t help but identify the formulaic Japanese décor.  Heavy on the soft, and accented with the deep, the simplicity of the space is both expected and demanded.  It is a style that I will never tire of.  My affinity for the layout, however, is inconsequential.  What is of importance is that the place is clean and the furniture and such are all of relatively high build quality.

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Last week, I was heading down West Paces Ferry towards Peachtree.  As I pulled up to the traffic light, a “Now Open” sign caught my eye.  Apparently, Bento Sushi, a little sushi bar, has opened near this intersection in the heart of Buckhead.  If you aren’t a fan of online maps, you should note that Bento sits right next to Chops/The Lobster Bar and Nava.

Early reports seem to be that the place is half-decent.  Though I have no way to throw my hat into the mix on this one, I did check out their menu.  It’s a pretty straightforward take on Americanized sushi and includes some apps and small items.  Meanwhile, with a vast majority of the items priced between $7 and $9, and the obvious focus on the portable, it seems that they are targeting the grocery store sushi market.  However, you shouldn’t let the name completely fool you – they do have on premise seating.

We’ll see how things turn up for Bento. In the meantime, I’ve asked one of my Buckhead buddies to go check it out … we’ll see if she shows up with a guest post anytime soon!

Bento Sushi-To-Go Restaurant Address & Information

3060 Peachtree Rd NW Atlanta, GA 30305 // 404.261.7878 // Bento website // Bento menu