Restaurants

Current
Plaza
no



Address:
Phone: (405) 420-7569
Hours: Thu - Sun, dinner by reservation only
Development:
Status: Opened June 26, 2014
Links:
Official Website (http://www.naniokc.com/)
Twitter (https://twitter.com/naniokc)
Menu (http://www.okctalk.com/attachments/restaurants-bars/8633d1405219246-nani-nanimenu.jpg)
Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/naniokc)
Yelp
Urban Spoon


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/naniwiki1.jpg


Information & Latest News

Nani is a dinner club that seeks to explore and interweave the humble sensibilities of Japanese and Native American cuisine.
Gallery

I have some friends who have experienced the extreme pleasure of eating this guy's food. They have told me without equivocation that this is going to be the best restaurant in OKC. This guy is apparently a food artist / genius.

I like the name. Unfortunately, sea food isn't my thing. Maybe they'll expand their menu when they get past the soft opening.

How's the licensing thing on this work? I love love the idea…I just hope they don't experience any problems from the state/city regarding permitting/licenses, etc.

How's the licensing thing on this work? I love love the idea…I just hope they don't experience any problems from the state/city regarding permitting/licenses, etc.

I don't know for sure but I'm guessing that it's similar to this previous OKC business. I suspect they have done all of their homework about what is required.

Table One: culinary immersion | Oklahoma City Restaurants (http://www.eataroundokc.com/table-one-culinary-immersion/)

How's the licensing thing on this work? I love love the idea…I just hope they don't experience any problems from the state/city regarding permitting/licenses, etc.

I'm sure they operate under a catering license. Someone operating under such my cater liquor/wine/beer anywhere legally, even into a church or a school.

I like the name. Unfortunately, sea food isn't my thing. Maybe they'll expand their menu when they get past the soft opening.

Doubtful. Nani means fish in Choctaw.

Doubtful. Nani means fish in Choctaw.
We actually work with all varieties of protein!

Grilling Oke-Asian | News OK (http://newsok.com/article/4925151)

That menu posted was just for that evening, and it can change from day to day. We are, however, working with a fair amount of seafood right now because it's abundant (and, thus, more affordable) during the summer months.

Welcome Andon and thanks for the info.


For those that don't know, Andon was the chef at Saints before leaving to start this venture.

Also, they DO have a permanent location near the Plaza District, but they only provide it when you make a reservation, as they don't want drop-ins.

It's all BYOB at this point.

Cool video on Nani:

Nani - OKC on Vimeo (http://vimeo.com/100862550)

We actually work with all varieties of protein!

Grilling Oke-Asian | News OK (http://newsok.com/article/4925151)

That menu posted was just for that evening, and it can change from day to day. We are, however, working with a fair amount of seafood right now because it's abundant (and, thus, more affordable) during the summer months.

Awesome!

Doubtful. Nani means fish in Choctaw.


Thanks for the clarification. The word 'nani' in Japanese is 'what'. Was trying to figure out why someone would call it that.

Granted, I've been trying to figure out for years why someone would name a restaurant 'Sushi Neko' (sushi cat).

http://www.sushineko.com/sites/all/themes/custom/wcsushi/images/bg/neko_img.png

Thanks for the clarification. The word 'nani' in Japanese is 'what'. Was trying to figure out why someone would call it that.

Granted, I've been trying to figure out for years why someone would name a restaurant 'Sushi Neko' (sushi cat).
That's why I chose the name, actually, because it means both of those things. We feel it's a clever play on words given what we're trying to do with the exploration of both cuisines together.

The video was cool. The food sounds great. It's original and has a Okie touch. Okie is not a bad word and we need more original ideas like this. Celebrate your heritage no matter what or where.

Just received this update from Andon Whitehorn, one of the chef / proprietors:

"We've started our 'full' service at Nani, operating Wednesday thru Saturday (instead of Tuesday thru Saturday, though we are open for private events and catering earlier in the week,) with a contribution of $45 per seat. The dinners now include 8-10 courses, numerous amuse bouche, and an incredible, inventive coffee service. The space is still being slowly renovated, but we're really stoked on the progress and reception we've had thus far.

At Nani, 5% of all proceeds go to benefit a local social outreach program/non-profit organization, and through the support of dinners during the months of July and August we were able to raise $500 for the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma! Our partner for the months of September and October is the YWCA of Oklahoma City."

In case anyone was wondering, you bring your own wine/beer and they will provide the glasses for you to use. We brought beer and wine, and they kept our wine chilled until we finished the beer.

I mean to post these pictures a while ago from one of the dinners back in July.

Everyone should definitely give them a try!

91539154915591569157

I have heard great things from a few friends

In case anyone was wondering, you bring your own wine/beer and they will provide the glasses for you to use. We brought beer and wine, and they kept our wine chilled until we finished the beer.

I mean to post these pictures a while ago from one of the dinners back in July.

Everyone should definitely give them a try!

91539154915591569157

You were there the same night my wife and I were there. Lol

And, yes, it was an amazing experience. I highly recommend it. Not only unique food, but also a singular experience here in OKC.

Has anyone been recently? I'm going at the end of the month when a few friends are in town... I've heard nothing but good things so far.

We went this past Saturday and had a great time. Definitely one of the more unique dining experiences I've had in OKC (or anywhere else for that matter). Including the multiple amuse bouche, it ended up being around 13 courses. For $45 and BYOB it is very hard to beat. Everyone at the 14 person table interacted and we ended up running into a couple groups after at Ludivine.

I wish I took pictures but, overall, great experience and I'd highly recommend.

Nani was featured on Discover Oklahoma over Valentine's Day weekend (seen here: Nani on Discover Oklahoma | Nani OKC (http://naniokc.com/nani-discover-oklahoma/)), and Caitlin Turner over at Oxford Karma just put up a really fun, sweet review of her dining experiences over at Restaurant review: Nani | Oxford Karma (http://www.oxfordkarma.com/nani-restaurant-review/).

We're entering our ninth month of operations, and we're still just so super stoked and humbled by how awesome and receptive everyone has been through all of this. It's been a blast!

The end of our lease is coming up in May, so we're looking into possible renewal and/or re-location or expansion from here. March is almost completely booked, and April is filling up quickly, so if you'd like to dine at Nani as it currently exists we'd love to see you!

Glad this got bumped. I've been wanting set up a date for a group of 8-12 to try Nani out for the 1st time...what's the best way to do so? Hunt through the calendar until I find an open day, or give you guys a call and see if something can be worked out? Problem is I wont know a for-sure number until I figure out the day, and vice versa.

Glad this got bumped. I've been wanting set up a date for a group of 8-12 to try Nani out for the 1st time...what's the best way to do so? Hunt through the calendar until I find an open day, or give you guys a call and see if something can be worked out? Problem is I wont know a for-sure number until I figure out the day, and vice versa.
Either way works, though it also depends on when you're looking to stop in. Fridays and Saturdays almost always book out a month or two in advance, while Wednesdays and Thursdays have a more gradual booking rate. Having said that, we're like any other dining experience in that we have cancellations and rescheduled reservations from time to time, so if you're flexible (or quick enough, whichever the case may be,) last minute seats can be had, and we always post on social media whenever we have two or more seats available.

Tomorrow (Wednesday the 25th) is a good example: we had a party of four reschedule, and a party of eight cancel, so we actually have 12 seats open for tomorrow.

Thanks for the clarification. The word 'nani' in Japanese is 'what'. Was trying to figure out why someone would call it that.

Granted, I've been trying to figure out for years why someone would name a restaurant 'Sushi Neko' (sushi cat).

Ask Sashimi Inu.

Oklahoma City dinner club disputes state health department order to close | Oklahoman.com (http://www.oklahoman.com/article/5405530?access=d2b3271bb49f6b1b006c3a083d7cd40a)

Oklahoma City dinner club disputes state health department order to close | Oklahoman.com (http://www.oklahoman.com/article/5405530?access=d2b3271bb49f6b1b006c3a083d7cd40a)
We've been dealing with them since November. We operate as personal/private chefs, and the very first thing that you and your party agree to when you dine with us is to hire us as your personal/private chefs for the evening. There currently exist no regulations for personal/private chefs in this state, and we have asked the OCCHD repeatedly for clarification on what distinguishes us from other personal/private chef operations, and they have never given us a response. Not once.

A prime example of a state that prides itself on small government trying to regulate businesses for which no regulations or laws currently exist. We're having a ton of fun with this. Here's our official response: https://www.facebook.com/naniokc/posts/457586161060390

To clarify, we're not going anywhere. We literally cannot afford to cease operations.

Fight the power! :)


Seriously, best of luck with this. How the various state agencies choose to spend their limited time and resources never ceases to amaze me.

To clarify, we're not going anywhere. We literally cannot afford to cease operations.

Woohoo - quick question - how do we tell which day(s) y'all offer a vegetarian/vegan menu? Wife and I really want to dine at Nani!

Lets say this all gets resolved and you don't have to worry about the state drama anymore, what kind of changes are you guys looking to make from May on? (like you mentioned in your FB post)

Lets say this all gets resolved and you don't have to worry about the state drama anymore, what kind of changes are you guys looking to make from May on? (like you mentioned in your FB post)
We will be pushing our coffee program further, looking into roasting and other opportunities, as well as holding pop-ups elsewhere, including out of state such as Texas, Missouri, etc. We will also take this time to learn and stage at other out-of-state restaurants of our choosing. We are also looking at expansion opportunities, and are considering a few offers. Bottom line, we are also scaling back service because it's just plain exhausting. We have all worked in the hospitality industry for years and years, and while we've worked hard, we've never pushed as hard as we have in the last year at Nani as it currently exists. Putting out 18 courses for 14 people might not seem like much, but that's 250+ plates served in roughly 2 hours, for which we spend the entire day preparing for, sometimes putting in 16+ hour days depending on the circumstances. This is a labor of love, but it's a labor of love that comes at a cost.

are you still open while fighting this? This is such a fantastic idea and I wish you the best. I need to get in there.

are you still open while fighting this? This is such a fantastic idea and I wish you the best. I need to get in there.
Thank you! See above!

Thank you! See above!

I was just looking on your res system and it seems like its blocking out days that show availability. Might be an iPad compat issue. I'll look again tomorrow, it I'd love to make it in May.

I hate trying new things, but this absolutely appears like something I'd love, especially when they have seafood.

I was just looking on your res system and it seems like its blocking out days that show availability. Might be an iPad compat issue. I'll look again tomorrow, it I'd love to make it in May.
Ah, yeah, we're intentionally scaling back operations in May (this was planned long before the OCCHD stuff,) to focus on the aforementioned projects.

It's been a busy week for us in the media:

OKC community dining experience under fire from health department (http://www.koco.com/news/okc-community-dining-experience-under-fire-from-health-department/32140958)

OKC Dinner Club Continues To Serve Despite Being Told To Shut Down (http://www.news9.com/story/28709292/okc-dinner-club-continues-to-serve-despite-being-told-to-shut-down)

And we even made it into the Lost Ogle again! I think this is, what, three times in less than a year?

The Hipster Food Foragers are trying to dodge the Health Department… (http://www.thelostogle.com/2015/04/02/the-hipster-food-foragers-are-trying-to-dodge-the-health-department/)

We also helped with a sushi rolling demonstration at UCO yesterday for the UCOAASA, which was pretty gnarly.

It's been a good week?

To clarify, we've been completely transparent in all of this; we actually went to the Graham at the Oklahoman first with this, and then KOCO 5 and News 9 caught wind and hit us up, which we obliged.

To clarify, we've been completely transparent in all of this; we actually went to the Graham at the Oklahoman first with this, and then KOCO 5 and News 9 caught wind and hit us up, which we obliged.

Sounds great! Quick question - I posted above and sent an email inquiring about vegan/vegetarian nights - do you guys still do those? My wife and I would love to come!

Sounds great! Quick question - I posted above and sent an email inquiring about vegan/vegetarian nights - do you guys still do those? My wife and I would love to come!
We do! We don't currently have one scheduled for April, but we're looking at a couple of potential dates in May; I know for certain we're doing a vegan service at a pop-up in Tulsa in early May. I'll post the dates as they become available.

We do! We don't currently have one scheduled for April, but we're looking at a couple of potential dates in May; I know for certain we're doing a vegan service at a pop-up in Tulsa in early May. I'll post the dates as they become available.

Awesome! We'll be watching this thread for updates :) If you want to email us, that'd be great too!

Anyone from Tulsa check these boards? We're doing a pop up at Chimera this coming Sunday and Monday (May 3 and May 4), for those interested:

Nani comes to Chimera in Tulsa | Nani OKC (http://naniokc.com/nani-comes-chimera-tulsa/)

https://scontent.cdninstagram.com/hphotos-xfa1/t51.2885-15/e15/11186864_342202382632723_2052282277_n.jpg

Hate to double post, but we were just recognized as semifinalists in the 2015 Eater Young Guns. We're among incredible company, and we're deeply humbled and appreciative of the acknowledgment!

Announcing the Eater Young Guns Semifinalists for 2015 - Eater (http://www.eater.com/2015/4/30/8521771/eater-young-guns-2015-semifinalists)

Congrats Andon!

Very cool.

Awesome, Andon! I'm gonna send them a testimonial about you guys :)

An update.

Oklahoma City dinner club appeals cease and desist order from state Health Department | News OK (http://newsok.com/oklahoma-city-dinner-club-appeals-cease-and-desist-order-from-state-health-department/article/5436908)

Noll from the OCCHD literally only had one argument from one very specific part of the health code, which doesn't apply to us because it refers to services rendered to the public, so they literally had to dig as deep as they could and think about all of the possible food safety issues they could discuss. Their argument was essentially "we haven't inspected them because we legally cannot inspect them, so we don't know how safe their food is" of which the same could be said of any other personal/private chef operation, let alone any other personal kitchen.

They literally have nothing, so they're trying to appeal via these seeming scare tactics I suppose. Meanwhile, our representation had plenty to discuss against them, offering a rebuttal for everything they had, and also bringing up the issue of public versus private areas. For what was supposed to be a hearing about licensure they sure did bring up a lot of food safety issues that can potentially happen even if you are a licensed "food service establishment". Hell, there have been norovirus outbreaks at some of the best restaurants in the world, including The Fat Duck (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/foodanddrinknews/10612745/Heston-Blumenthal-shuts-Dinner-restaurant-after-norovirus-outbreak.html) and NOMA (http://www.eater.com/2013/3/8/6470183/norovirus-outbreak-at-noma-sickens-67-diners-hygiene-cited-in); on a long-enough timeline it happens to even the best of the industry, so it's really a moot point.

At this point I need to bring up the fact that since there are no regulations for private chefs in Oklahoma, a fact that the OCCHD finally admitted after nine months of asking them (though we've known that since day one), no personal/private chef in Oklahoma has to obtain any food safety certifications; meanwhile we are actually licensed and certified Food Safety Managers both nationally and in-state.

Oh yeah, and it was funny that in all of Noll's arguments about food safety, one of the points he brought up was that it's important to procure food through approved/safe sources/distributors, and then this was on the bulletin board just outside of the court room:

https://scontent.cdninstagram.com/hphotos-xaf1/t51.2885-15/e15/11820462_390751087784500_70615173_n.jpg

To be clear, it's perfectly legal to sell eggs from your own farm or backyard without a license (unless you're going to a farmers market, that's a different story,) but it was just this incredible juxtaposition that for all of his talk about the uncertainty of the food safety conditions at Nani (because they can't inspect, rest assured we ran the tightest ship I've seen in the metro,) here's this ad for uninspected eggs literally posted on a bulletin board in the Health Department just outside of a room where they were trying to demonize us.

We should hear a ruling from the judge in the next week.

On a lighter note, remember how I mentioned us being nominated for the Eater Young Guns Class of 2015 (http://www.eater.com/2015/4/30/8521771/eater-young-guns-2015-semifinalists)? Well, we won.

Young Guns 2015 (http://www.eater.com/a/young-guns-summer-2015)

Colin Stringer and Andon Whitehorn | Young Guns 2015 (http://www.eater.com/a/young-guns-summer-2015/meet-eater-young-gun-colin-stringer-and-andon-whitehorn)

Eater Young Guns Class of 2015 Celebrated in Los Angeles - Eater (http://www.eater.com/2015/6/9/8751385/eater-young-guns-party-2015)

On a lighter note, remember how I mentioned us being nominated for the Eater Young Guns Class of 2015 (http://www.eater.com/2015/4/30/8521771/eater-young-guns-2015-semifinalists)? Well, we won.

Young Guns 2015 (http://www.eater.com/a/young-guns-summer-2015)

Colin Stringer and Andon Whitehorn | Young Guns 2015 (http://www.eater.com/a/young-guns-summer-2015/meet-eater-young-gun-colin-stringer-and-andon-whitehorn)

Eater Young Guns Class of 2015 Celebrated in Los Angeles - Eater (http://www.eater.com/2015/6/9/8751385/eater-young-guns-party-2015)

Way to go!!

Judge rules against Oklahoma City dinner club | News OK (http://newsok.com/article/5438291?utm_source=NewsOK.com&utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=ShareBar-Twitter)

Judge rules against Oklahoma City dinner club | News OK (http://newsok.com/article/5438291?utm_source=NewsOK.com&utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=ShareBar-Twitter)

Looks like 10 days to appeal. I assume they will.

Sad to hear.... I had kicked around doing something similar to this with small batch craft BBQ for several years.... This ruling confirms my suspicions about trying it.

From the NewsOK comments:

"If the regulations are so unclear that it requires a very strained interpretation to reach this result, maybe it's time for the OK Dept if Health to re-visit their regulations instead of trying to expand them beyond what they explicitly cover by their textual terms."

We need to raise the funds for court/transcript fees, etc., but we intend to appeal this to the District Court on the grounds of the unconstitutionality of the selective enforcement of regulations via an administrative body, as it has now been clearly shown with this adverse ruling; again, they aren't going after anyone else.

This all brings me to my next point: never start your own business, let alone have novel concepts of what you can and cannot do when there are no such rules or restrictions for such. Be a cog in the machine; it's cheaper that way, and it's right where they want you to be.

Wow - the people running our great state show their incompetence and heavy-handedness yet again. Stay with it Nani, we really want to come by sometime!

One question I do have is from a prior article on this published in the Jokelahoman in March. I quote: "Tony Sellars, spokesman for the state Health Department, admits there are no laws in Oklahoma regulating private chefs, but he said what Nani is doing simply is not legal.

“There must be a complete separation between the food service activities and the residential activities,” he said. “You could live in the back of whatever it is, but there has to be a clear separation where there’s not people coming in and out, sitting on the couch watching TV or whatever.”

I don't get that part. If Nani are private chefs and explicitly say as such when communicating with their clients, then why the need for the "separation"? Can't private chefs cook for their clients wherever either party wish?

Hey, you're on to something!

We've brought up facts related to that repeatedly, and still nothing. In the ruling from the judge he even mentions that the OSDH has no definitions of public/private, and still it continues.

Also, thanks for your support! That's awesome.

. . . what a crock. . .and I don't mean "butter" :Smiley297.

"Tony Sellars, spokesman for the Health Department, said there are no plans to investigate other private chefs in Oklahoma City. He said that would only happen if a complaint against one is filed with his department.

He said the state does not plan to create any new regulations.

"There is no rulemaking in the works at this time concerning private chefs," he said in an emailed response."

Unreal.

So were there complaints filed against Nani? I wonder what got the health department excited about you guys in the first place. Something quite nefarious going on here I would suspect.

So were there complaints filed against Nani? I wonder what got the health department excited about you guys in the first place. Something quite nefarious going on here I would suspect.

+1