Gaijin Sushi coming to the Park Harvey

[jbrown84]

Our November newsletter arrived today with the front page news that Gaijin Sushi will be filling the final retail space on the southwest corner of the building.

I'm not a sushi fan, but I'm excited to see an urban restaurant going into that space. It will hopefully liven up the CBD a little.

Construction has begun and they expect to open in early 2008.

[okclee]

Is this the same Gaijin that is currently in Norman??

[betts]

That's the restaurant I thought was going in the building south of 1492. I wonder what will go in there now, as they're definitely working on the building. Maybe that's where the wine bar will be located.

[John]

Is this the same Gaijin that is currently in Norman??

Yeah.

I think the proprietors name is Gil Gentry.

[HOT ROD]

Awesome news, we need to good small hip sushi joints in downtown!!!

[metro]

Yes, does anyone know if this will affect the Gaijin Sushi that was going in the Midtown development on 11th and Walker? or will there be two downtown locations?

[BFizzy]

The owner told me at the Norman location a couple of months ago that he was planning on opening a Gaijin Downtown and in the building just south of 1492 in Midtown.

[The Old Downtown Guy]

Yes, does anyone know if this will affect the Gaijin Sushi that was going in the Midtown development on 11th and Walker? or will there be two downtown locations?

The Midtown location for Gaijin Sushi at 11th and Walker is still a go according to my friends at Banta and the Park Harvey location will be in addition to Midtown. Permit issues have kept this from moving along any faster and they should open in early 2008.

[BDP]

Does this place have any good sashimi dishes? That's one thing I haven't found at any sushi place here. It's all rolls and nigiri and if they serve sashimi, it's pretty basic. So, will this add anything to our sushi option in the city?

[metro]

Lotus had good sashimi, of course they are now defunct. I have yet to try sashimi from Sushi Neko.

[Pete]

Gil Gentry also recently opened Copia's, a Mediterranean restaurant in downtown Norman.

The Norman Transcript - Copia's on the Corridor delights, surprises the taste buds

[MrZ]

I live about 10 minutes from the Norman Gaijin Sushi and try to eat there as often as I can. I travel a lot and get to eat at a lot of Sushi places around the country and Gaijin fares pretty well when compared to the sushi in bigger cities.

[tuck]

The Midtown location for Gaijin Sushi at 11th and Walker is still a go according to my friends at Banta and the Park Harvey location will be in addition to Midtown. Permit issues have kept this from moving along any faster and they should open in early 2008.

2 locations so close together is a mistake in my opinion until Downtown OKC is 100% occupied.

[okclee]

If they are anything like his Norman restaurant, two locations will do good. Norman is very very small with seating for approx 20 customers and that would include sitting at the sushi bar.

Two small sushi bars would be okay. Two large sushi like sushi Neko would not work until DT OKc is at 100%.

[HOT ROD]

I disagree Tuck. I suspect that the cbd location would be open during the business hours, but the midtown location would have 'normal' operating hours.

Plus, like OKClee said, if they are small - then it definitely could work. And I suspect they will be small (or at least the one in the CBD will).

I only wish that it would be Gaijin at one location and somebody else at another, so we have some competition and therefore, better sushi/sashimi and prices. having only one (or two) options in all of downtown is nothing more than a monopoly; which doesn't fare well with prices and quality.

[jbrown84]

The one in the Park Harvey is in a space no larger than your typical Starbucks or Jamba Juice--two tenants I dreamed of for the space.

I'd hope that, considering it's in the CBD's first residential building, that it won't close at 5:00, HOTROD.

[Dave Cook]

I find the whole Oklahoma City/sushi craze somewhat intriguing.

Ever notice how so many of the ethnic restaurants on the reservation are actually owned by people from those respective communities while Japanese establishments are the exception?

Mexican places are typically owned by Mexicans, East Asian places by real-life Indians, Korean places- Koreans....the fantastic Vietnamese spots started by Vietnamese immigrants.

Yet, every Japanese restaurant is always owned by a local businessman or a Korean or Vietnamese immigrant trying to make a buck off the trend.

I long for the day an actual Japanese community develops and with it....the real taste of Nippon.

(And with it....SHABU-SHABU!!!!)

[dismayed]

Isn't Tokyo Japanese Restaurant owned by a Japanese family that spends part of its time in Japan and part here?

[metro]

The one in the Park Harvey is in a space no larger than your typical Starbucks or Jamba Juice--two tenants I dreamed of for the space.

I'd hope that, considering it's in the CBD's first residential building, that it won't close at 5:00, HOTROD.

Actually jbrown, the Regency Tower, Sycamore Square, Montgomery, and 5th Avenue Lofts were in the CBD well before the Park Harvey. I still imagine it will close by 7pm but I agree, I don't see it closing at 5pm. HOT ROD, don't dismiss tuck's opinion too much, he is in the restaurant business, you may have heard of Red Prime.

[Dave Cook]

Yes, it is. Tokyo Restaurant is owned and operated by real-life, Nihongo speakin Japanese! And Thank Buddha!

[HOT ROD]

metro, you beat me to it - Park Harvey is not the CBD's first residential digs.

Also, I wasn't dismissing Tuck - I was just saying how I could see a twin location could survive if not prosper if at least one of the locations were small and/or had restricted hours catoring to a particular demographic (in the cbd, how about office workers??)

irregardless that it is located in Park Harvey, Im sure residents there wont make up the bulk of the customers; the bulk will come from the 40,000 or so office workers nearby!!! Just like what happens at the other cbd restaurants (most of which close at 5pm, am I not correct??)

Nevertheless, Im glad that it is happening. I will sample next time Im in the city. I've been reluctant to try sushi in OKC, coming from Seattle (where it is top knotch in Vancouver). We usually like to eat at the stuff we dont have when we go to OKC, places you guys probably dont feel too high about.

[jbrown84]

the Regency Tower, Sycamore Square, Montgomery, and 5th Avenue Lofts

None of those are in the CBD.

[The Old Downtown Guy]

2 locations so close together is a mistake in my opinion until Downtown OKC is 100% occupied.

Though close together as the crow flies, the locations seem distant in market appeal. The 11th and Walker shop is in an emerging restaurant row and should attract plenty of happy hour and evening trade while the Park Harvey location is totally downtown and much more of a nooner. From strickly a competition stand point, not terribly different than Mickey Mantle’s in Bricktown and Red on Automobile Alley . . . both dinner only places with Red getting the watering hole honors.

Of course, time will provide the answer. I hope both Gaijins do well, just as I have only best wishes for success at Mickey Mantle and Red.

[metro]

None of those are in the CBD.

Regency Tower is not in the CBD?

[jbrown84]

Not officially. That would be arts district by DTOKC, Inc definitions, and even if you don't want to use those boundaries, just look at that location. It's not surrounded by offices--it's not central business district.