Pandemic no obstacle for launch
As many businesses struggle with the economic fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic, a new Japanese restaurant is set to open near Nelson.
Aki Kitchen in central Richmond is the third eatery for the team behind Aki Sushi Nelson and Aki Sushi Richmond. The first customers are due to be welcomed on Wednesday.
Chef Taewoo Bang acknowledged the circumstances were unusual. ‘‘We were half worried,’’ he said of opening during the pandemic. ‘‘But during level 3, once we opened for customers to come in [to Aki Sushi], there was a lot of good support from local customers.’’
Covid-19 was unheard of in midNovember when Aki Kitchen was announced as one of a trio of restaurants that were to set up shop in a new building that was still under construction as part of the final stage of the four-stage Upper Queen development by Nelson-based family business Gibbons.
Bang said the Aki Sushi team had long been eager to open a restaurant that offered a wider range of food, including hot dishes.
‘‘Aki Sushi Nelson and Richmond is more like a takeaway sushi shop,’’ he said. ‘‘We were kind of frustrated that we couldn’t offer more varieties of food, especially the hot meals. We were looking for an opportunity and boom.’’
Customers at Aki Kitchen can dine on a range of food that Bang described as Japanese-based cuisine with influences from other Asian countries. Sushi will be available and the menu also includes donburi – a ‘‘rice bowl dish’’ consisting of either teriyaki chicken, teriyaki beef, teriyaki salmon, fresh salmon, chicken katsu curry or teriyaki tofu on rice. All donburi dishes are served with a seasonal salad except the tofu, which is served with stir-fry teriyaki vegetable sauce.
A range of salads is also on offer and side dishes include prawn or vegetable tempura, tuna or salmon sashimi, dumplings, chicken karaage, Japanese pickles, edamame, miso soup and rice.
Bento boxes are on the dinner menu only and include sushi, salad, assorted tempura, miso soup, Japanese pickles and rice with either teriyaki chicken, teriyaki beef, teriyaki salmon or fresh salmon.
Bang said the menu was available for customers who wanted to dine in or take away their meals.
Sous-chef Maki Takeda said the hot dishes would ‘‘be nice in winter’’.
Covid-19 alert level 2 requirements meant social distancing would be maintained: ‘‘We can’t have too many people lining up for takeaway food,’’ Bang said.
Table service would be provided for dinein customers.
The opening hours for Aki Kitchen would be Monday to Saturday, from 11.30am to 2.30pm for lunch and then 5.30pm to 8pm for dinner.
Bang and Takeda said Japanese cuisine was popular in Nelson.
‘‘I’m amazed how people want so much rice and soy sauce,’’ Bang said.
Takeda added: ‘‘Many Japanese kids, they want bread rather than rice and here it’s different; they want rice.’’
Aki Kitchen is due to open for the first time at 11.30am on Wednesday.