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Austin-based high-end Japanese restaurant mini-chain Uchi is opening a second location of its more casual spin-off Uchiba in the city. It’s set to open at 601 West Second Street in downtown Austin in the fall of 2022.
Like the original Dallas restaurant and bar, the Austin Uchiba will serve yakitori, and other smaller bites, which presumably could include bao, dumplings, desserts, and, yes, sushi. The drinks menu will include cocktails, Japanese whisky, as well as sake, beer, and wine. It’s also fair to expect good happy hour specials.
Uchiba Austin’s future home will be in the forthcoming Block 185 building in downtown Austin. The high-rise curved office structure currently under construction is also known as Google Tower, as the web company leased the entire building. The new space will be designed by architecture firm Sanders and interior designer Sarita Posada, along with Hai’s in-house studio.
In Dallas, parent company Hai Hospitality (then known as Uchi Restaurant Group) turned its casual restaurant Top Knot above Uchi into Uchiba in 2018.
Hai chef and co-owner Tyson Cole opened Uchi in 2003, which grew into a bonafide new-school sushi institution in the city, and for which he co-won a James Beard Award in 2011. Hai Hospitality also operates other Uchi locations (Houston, Dallas, Denver, Miami), also-Uchi-spin-off Uchiko (Austin, the forthcoming Houston one next year), and Asian smokehouse Loro with pitmaster Aaron Franklin (Austin, Dallas). The restaurant group was formed in 2015.
- All Coverage of Uchiba [EDFW]
- All Coverage of Uchi [EATX]
