Japanese Mini-Trend Hits the Capital

I am officially declaring a mini-trend in izakaya for Washington, DC (the journalistic threshold for a trend is usually three, so two, in my book, makes a mini-trend.) Never mind that izakaya are already passe in New York and that in Honolulu they’re just a way of life. For us in the nation’s capital, this is big stuff.

Kushi opened recently in the city’s Mt. Vernon neighborhood, following on the heels of uber-chef Wolfgang Puck’s creation of a pan-Asian izakaya menu at his downtown venue, The Source. The new addition pairs the city’s most extensive sake menu — more than 60 small batch, filtered and unfiltered brews — with Japanese nibbles from sushi to yakitori that is cooked sous-vide then finished on the grill. The sushi is disappointing, but the maki rolls are tasty and full of crunchy tobiko. Oysters on the half shell and miso-doused green beans stand out. The cavernous space full of criss-crossing overhead duct work won’t satisfy your craving for a cozy Japanese pub. But if you feel the urge to sidle up for a Sapporo and a few out-of-the-ordinary tapas, Kushi’s got you covered.