Reacquainting with old friends on Facebook tends to result in a gathering over food and drink, maybe even a trip to Vegas. But for Stewart Chung and his elementary school buddies, a renewed friendship developed into “projects,” their term for investment partnerships.
The friends — among them three architects (Chung is one), a CEO of a development company, a marketing professional and several others — pursued projects based on something they love to do: eat out.
Their latest venture is EbiNomi, a brand-new grab-and-go restaurant that opened May 22along Kuhio Avenue. A clue to its cuisine: In Japanese, “ebi” means shrimp, “nomi” means only. Its concept is “comfort food, done well,” said Chung, who previously owned a gourmet burger restaurant in Seattle and serves as project manager.
Chung started planning a year ago when he moved to the isles. The group’s target audience was tourists, known to travel all the way to the North Shore for garlic shrimp.
“How could Hawaii not have tourists? I could never have believed this,” he said. But he forged ahead.
“When we said we were starting at this funky time, some people said, ‘Are you crazy?’ But we had already started this project, and the money was spent,” Chung said.
The eatery’s design, as a small takeout space with no sit-down area, translated to low overhead. The timing of events has allowed the restaurant to be nimble. When restaurants were ordered to shutter their dining rooms, EbiNomi was still renovating its space.
“In a way, I feel lucky because we were not yet up and running. There was not a big staff to lay off. There was not a lot of inventory we can’t use,” he said. “The menu could be adjusted dynamically to respond to COVID-19.”
A current takeout menu features mostly large, sauce-based, easily reheated entrees that suit families. The dishes reflect another aspect of the restaurant’s concept: the partners’ global travels. These include a shrimp curry flavored with yellow curry paste imported from the Blue Elephant restaurant in Bangkok, which received a Michelin nod; a Hungarian beef dish; and a Mexican-style shrimp cocktail side.
Many dishes from the original menu were deep-fried. The signature dish, an ebi burger, and also an ebi katsu, were coated in panko for a crispy texture.
“They’re great if they’re eaten within five or 10 minutes,” said Chung. “But if you’re commuting, by the time you get home they wouldn’t be crunchy. They might still taste good, but they wouldn’t be a good representation of what we do.”
Another menu item was ebi toast, the winning dish in a contest held by the restaurant at Leeward Community College. The student who created it took home $1,000.
The Bangkok curry and Mexican shrimp cocktail, as well as garlic shrimp, were also part of the regular menu.
The restaurant’s international sensibility is rooted in an earlier project that involved opening three restaurants in Hong Kong based on American dining concepts: a Mexican eatery, a Texas barbecue and an American diner. They were a success, and the friends have since sold the restaurants.
As for EbiNomi, pre-coronavirus plans included expansion, with restaurants in Kahala and the Ala Moana-Kakaako area. But now, said Chung, they’re not sure what to expect.
EBINOMI
2310 Kuhio Ave.
Open 5 to 9 p.m. daily
517-3680, ebinomi.com
