Umami Mart Registry
[caption id="attachment_28925" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Photo via Takuya[/caption]

Welcome to Bay Eats Japan, where we’ll alert you to newly and soon-to-be opened Japanese restaurants and bars in the Bay Area. As we’ll be listing new places, a mention is not necessarily a recommendation. Use this as a handy way to keep track of new spots you might want to try in the future. 

San Francisco


Recently opened:

Kinjo, 2206 Polk Street Does San Francisco need another omakase restaurant? Michelin-starred sushi chef Takatoshi Toshi (Sushi Ran) and Billy Kong and Kua Chang (co-owners of Ijji) are hoping so. Specializing in edomae-style sushi, the 9-course set meal costs $120.

Opening soon:

Hitachino Beer & Wagyu, 639 Post Street Back in October 2016, we teased that the Hitachino restaurant was "opening soon" but details were sketchy. Eater SF has reports today that the restaurant will open during SF Beer Week (Feb 10-19). So, no real date, but sometime before February 20! We're crossing our fingers.

Iza Ramen, 1155 Folsom Street (February 10) Lower Haight's Iza Ramen is about to open its second location this week. Its SOMA location will serve ramen, rice bowls, and appetizers, like chicken karaage and takoyaki.


Takuya, 716 Irving Inner Sunset residents will soon be able to get their Japanese hotdog fix. Takuya is in the former Quickly/Irving Cafe location, and will serve both Japanese-style hot dogs and sausage bowls (made with a base of brown rice or salad) featuring toppings like "bonito flakes, nori, spicy mango, Tempura shrimp, Unagi sauce, Wasabi mayo and more." The sausages come in eight flavors, including Cajun beef, smoked pork, bacon dog, chicken apple, and a vegan dog.

Berkeley


Update:

Ippudo, 2011 Shattuck Avenue In December 2016, Ippudo had grand plans of a soft opening on January 2. That date came and passed and Ippudo Berkeley is still not open. The latest word, according to Eater SF, is that we can expect a spring opening. We'll keep you up to speed on any new updates leading up to that time.

Mill Valley


Recently opened:

Tam Tam, 731 E Blithedale Avenue Here's a weird one for you: The Whole Foods in Mill Valley has opened its own ramen restaurant. Called Tam Tam, this fast-casual ramen spot serves six styles of ramen, four kinds of "bao sliders," as well as other small bites. Tam Tam opened in January of this year. Ramen bowls will set you back about $9-$15, so this is true Whole Paycheck ramen!

San Mateo


Recently opened:

Takuya, 205 E. 4th Avenue Along with the San Francisco location mentioned above, Takuya has also opened a San Mateo locale. This Takuya had its soft opening on January 18.

San Jose


Recently opened:

Jinya Ramen Bar, 925 Blossom Hill Road San Jose's Westfield Oakridge Center just got a new ramen spot. Jinya is an LA-based ramen chain and its opened its first Bay Area locale here. Jinya simmers its broth – made with Fuji water – for 10 hours and ages its noodles for three days.

Want to catch up on previous openings? Go through the Bay Eats Japan archives to see what you missed. Got tips for new Japanese restaurant and bar openings? Send them to us at shop@umamimart.com.