Sensational great stop for sushi
Between the building itself and the fusion food, the Akari Chirashi Bar is a diner with a difference
QUICK, SIMPLE and scrumptious are the adjectives that spring to mind when it comes to the new Akari Chirashi Bar on Sukhumvit Soi 23. It’s delectable Japanese fusion food – plus traditional sushi – that’s great for gourmets on the go.
The restaurant’s name means “fireworks” but just as easily fits a scattering of sushi.
Pavinee Khongkha has done an amazing job of transforming a shipping container into a nice-looking 30-seat diner, complete with wooden tables and cosy sofas. It’s basic but no more minimalist than your average coffee shop. University students and office workers seem to love the place.
The sushi bar occupies one corner, where wagyu beef imported from Japan, salmon and mackerel from Norway and bluefin tuna from Spain are of the finest quality and for the most part quite affordable, the prices ranging from Bt25 to Bt380.
“I’m a gastronome and I love going around the town and trying new kinds of food,” says Pavinee, who regularly posts photos of her favourites on Facebook. She quit her job in public relations last year and opened the restaurant six months ago.
“I wanted a place where people can chill out all day amid good and friendly service, and there’s free Wi-Fi too.”
The chef has a decade’s experience in Japanese restaurants, she says. “He designed our fusion menu with younger diners in mind. They love Mighty Cheese, which is a roll filled with shrimp tempura and topped with cheddar,
mozzarella and fish roe, so you get all these different textures.
“We also have a spicy Yum Salmon and a Laab Salmon, every dish cooked individually to guarantee the full flavour.”
Also on offer are a sushi set meal, bowls of rice with various seafood toppings and a complete line of spring rolls. Vying for the popular vote are Aburi Don (Bt450) – a serving of rice in sweet sauce topped with engawa, scallop, grilled hirame fish and salmon and tamago – and the crispy, creamy Cheese Pie (Bt95), which arrives with fiery mentai sauce, mayonnaise and sesame sauce.
The So Salmon (Bt280) involves rolls filled with salmon, fish skin and mango, topped with burned salmon, salmon roe and ebiko. Buta Don (Bt185) is rice with long-cooked tender pork and onions.
And in the end you really ought to try the smooth Berry Cheese Mousse (Bt120) in strawberry or raspberry sauce, and the Japanese-style Panna Cotta.
Coming soon, says Pavinee, is a do-it-yourself deal on Chirashi Don, for which customers get to design their own fancy bowl of rice.
SUPERB SNACKING
>>The Akari Chirashi Bar is at 64 Sukhumvit Soi 23 near Gate 2 at Srinakharinwirot University.
>>It’s open daily except Monday from noon to 2 for lunch and 4 to 10 for dinner.
>>Call (002) 664 2108 or visit the “AkariChirashiBar” page on Facebook.
