The rapidly expanding four-state, eight-location Pokeworks chain on the mainland is seeking to add credibility to its brand through a collaboration with Maui chef and restaurateur — and two-time “Top Chef” fan favorite — Sheldon Simeon.
The Tin Roof Maui restaurateur was asked by the Irvine, Calif.-based chain to create some signature dishes using underutilized, sustainable fish.
The Seattle outlet of the build-your-own chain will offer the first of Simeon’s dishes, the Coco Bora bowl, starting Saturday.
It will include bora, a light, mild white fish, served with ginger, red onions, Thai chile and a kinilaw (Filipino-style ceviche) sauce comprising coconut vinegar, coconut milk, black pepper and lime juice.
Hiring for The Street
Recruiting is underway for Michelin- starred chef Michael Mina’s next food and beverage operation at Waikiki’s International Market Place.
Open-call interview sessions were conducted last week for The Street: A Michael Mina Social House, which is seeking some 200 employees for positions including greeters, cashiers, juice-bar staff, baristas, bartenders, cooks of all experience levels, bussers, dishwashers and more.
The Street, set to open by June, will be a 12,500-square-foot gourmet food hall comprising at least 12 vendors offering food, cocktails and what publicity materials refer to as “culinary souvenirs.”
Confirmed tenants include Ramen Bar, by Mina collaborator Ken Tominaga; International Smoke, a barbecue concept by Ayesha Curry, wife of NBA star Stephen Curry; and Kai Poke.
“Team members will have the opportunity to work with a variety of restaurant concepts, cuisines and operations for endless career growth,” according to Mina Group’s local public relations agency.
The Street will be open for breakfast, lunch, dinner and late night, giving visitors and locals options for quick meals that are less expensive than they would be in a full-service restaurant, William Taubman, chief operating officer of Taubman Co., the center’s developer, said in a 2015 Buzz interview.
As operators of many restaurants that have opened in Honolulu recently can attest, the hiring of so many employees may be an uphill effort, as Hawaii’s jobless rate is at 2.8 percent, tied for second lowest in the nation.
That could be one reason Mina Group is offering referral bonuses as part of the recruitment process.
Overflowing success
New devotees of Uzbek cuisine will need to get their fixes in amid shorter hours at Silk Road Cafe downtown.
The restaurant at 212 Merchant St. has been uber-busy, with the mom-and-pop co-owners preparing for each day well before the 7 a.m. opening time, running out of food before the 5 p.m. closing time and working well past closing, all while caring for a young daughter.
Effective Friday, hours have been changed to 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, with the restaurant closed on Sundays, said co-owner Mamura Yuldasheva, adding that the hours could change again later.
“The reason is, one of the cooks had to go back home (to Texas), so it’s just me, my husband and my mom,” she said. “We’re trying our best to keep everything on the menu while introducing new foods and specials so people have more options. Also, I want to spend more time with my daughter, and I’m needing more time for paperwork as well.”
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