Oakland: Takeout-only sushi, Nikkei, launches inside Itani Ramen
Chef Kyle Itani of Hopscotch and Itani Ramen is now doing sushi in Uptown Oakland.
Fine dining restaurants are pivoting during the pandemic to offer customers comforting, less-expensive cuisine. Three Michelin-starred Saison in San Francisco is now a smokehouse. Oakland’s Homestead is doing The Humble Sandwich. And this summer, Nyum Bai will turn into a walk-up window for casual Cambodian grab-and-go noodles and snacks.
The newest player in the pivot projects is Nikkei Sushi, a sushi-only takeout concept from Kyle Itani, the chef behind Oakland’s upscale Japanese-American diner, Hopscotch, as well as Itani Ramen and Izakaya. Beginning Friday, Nikkei Sushi will offer maki rolls ($8-$10), specialty rolls ($11-$15), nigiri and sashimi, operating out of Itani Ramen in Uptown Oakland, where you can pick it up or have it delivered by Caviar.
Itani, a fourth-generation Japanese-American, has major sushi cred. Early in his career, he worked at Yoshi’s Oakland under chef Sho Kamio. Before sending him to apprentice in Japan, Sho tapped Itani to head Yoshi’s now-shuttered San Francisco location and oversee the sushi program.
With Nikkei Sushi, a project Itani had already planned to launch in Uptown Oakland, he saw an opportunity to maintain his current team and hire new staff, who were furloughed from local sushi restaurants, all while offering a healthy option to the neighborhood, he said in a press release Friday.
“Seeing the private dining room at Itani Ramen empty for over a month now had me thinking about how we could adapt to better serve our community and our staff,” he said. “Now more than ever, we are forced to be innovative and nimble, because there is no road map for how to survive these circumstances.”
In addition to sushi rolls, guests can add on Itani Ramen izakaya starters like housemade Gyoza and Edamame, or Donburi Rice Bowls. They can also order carry-out cocktails, sake and Japanese whiskies.
To place an order, call 510-788-7489 and pick up at Itani Ramen, 1736 Telegraph Ave. (across from the Fox Theater) in Uptown Oakland.