First Bite: Hai Street Kitchen & Co.


I did not make it to Hai Street Kitchen & Co. yesterday for the free maki rolls. However, occasional Foobooz contributor Fidel Gastro did brave the line. Check out his story on the line and the roll on his own blog.

Today, curiosity was too much to resist, even at 1:10 p.m. when the line stretched beyond the front door. Nineteen minutes later I had my custom roll and headed back to the office to critique and eat.

I went with a custom roll of flank steak (it was pink in the center of the slices and just looked too good to pass up), spicy gochujang sauce, wasabi guacamole sauce, romaine, carrot and red cabbage. It was finished with a shaker shake of fried garlic flakes. The roll was $8.99 for the steak plus another 99¢ for the wasabi guac.

Back at the office, after several mandatory photos, I bit in. The steak was tender, no gristle at all, juicy and spicy from that gochujang sauce. At least I think it was that and not the wasabi guac. That was missing in action and I think I’ll skip it next time (though it is available with chips as a side). The cabbage and carrots combined for a satisfying crunch and the rice added some satiating mass to the lunch. The only negative I came away with was that the nori wrap had a seafood scent that was a bit distracting as I bit into steak. But if it were too much of an issue, Hai Street does offer bowls on top of rice or mixed greens.

All-in-all, Hai Street Kitchen & Co. is another solid lunch option along the 18th Street corridor and I’ll be back soon.

The Hai Street Kitchen & Co. Menu

Hai Street Kitchen & Co. [Foobooz]