Tag: Mihoko Obunai

Irwin Street Market and Jake’s Ice Creams founder Jake Rothschild is opening the Market at Center Park in East Point. It will feature 300 square feet of locally made goods, ranging from bread and pasta to chocolates and pies.

Really, I don’t mind waiting for a table. It’s part of the experience, and one can learn a lot about a place by just showing up. Plus, where to go to feast on smothered chicken, pork neck bones, turkey wings, and oxtail buried in gravy.

It was only a matter of time. Mihoko Obunai has announced that she's leaving the pop-up circuit to open a full-service ramen restaurant with Concentrics called Nexto.

Mihoko Obunai, a chef who came to local prominence after opening the now-defunct Repast with then-husband Joe Truex, will begin making ramen at So Ba in East Atlanta the second week in September. Obunai's most recent gig was a short-lived stint as executive chef at Joli Kobe Bakery & Cafe.

Originally opened as a French-Japanese bakery, Joli Kobe has gone through a couple of overhauls in its nearly thirty-year existence. Katsuhiko “Vic” Watanabe opened the Sandy Springs bakery in 1985. Then it closed for renovations and expansion in 2001. Now, Mihoko Obunai—known for her work at Repast—has taken over and revamped the menu as the Sandy Springs location rebrands itself as a full-service restaurant called Joli Kobe Kitchen. (A Midtown location is now called Joli Kobe Cafe.)

The return of ramen to menu of chef Guy Wong's Miso Izakaya is shaping up to be an event. Wong's ramen, which was once served only after 10 pm at the Old Fourth Ward eatery, earned him more than a few devotees and fans.

In the end, it was a mix of mama and a day spent with the legendary Alice Waters in his hometown of Mansura, Louisana this spring that led Joe Truex to Decatur's Watershed restaurant.