Under the train tracks at Myrtle-Broadway, a Korean and Japanese fusion restaurant called Sandobe will debut before the new year.
Located at 918 Broadway Avenue at the site of a former 99 cent emporium, the area’s new concept restaurant has a 75 patron capacity and is right on the Bushwick Bed-Stuy border, across the street from Enrique’s Hair Salon and Skytown.
Owners and long time friends Paul Cho and Kenny Nam have teamed up with their buddy, Chef Charlie Kim, to bring the Myrtle-Broadway area a restaurant that will certainly fill a gap among Bushwick’s restaurant offerings.
Kim tells Bushwick Daily that the Sandobe team hopes to be ready to open in three weeks time. Other than acquiring gas access (“So we can cook,” Kim smiles), the spot is virtually ready for business.
Cho, Nam, and Kim were all born in Korea and have called Bushwick home since the early 1990s, roughly 25 years.
Their new restaurant is an homage to Nam’s uncle, who owned another Sandobe, a sushi restaurant in the East Village that closed a decade ago.
Myrtle-Broadway denizens have likely noticed Sandobe thanks to its eye-catching signage. The sign, which features a fish, was created by graphic designer Won Choi and is already mounted on the restaurant’s exterior on an awning of dark wood panels.
Sandobe is furnished with beautiful wooden tables and light fixtures, which are both from Korea. Hung from wood panels on the ceiling, the light fixtures look like pretty little lanterns.
This will definitely be a great place for a night out— especially considering that Sandobe has three private karaoke rooms which are fitted with classic Korean quintessential karaoke systems made by manufacturer Kumyoung.
During Sandobe’s first month in business, patrons of the restaurant can have hour-long free karaoke sessions after their meal! The owners are still deciding what official rates to establish for karaoke thereafter.
The menu will continue to grow as the team gets a feel for the clientele’s tastes, but for now, the two main offerings will be the poké and sushi.
Poké, a raw fish salad, has rapidly gained popularity around the city in recent years. Sandobe will have a signature selection of poké, which you can also roll up into a burrito, priced at about $13.50, as well as a create-your-own poké bowl option—both will express elements of both korean and japanese cuisine.
The Sake Poké, for instance, is a combination of salmon, green and sweet onion, furikake seasoning, cucumber, cilantro, avocado, sesame oil, masago fish eggs, and a signature special Sandobe sauce.
Sandobe’s signature rolls have been named after celebrities such as Justin Bieber, Kanye West, and Beyoncé, a clever ploy that came about organically, admits Kim.
“We were thinking, and then we were listening to music, and then we were like, ‘why don’t we just put the celebrities’ names on the menu?’ Maybe one of them will come and maybe we’ll get big!”, he jokes.
Nam, Sandobe’s sushi chef, following in his uncle’s footsteps, says that he will be using Alaskan King Crab meat for some of his rolls—notably, there will be no imitation crab meat in Sandobe, period.
As far as the drink selection goes, the owners have confirmed that their bar manager is currently developing both soju and sake-influenced cocktails, and are still toying around with price points.
And now, we wait. Stay tuned for Sandobe’s official opening date, Bushwick!
Featured image and all photos taken by Won Choi.
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Sandobe
A Korean and Japanese fusion restaurant equipped with private karaoke rooms.
918 Broadway Avenue, Brooklyn, NY, 11206 (on the Bushwick Bed-Stuy border, less than a minute’s walk from the Myrtle-Broadway JMZ entrance).
Tues-Sun: 11 a.m.-11 p.m., closed from 3 p.m.-5. Closed on Monday.
718-574-1915
Website to come.