James Beard Award-winning chef Tyson Cole will debut his much-anticipated sushi restaurant Uchi on Nov. 17, bringing his Japanese omakase experience to Rittenhouse.
The sushi bar and dining room will occupy a space on the ground floor of the Josephine apartment building at 1620 Sansom St. The menu blends traditional Japanese ingredients and techniques with American and European influences, with chef-selected dishes served at the bar and in the dining room.
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Cole got his start in the restaurant world as a dishwasher at a sushi bar in Austin, where he later opened Uchi's first incarnation in 2003. The restaurant drew acclaim for its experimental flavors and balance of high dining with a casual atmosphere. Texas Monthly called it the "most sought-after reservation in Austin" and said Cole "revolutionized the dining scene" in a city that hadn't yet found its place in the national spotlight. The restaurant spawned a trend of new sushi restaurants in Austin that fused Japanese culinary traditions with Texas smokehouse-inspired food.
Uchi – which translates to "home" – will now get its eighth U.S. location and first on the East Coast when it opens its doors in Philly this month. Cole's Hai Hospitality restaurant group also operates several other Asian-themed concepts in Austin and in cities across the country.
Popular dishes at Uche include the Hama Chili, a yellowtail sashimi with an acidic bite, and the Hirame Usuzukuri that combines flounder with candied quinoa and olive oil. The signature veggie dish is the Kinoko Usuzukuri with seasonal mushrooms, shallot and shiro zu. The executive chef in Philly will be Ford Sonnenberg, who has worked at several of Cole's resaurants in Austin.
The 4,900-square-foot space has room for 148 people across the dining room, an eight-seat bar and a 13-seat sushi bar.
Ahead of the opening, Uchi held a pair of preview dinners in collaboration with Vernick Fish and River Twice.
"We're learning more and more every day about how amazing Philadelphia's restaurant scene is, and how community-driven it can be, and we couldn't be happier to be opening in this market," Cole said in a statement.
Uchi also has plans to open additional locations in Washington, Charlotte and Newport Beach, California.
Hours will be Sunday through Thursday from 4-10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 4-11 p.m. Happy hour will run seven days a week from 4-6 p.m. Reservations are now open on Resy, OpenTable, SevenRooms and Uchi's website.
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