As in The Cowfish Sushi Burger Bar.
When he describes the concept, says partner Marcus Hall, owner of eeZ Fusion & Sushi at Birkdale, "most folks look at me like I have snakes coming out of my ears. They ask: 'How do you expect to market something like that?' and I say, 'Well, you just looked at me like I have snakes coming out of my ears: It should be easy.' "
The idea is to pair a fusion sushi place (not traditional, notes Hall) with a comfortable burger bar, and give proper attention to each: "the best fusion sushi in town and the best burger in town, in a place you can come with your kids or when you've just got done at the gym ... (but also a place you can) propose to your girlfriend. You can spend 8-10 bucks at lunch or dinner or spend $100 a head if you're going a la carte sushi."
Hall began with the Birkdale site five years ago as a franchise out of Canada, and when that didn't quite work, went independent, "tweaked and massaged it and now it works!" He'd been looking for a second location for some time. Now plans call for partners Alan Springate of The Counter by SouthPark, with Hall and Louis Camire, to fold the Counter's space and that of the former Grape into the new venture.
Look for a July-or-so opening, with renovation beginning on the Grape side, to keep closing time to a minimum for the Counter space, says Hall.
The menu at eeZ will give you a good sense of what's to come, sushi-wise, at the new place, but you can also expect "burgushi": "rollers" are sushi rolls made of burger components, such as one with seasoned ground beef and jalapeno, rolled with sushi rice and nori, tempura-battered and fried. Then there's "pick-up" sushi: a sandwich made with sushi components -- a sushi-rice-filled patty loaded with sashimi or Asian slaw.
"It's going to be weird and wild," Hall says, who's also at work on "The Legend of the Cowfish," a children's story about a cow and a fish who buddy up to create their dream place.
"It's fun to be able to create."
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