Hai Hospitality, which operates Uchi, Uchiko, Uchibā, and Loro Asian Smokehouse and Bar, is opening an additional Uchiko location in Plano, Texas, at Legacy West, a multi-purpose development including restaurants and retail, in summer of 2023, the Austin, Texas-based restaurant group said Thursday.
This will be the third location of Uchiko, which already operates in Austin and Houston. Meaning “child of Uchi,” Uchiko is designed to have a Japanese farmhouse aesthetic and offers sushi and composed dishes as well as a chef’s tasting menu. Uchiko Plano will have a yakitori grill that will use post oak and binchotan wood to smoke and grill meats, vegetables and fish, giving the food a flavor component that will distinguish it from Uchi, according to Hai Hospitality.
This announcement comes two months after Hai said it would open an Uchiko in Miami Beach, Fla., in 2024.
Uchi, which means “house” in Japanese, is the flagship brand of the group, with locations in Austin, Houston, Dallas, Denver, and Miami. Chef and owner Tyson Cole opened the original Austin location in 2003 in a refurbished house. Cole won the James Beard Foundation Award “Best Chef of the Southwest” for the Austin Uchi in 2011.
Uchibā is a bar above the Dallas location of Uchi, which opened in 2015.
Loro is a concept developed by Cole and Aaron Franklin of the beloved Franklin Barbecue in Austin. It currently has locations in Austin, Dallas, and Houston, serving dishes such as street corn fritters with Sriracha aïoli, grilles zucchini with cashew sambal and walnut bagna cauda, and smoked beef brisket with Thai herbs and chile gastrique.
Uchiko Plano, is being designed by Michael Hsu Office Of Architecture and IdStudio4 and will seat around 185 people, plus two private dining rooms.
Hai Hospitality CEO Tony Montero said Legacy West was great location for the new restaurant.
“We could not think of a better place to open Uchiko Plano than in this growing luxury business and entertainment hub, and following the warm reception we’ve received since opening Uchi Dallas,” Montero said. “We’re excited to expand Uchi’s ‘sibling’ brand to Legacy West and look forward to sharing the truly special experience of dining at Uchiko with our Plano community. We hope to create a new and truly special dining destination in Plano.”
Contact Bret Thorn at [email protected]
