New Crossroads spot brings ‘sushi-in-a-bowl concept’ to ‘the heart of Kansas City’

Just as one restaurant closes, perhaps just temporarily, on the first floor of 1513 Grand Blvd., another has softly opened on the second floor.

Up a flight of stairs, customers will find the new Pokesan offering sushi in a bowl.

Customers mark their tickets and choose a base (brown rice, mixed greens, quinoa, sushi rice or cauliflower rice). Then they pick a protein from a list that includes ahi tuna, salmon, crab salad, cooked chicken and cooked octopus. Finally, they top it off with mix-ins such as avocado, cream cheese, kimchi and seaweed salad, and a variety of toppings including crispy onion and pickled ginger. Sides include spicy crab salad.

“Poke is a Hawaiian-style sushi-in-a-bowl concept. We’re bringing it here to the heart of Kansas City,” said Tung Bui, partner with Jack Zheng and Bilal Rana in the new venture.

A small bowl with two proteins is $10.75; a medium bowl with three proteins is $14.25; and a large bowl with four proteins is $17.75.

They will start offering catering services and delivery within a 5-mile radius in a couple of weeks.

Pokesan is currently having a soft opening. A grand opening is planned in August.

Hours are 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays, and 11 a.m. to 1:30 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays.

Meanwhile, Kokothai, which opened on the first floor three years ago, has a sign on the door saying it is closed. The owner couldn’t be reached for comment, but the Pokesan owners said Kokothai could reopen.

This story was originally published July 31, 2019 at 5:00 AM.