Johnson County fried fish place closed months ago. Here’s the restaurant moving in
Four years ago, Jay Jie opened Aoyama Ramen in Olathe at 14960 W. 119th St. — serving long Japanese noodles swimming in warm pork broth.
After enduring the ups and downs of post-pandemic restaurant ownership, Jie is ready to expand his concept to Shawnee at 13225 Shawnee Mission Parkway. That location is still at least two or three months from opening, he said.
Seafood fans may be familiar with the address. The ramen restaurant is moving into a former Lutfi’s Fried Fish.
Lutfi’s — founded by Lutfi Khalifah in the ‘90s — still has five locations in the KC area. The Shawnee spot opened in 2019, and it closed about six or seven months ago, a Lutfi’s manager said.
In 2021, Lutfi’s closed its midtown spot at 3037 Main St., which had been open since 2012. Other Lutfi’s locations include 305A N.E. Englewood Road and 3631 Prospect Ave.
With more ramen restaurants popping up in Johnson County, Jie figures it’s time to amp up the competition.
This year welcomed new players in the ramen market: Jinya at 7761 W. 159th St. and KC Craft Ramen at 6830 W. 119th St.
Jie hopes the move will expand his fan base, which is already loyal; his restaurant has 4.6 stars on Google. His new spot is by popular bar Johnny’s Tavern and Savers.
His restaurant serves classic ramen bowls with egg, bean sprouts and scallions, as well as pork buns and rice bowls.