Last month we mentioned Pete Mrabe (Don Pisto’s, Chubby Noodle, and more) and Nick Floulis were going to be moving the CHUBBY NOODLE NORTH BEACH pop-up out of Amante and into the former Pisto’s Tacos space (at 1310 Grant), with chef Alex Ong consulting on the opening menu.
Well, Nick Roberto and Colby Thompson of VerSacrum Design (formerly with Bon Vivants Design+Build) cranked on the design, and the space is now open. Every square inch is mapped out, with plenty of booths for you and your posse and a bar in the back. There is also some sound baffling so things aren’t louder than they need to be.
The menu will continue to feature some Chubby Noodle flavor-packed favorites—like the fried chicken, ramen, tuna poke, spicy garlic noodles, and Korean pork tacos—but will be taking more of a creative izakaya approach to the menu. Mrabe is rotating dishes like mustard wings and a bunch of skewers on the grill, ranging from meatball skewers to chicken with avocado to swordfish with lemon togarashi.
The party will be fueled by their sake cocktails on tap (similar to Chubby Noodle Marina), plus sake, beer, and wine on tap too. There are 24 taps in all, and one is extra special since it features Bushido (“Way of the Warrior”), a premium junmai genshu from Japan. The Chubby Noodle team has been trying to get a Japanese sake on tap for the past couple of years, and Chubby Noodle Marina starting pouring it first, making it the first restaurant in the U.S. to have Japanese sake on tap.
Soft opening hours are Tue-Sat 6pm-10pm, which will expand to nightly after a month or so. Look for lunch and brunch to come in time as well. 1310 Grant Ave. at Vallejo, 415-296-9600.
Chubby Noodle North Beach. Photo by Michael David Rose Photography courtesy of UrbanDaddy.
