http://www.tulsaworld.com/site/printerfriendlystory.aspx?articleid=20120510_53_E1_CUTLIN514464Zanmai will take Japanese steak house to a new level
By KYLE ARNOLD World Staff Writer
Published: 5/10/2012 2:03 AM
Last Modified: 5/10/2012 2:38 AM
A new restaurant and retail building under construction near Cherry Street will offer a sweeping view of downtown Tulsa while extending the popular retail and entertainment district a block north.
Developer Steve Dodson and restaurant owner Nobu Terauchi are building the two-story, 16,200-square-foot building on the southwest corner of Peoria Avenue and the Broken Arrow Expressway. It will be topped with an ambitious Japanese steak house and have space for as many as four retailers on the ground level.
The Zanmai restaurant will feature tall glass windows in the rear that face northwest toward the skyline.
Terauchi plans to build a high-end Japanese restaurant that includes 16 cooking stations with hibachi-style cooks entertaining diners.
"The view will be one of the best in the city, and we think it will be the coolest restaurant in the city for years," said Brian Freese, architect on the project.
The restaurant was placed on the second floor to allow for the downtown view and give space for street-front retail.
The new restaurant is the third dining place by Terauchi, owner of two Fuji Japanese Cuisine and Sushi Bar locations.
Terauchi opened his first Fuji restaurant at 71st Street and Memorial Drive in 1986, one of the first Japanese-style eateries in Tulsa.
Seven years ago, he opened the second Fuji restaurant in the Brookside district at 3739 S. Peoria Ave.
Zanmai, which means "enjoy" in Japanese, will be a departure from the midpriced restaurants that Terauchi has opened in the past.
He said he plans to sell premium American and Japanese selections of beef and create an Asian fusion menu. In all, the restaurant will seat about 200 people.
"It's a great business opportunity," Terauchi said. "It will be a little bit more modern, more high-end than the other restaurants."
Zanmai will also have several booths, a bar and private dining rooms. At the rear of the building, there will be a rooftop dining area and Japanese garden.
The 7,600 square feet of retail space on the ground floor has not been leased yet, but Freese said owners of the building are in talks with several national retailers.
A large glass rectangle in the middle of the building's front will have the Zanmai name in large lettering, while behind it a staircase and elevator will take diners to the second-floor restaurant. Freese said the entryway and signage are purposefully pointing toward the Cherry Street area.
Freese said they designed the building to have parking in the rear with street-front retailers, following the classic look of retailers along 15th Street, Peoria Avenue in Brookside and other in-town shopping corridors.
Freese said the building will be decorated with reclaimed wood, white painted strand board and will have concrete floors.
Owners of the property hope to have the building finished and the restaurant opened by the end of the year.
Contractors have begun foundation work.
Freese said the property has a significant slope and will have to be leveled to allow for parking.
According to city building permits, developers plan to spend just under $2 million on the project.
