Thursday, January 21, 2010

Katana Sushi -- New Management, New Menu?

Has Katana Sushi in Elkridge changed management?  I received one comment saying there was new management, and an email from kam saying that the menu had changed.

Katana is a standard pickup place for kam, and someone who answered the phone Monday said that the restaurant was closed that day, but would re-open with a menu that included both Chinese and Japanese food?

Does anyone know the details?  Has anyone tried the new menu?  Does anyone know if this affects the Katana in Elkridge?

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

On Saturday a sign on the door stated " New ownership, new management" with a re-opening date sometime this week, I believe. Also, it appeared that someone was working inside.

Josh K said...

We went last night. We talked to one of the managers. It seems like there was a partial turnover in owners. One of the new owners added a Chinese memu (and maybe Thai later). We really loved the "old" Katana. Our first impression was that the addition of Chinese was at the expense of the Sushi. It was certainly not bad, but some of the flare (and our three favorate special rolls) were gone.

wordbones said...

HowChow,

I meant to drop you a note on this earlier. We also went by to have some sushi last Friday only to find the place closed. A gentleman told us it would reopen soon under new management.

I was afraid this was going to happen. It never seemed all that busy.

It's a shame. The sushi was actually pretty good. Maybe Elkridge just isn't ready for a place like this yet.

-wb

Mister John said...

The sushi arena is already pretty highly contested with several -very- good places within five/ten minutes of either Katana location. Where the Elkridge loc lost me was the Japanese menu. I am picky because I grew up living and eating in Japan.

brandon said...

I agree with Mister John. While I liked Katana sushi, and it was closer to me than any of the other sushi restaurants, I felt like Sono and King are higher quality and for the price of a sushi dinner I'd rather drive a little farther for higher quality.

Katie said...

I agree with Brandon... Steve and I have discussed sushi in HoCo and felt that although Katana was the closest place to get sushi, it was just okay. We would also rather drive a little further for better tasting sushi.

wordbones said...

Hey HowChow,

Peanut and I had dinner at the "New Katana" Friday night. They've made some cosmetic changes, lower lights, a big ass fish tank...

I thought the sushi was o kay. I missed my Red Roof Roll from the old Katana. We both lamented the loss of the white fish tempura as well.

Also, they do not take American Express. What kind of nice joint doesn't take American Express?

-wb

Anonymous said...

Does anyone know if this impacts the Katana in Clarksville? I haven't been back there in a bit but my wife and I prefer it to Sono and King

Mary said...

1. Yes, the Elkridge Katana is under new management & the menu will be changing.

2. It will not have any effect on the Clarksville Katana, which will be still primarily owned & managed by the couple Jimmy & Amy.

Josh K said...

Katana has now gone back to their old sushi menu. They have kept the Chinese menu items as well.

kam said...

Yay for the old menu being back! It's not the same quality as Hanamura/Sono, but it's really easy for me to get to when I have sushi cravings. Haven't been in a while due to surgery/snow, but I forsee a trip in my future.

Unknown said...

I used to go to Sono a LOT, but the Elkridge location is so close it is worth saving a 10 mile round trip. The sushi is well worth saving the trip I.M.O., and the special roll selection is very nice. The staff is very friendly, and that fish tank is pretty amazing...

PS-I think the franchise just sold to a private owner who keeps the name but gives the place his own touch.

Unknown said...

Tonight they had a new sushi chef behind the counter, and he and Nancy, one of the owners, were discussing changes to the menu as he was making the sashimi and rolls. I've been semi-regular before now, and the sushi was noticeably different than usual, but different in a very good way. He uses some very nuanced flavors, and I plan next time to let him choose my entire order.