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Just weeks after planting its first East Coast location in Rockville, Maryland, SoCal chain Honeyfish Poke is opening in the heart of downtown D.C. next week. The 900-square-foot spot, which seats eight, is scheduled to begin catering to the K Street crowd on Monday, August 7.
Honeyfish Poke CEO Duke Park has previously opened five locations in raw seafood-saturated Southern California, home to a slew of Hawaiian-themed eateries. So why plant a flag in D.C., 3,000 miles away from his poke home base? Park, an admitted “history buff,” fell in love with area while on vacation a few years ago and says he was attracted to its health conscious and diverse customer base.
“One thing we've learned is that there is a huge market for poke,” Park says, adding that “there hasn't been a business model to satisfy sashimi-sushi customers in a fast-casual environment until now.”
Honeyfish customers can select a base (rice, greens), pile on a featured protein (tuna, salmon, octopus, tofu), add toppings (edamame, cilantro, sesame seeds), then drizzle on a signature sauce (ponzu, wasabi, spicy mayo). Bowls run $10.95 to $14.95, depending on the number of proteins included.
Park tells Eater he plans to “aggressively expand” throughout D.C. and is prepared to co-exist with the latest wave of poke competitors; other recent arrivals include Poke Papa and Abunai Poke.
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The anticipated hours of operation are from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Friday, and from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday.
Status: Opening at 11 a.m. on August 7; 1401 K Street NW; website.