Maketto’s Erik Bruner-Yang Will Open Hot Pot and Taco Spot on Friday

Erik Bruner-Yang, the chef who brought trailblazing D.C. ramen shop Toki Underground and hip Southeast Asian cafe Maketto to H Street NE, will open a hot pot restaurant in the neighborhood tomorrow.

Bruner-Yang told Eater via email that the new business from his Foreign National restaurant group will be called Yangs Hot Pot, Tacos, and Cerveza.

Yangs will offer hot pots with chicken- or vegetable-based broth, six sauces ranging from ginger scallion to a “really, really hot sauce,” and a host of dunking options spanning across three categories: meats and seafood, vegetables and eggs, and tofu and dough. There will also be small plates offering kimchi, Chongqing fried chicken, and more.

A small taco menu contains grilled chicken and steak, braised pork, and chorizo. That can be paired with a variety of Mexican beers. Cocktails include margaritas, naturally. Bruner-Yang listed James Wozniuk (Spoken English) as chef de cuisine and Colin Sugalski (Maketto) as beverage director.

Check out the full menus below:

Yangs will begin service at dinner with a 5 p.m. opening. The restaurant is located at 1358 H Street NE, across the street from Maketto and down the road from Toki Underground.

Bruner-Yang stepped down from Toki Underground in April 2016, then filed a lawsuit against his company and his partners there alleging they were defaming him and interfering with his new businesses. A countersuit accused the chef of using company funds for an array of personal expenses. Commercial litigators Schulman Bhattacharya announced this past May that the case had been resolved.

• Erik Bruner-Yang is Stepping Down from Toki Underground [EDC]
• Erik Bruner-Yang Sues Toki Underground And His Former Partners [WCP]
• Toki Underground Partners Accuse Erik Bruner-Yang of Spending Restaurant Money [Washingtonian]