June 24 update: Miku plans to have a soft opening for lunch today and, it's hoped, dinner tonight. Liquor licence still pending but it should be in place mid-week.
Its safe to say there are millions of photos taken of Vancouvers waterfront near the convention centre. Cruise ship passengers, hotel guests, convention goers and, of course, all the Vancouverites who bring visiting friends and relatives there theyve all tried to digitally capture the scenic splendour that is Coal Harbour.
Those blocks along Canada Place Way are now set to be a destination for another reason the restaurants. First it was the overnight success of the bustling Cactus Club Café. This Friday its the much-awaited opening (fingers crossed) of the new Miku location across from Canada Place. Loading all the bases for whats sure to be Coal Harbours home run is the Daniel Groups second Tap and Barrel, which hopes to open the third week of July.
We realized how much Miku was loved when we closed it down [for the re-location], says Mike Deas-Dawlish, director of operations for Aburi Restaurants Canada, which owns Miku and its sister restaurant, Minami (both of which are named after the owners children.)
Its the morning of June 14, and all around Deas-Dawlish, crews are busily working in the large, open space that is Mikus new home at the bottom of Granville Street. The fabulous free-hand murals by Hideki Kimura are already bursting off the walls but everything else is in disarray. But its an organized disarray. Off-site, a lot of the final work is being done on the hundreds of design elements envisioned by SSDG Interiors (The Oakwood, Terminal City Club, Hilton Whistler).
Executive chef Kazuya Matsuoka is overseeing the work crew in the kitchen. He and his team will have three times the space which is good since the kitchen staff is also tripling. While Minami will specialize on meat, Miku is focusing on seafood, including a new, very large, seafood platter and an expanded sushi station.
Miku was invited to take over the prime waterfront location by Cadillac Fairview, which wanted a restaurant that would bring its own unique vibe to the area. The offer coincided with the end of Mikus five-year lease at its 85-seat location, which Miku had quickly outgrown. There was no lounge, no place for people to wait, Deas-Dawlish says, so they were having to turn diners away. The kitchen was incredibly cramped, with minimal room for the intensive prep work.
Matsuoka, whos worked in French and Italian restaurants, is excited about the opportunity to fuse traditional Japanese cuisine with West Coast-inspired tastes. He specializes in aburi sushi which is flamed seared, allowing for more flavours and aromas. His personally crafted sauces which eliminate the need for soy sauce (although the restaurant offers gluten-free soy sauce as well.) Premium sakes, including one made exclusively for Aburi Restaurants by Yoshinogawa, will be available for pairing.
The new location at 200 Granville has a total of 204 seats, including the bar and the 30-seat patio which is separated from the restaurant by folding glass walls.
City inspections were Tuesday and the hope is to have a soft opening on Friday.
Keep posted at MikuRestaurant.com or on Twitter @MikuRestaurant.
