When it comes to second acts, New Orleans tends to be a fairly forgiving place, especially with chefs. Local gastronomes find themselves salivating like Pavlov’s pooch upon learning that a chef or restaurateur we love has plans for an exciting new venture. This maxim rings especially true for Dana Honn, who opened the beloved tropical spot Carmo on Julia St. in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. It might have taken a dozen years and the tragic closing of that restaurant for Honn and his wife Chrisina to forge a new path with a new eatery in a new location, but that’s exactly what they did at the tail end of 2024.
Enter Nikkei Izakaya, which opened at the Broadside Lounge in Mid-City late last year. Working with their friend and longtime teammate Chef Wataru Saeki, the Honns decided to change tack. This time, they’d focus on something perhaps novel to even the most worldly Crescent City gourmands: Nikkei cuisine, featuring the distinctive melding of culinary styles cultivated by Japanese immigrant communities in South America, particularly Brazil and Peru. The concept made perfect sense for Honn, who’d traveled and cooked extensively in that part of the world, as an opportunity to continue working with his Japanese friend and colleague Wataru Saeki. Together, they embarked on their mission to bring the multicultural ethos of Nikkei cuisine to New Orleans diners.
According to Honn, “I went to Peru several times and worked with some amazing chefs, like Chef Nisha from Maidu, and I really became fascinated by Peruvian Nikkei. The more we dug into it, and having lived in Brazil, I knew that there are Nikkei communities around the world, and in every one of those communities, people have used that spirit of tradition, adaptation and innovation to create something that that’s really new and interesting, and kind of underrepresented in New Orleans.”
So what, exactly, does Japanese-Brazilian-Peruvian bar food with a New Orleans twist entail? If you’re a fan of any of those things, there’s definitely something you’re bound to love on the menu at Nikkei Izakaya. Take the raw menu, for instance. Sashimi and crudo dishes aren’t exactly new to local diners, but Honn and Saeki embrace the Nikkei spirit by serving slices of raw Gulf fish with salt and lime-inflected avocado, aji amarillo sauce, cilantro, seasonal chilies, sweet potato and canchita. Naturally, you’ll find a rotating selection of ceviches, which change according to the seasons as well as the chefs’ creative whims, as well as more hearty bar snacks like salchipapas, a popular street food in Peru consisting of crispy, hand-cut french fries, sliced hot sausage and “Nikkei remoulade.” And if you find yourself jonesing for a hot plate of fish and chips between bands at the Broadside, you’ll be delighted to find Nikkei’s generous portions of panko-crusted fried Gulf fish nestled next to hot Japanese-style “pabu” fries.
Honn and Saeki aren’t without a few tricks up the sleeves. The best is their astonishingly light and satisfying crispy nori tacos: two squares of nori “tortillas” fused with rice paper and flash fried, then topped with slaw, salsa fresca, remoulade, and either tofu, shrimp, char siu pork, or – the one you really want – lightly marinated Gulf fish. While seemingly simple, the marriage of flavors and textures is delightfully unique and complex.
Rounding out the menu at Nikkei Izakaya are a few more standouts you’ll want to try, perhaps before or after catching a flick next door at the Broad theater. The “Causa Nikkei” is a perfect Japanese twist on a Peruvian staple, a modest cylindrical tower of golden potatoes seasoned with aji Amarillo peppers and lime and topped with avocado, Gulf tuna or shiitake mushrooms, then sauced with rocoto aioli and a soy ginger drizzle. But perhaps the single most gratifying offering here, for those who’ve spent any time in a real Japanese izakaya (where food is served mostly to compliment and soak up generous servings of booze and beer), is the classic katsu sandwich. You get your choice of panko-breaded, fried pork or chicken cutlets adorned with shredded cabbage, sweet pepper and onion relish, Nikkei mayo and karashi mustard, served on a buttery brioche roll. It is literally the perfect snack to accompany a hot night of great music and good company, both of which you’re bound to encounter at Nikkei.
For those of us lamenting the loss of Carmo, you’ll be pleased to learn that Nikkei Izakaya not just continues its mission to feature creative takes on global dishes and flavors, it takes those ideas an exciting step forward. Put plainly, Nikkei Izakaya is the best Japanese-Brazilian-Peruvian-New Orleans restaurant in the history of Big Easy dining, and this city is a tastier and more interesting town because of it, and for the dedicated efforts and constant innovation from Chefs like Honn and Saeki.
About the Chefs
Dana Honn grew up in the restaurant industry in Kansas and Nebraska, followed by Brazil, where he fell in love with the cuisine and music. Next up, San Francisco where he met his wife, Chef Christina Honn. The pair started a catering production company that eventually led them to New Orleans in 2005. They opened Cafe Carmo in the CBD, which became a favorite of Big Easy diners and visitors alike until eventually closing its doors after 12 years. This past October, the two partnered with their longtime colleague Wataru Saeki to open Nikkei Izakaya.
A native of Chiba City, Japan, Chef Wataru Saeki started cooking at a young age, beginning as a dishwasher prep cook in local soba houses making tempura, rice bowls and other simple, traditional Japanese fare. A degree in computer science led to a job as a system engineer in Tokyo, saving up until he could move to the United States. He decided to stay in the Big Easy and worked for a decade as a sushi chef at Ninja restaurant before meeting Honn and joining the team at Carmo. “People here love food and don’t have any stereotypes about what they like to try,” he said. “I’m lucky to be here!”
