Scoop: The Painted Fish - A New Restaurant Coming Soon to Northside

At a Northside Community Council meeting recently, Nick Andersen introduced himself and said that he is planning to open a sushi restaurant called The Painted Fish in the old Gajah Wong space on Spring Grove Avenue, just off of Hamilton Avenue.  The crowd seemed quite pleased.

After I followed up and heard some of the ideas they’re kicking around, here’s what I’ve got to share:

They’re hoping to open in July, and it will be a casual place (if you’ve been in that space, you know it would take a serious makeover to do anything else).  The sushi bar will be less traditional, with lots of specialty rolls, and they’ll also planning to have noodles, chicken, steak, and lots of seafood.  Embracing healthy, alternative menu options was clearly a focus, so they’ll plan to have vegan, gluten-free choices, and good ones!  Nick also mentioned having wifi, and they have an espresso machine as well.  The space is quite large, so there is plenty of room for folks to linger and enjoy themselves.  Finally, The Painted Fish intends to have a late night martini bar where people can grab a few drinks, maybe a small sushi roll, or some edamame.

And I almost forgot – the outdoor patio is huge!  Take the average patio space and triple it.  They’ve got a bar, a stage, and lots of greenery.  A kitchen garden is even in the works.  This city is short on good outside dining options, so it’ll be great to have this area back in operation.

Nick was most recently a sushi chef up in Mason at Bistro Ginza in Mason, and has moved down to Cincinnati from a spot at Uraku in Bowling Green, Ohio.

And while we’re on the subject of NW Ohio, here’s a short “the world is very small/full disclosure” interlude:  I walked in to talk to Nick at the space (they’re doing some repair and painting now), and I was quickly greeted by Anne Steiner – Nick’s wife – who I had no idea I was about to see.  Anne and I are both from the bustling township of Bluffton, OH and, amongst other things, grew up going to the same church.  I had recently been in touch with her parents after a trip to Bluffton and then a cameo on their blog/website – The Bluffton Icon.  Nick and Anne now live a couple blocks from Sarah and I.  So, yes, the world is very small (especially if you limit it to Ohio).

Hopefully all will go well, and we’ll have another great food option in Northside!