Local Flavor

Patrons pick from a menu of proteins, then place their choices in the boiling broth to cook. Below: Side plates of veggies, rice noodles and egg wash accompany each meal. Photos courtesy Tokyo Pot

Once the broth is boiling, diners enjoy their meals by adding rice noodles, mushrooms, cabbage and tofu to the pot and then cooking their meats and seafood by swishing individual bites in the boiling broth. Each bite is dipped into the sauce, and then the egg wash just before eating.

Initially opened in 2007 by friends Dean Chen and David Tjie, the restaurant is now owned and operated by Minh Tien, who

TASTE | LOCAL FLAVOR

purchased it almost three years ago. Not much has changed since the restaurant gained a new owner. e cozy dining room and top-quality food are just like they were on my rst visit. However, it isn’t just the meat and veggies that keep guests returning time and time again. e communal feeling of cooking each bite with friends isn’t found in a typical restaurant. Even those with minimal or no cooking experience will enjoy the process. Sta members are always happy to demonstrate, and the meats and seafood cook in mere seconds, so there isn’t a lot of guesswork in cooking your food to the optimal temperature.

“ e customers really enjoy cooking their own food,” says

CHERRY STREET KITCHEN

She made crepes when she was ten, and she never left for school until she’d watched the early morning cooking shows.

“Cooking has always been in my blood,” says Jen Lindsay, owner of Cherry Street Kitchen. Her mother was friends with Ruth Young, and that’s how she came to be a server at Young’s legendary Queenie’s. She yearned to be a chef and so, two years later, she opened her own little restaurant, Cafe Boston. It was 1988, she’d never cooked professionally before, but she read every cookbook she could get her hands on.

Lindsay opened Cherry Street Kitchen in 2017 and quickly attracted a following of regulars drawn by the innovative brunches and sandwiches.

“I think of my food as South by Southwest,” says Lindsay. “I love to take avors from the Southwest – chipotle, roasted hatch peppers – and mix it up with traditional Southern items – pimento cheese perhaps – maybe I’ll put it on a fresh baked biscuit with fried green tomatoes or perhaps an egg.”

One of the most popular items is the humboldt county turkey melt, a panini topped with herbed goat cheese, g jam, fresh tomatoes, spring mix and smoked turkey. Baked goods, all made from scratch, are a big draw, too.

Cherry Street Kitchen has just moved into a big, modern space downtown (111 W. Fifth St.), and this new place will have all this and more. It will be open for dinner as well as breakfast and lunch, with hot entrees, including pasta dishes and salmon sh and chips. Pies and cakes will join the brownies, lemon bars and cookies. ere will be a grab and go for quick takeout and a full bar. Check the restaurant’s social media for updates.

“I’m super pumped about it,” says Lindsay. And she’s also pleased that all of her most experienced chefs and servers from the old place will join her at the new. BRIAN SCHWARTZ Tien, whose primary culinary duties are preparing the ingredients for the tables.

Tien, who moved with his wife and two children to Stillwater in 2013 from Wichita, Kan., spent 20 years working for the food service departments at Kroger. He says this is his rst time in the food business in which he’s not actually cooking anything. e restaurant features appetizers such as edamame, kimchi and seaweed salad. A sizeable list of side dishes for those wishing to add to their meal includes a Wagyu beef ribeye option. Popsicles in avors like green tea and melon are available for dessert, along with tiramisu and an ice cream sandwich. In addition to non-alcoholic beverages, Tokyo Pot o ers a selection of beer, wine and sake.

Part of the charm of this tucked-away local spot is its cozy atmosphere, which means seating is limited. While reservations are not required, I highly recommend them. e restaurant is open nightly from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. AMANDA JANE SIMCOE