A look inside the new Japanese restaurant that’s now open in east Wichita
Jack Fakuda recently grew his little restaurant empire at Normandie Center when he opened his new Gyoza Bar: Modern Japanese Eatery, which sits right next door to his Yokohama Ramen Izakaya at Central and Woodlawn.
Fukuda, who first announced plans for Gyoza Bar back in February, wanted to open a restaurant where he could showcase Japanese-style dumplings, also known as gyoza, as well as other Japanese dishes like udon noodle soup, stir-fry udon noodles and Japanese curry rice dishes, which are considered the ultimate comfort food in Japan.
Despite having the same owner, the new restaurant is a completely separate business from its next door neighbor, though it has a similar look and feel.
Gyoza Bar’s menu, though, features many dishes that will be unfamiliar to Wichita, including a list of udon noodle dishes made with cream sauce. Though some of those dishes are served with traditional ingredients like cabbage, carrots, onions and mushrooms, others have an unexpected western spin. One is a take on Italian carbonara, made with udon, bacon, eggs and Parmesan cheese. Another is served with a spicy marinara sauce.
Fukuda is also serving a couple of preparations of Wagyu — which is a top-end (and expensive) Japanese beef that contains lots of flavorful marbling. One of the most fun dishes to order at Gyoza Bar is an appetizer that includes four raw slices of Wagyu that come with a small, hot volcanic rock. Customers place the slices on the rock at their tables and cook their slices to their preferred doneness. (It’s $25.)
Wagyu is also featured inside one of the styles of gyoza the restaurant serves.
The menu also has lots of unique fish options, including grilled eel, grilled smelt fish, fried octopus, and scallop and hamachi carpaccio, all on the appetizer list. There’s also a selection of hand rolls featuring things like eel, tuna and hamachi. A unique snack called onigiri also is on the menu. It’s essentially a triangle of pressed, short-grain rice that includes various fillings, including seasoned kelp or Japanese mustard greens.
Gyoza Bar also offers a long list of Japanese-style desserts, including a matcha cream puff topped with gold flakes, a baked matcha cheesecake and sweet red bean mochi. It has a full bar that even includes a signature cocktail on tap.
Those who really want to take a food adventure with Fukuda can pay $150 a person and let him come up with a signature meal. Reservations are required for that option.
The interior of the restaurant is filled with modern touches including a glowing wall of light that leads from the front dining room to the back and a projection of the restaurant’s logo onto the floor at the entrance.
Fukuda also is the owner of Yokohama Ramen Joint at 613 W. Douglas in Delano, which he opened in 2016. That tiny restaurant, which doubles as a boba shop called Mr. Lion Tea, was so popular that three years later, Fukuda decided to expand into Normandie Center with a larger, second restaurant called Yokohama Ramen Izakaya that offered small-plate appetizers and ramen soup.
In 2022, Normandie Center got new owners, who have spearheaded a major remodel of the center. It also includes Red Bird sandwich restaurant and the recently renovated and reopened Il Primo.
Gyoza Bar’s address is 6248 E. Central. Its hours are 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
Gyoza Bar menu
This story was originally published December 20, 2024 at 1:32 PM.
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