New Izakaya coming to U St Corridor

Via Young and Hungry (V Street, Meet Sake), construction is underway for Izakaya Seki, a Japanese restaurant coming to the U St. Corridor. I'm really excited about this, and not just because I'm always excited about new restaurants coming to my neighborhood. I like the idea of an Izakaya, a somewhat different type of establishment than either the sushi bar or the upscale steakhouse most Americans picture when they think about Japanese restaurants. And I love Kushi, the Izakaya down by the convention center. But Kushi is expensive. It sounds like Seki will be more mid-range, an area DC doesn't exactly specialize in. From Y&H:

The menu hasn't quite been finalized. "But," she says, "it'll be food that he and I love, things we want to eat when we drink." Expect udon and soba noodle dishes (the latter variety will be shipped directly from Japan). But, no sushi (raw sashimi courses certainly, but no nigiri or maki.) No ramen, either (at least not at first, anyway). And, no bartender. "There's no space for a bar," she points out. But there will be drinks, including beer, sake and a curated selection of shōchū, a Japanese spirit that Seki hopes to become a sort of house specialty. 

Expect a more modern look than your typical dark wooden izakaya-style joint in Japan, or even New York. 

The overall goal, Seki says, is to offer the sort of high-quality cuisine at a mid-range price point that D.C. generally lacks. "I do think we're filling a gap that doesn't exist for casual Japanese dining," she says.