Packing a one-two punch of adventurous “Asiatic” cuisine and hip, edgy design, Kapow Noodle Bar is winding up to give the local dining scene a good, hard smack.
The concept of a Momofuku-inspired casual but ambitious Asian-esque eatery nurtured by Kapow founders Rodney Mayo and Scott Frielich (Dada, Tryst, the Dubliner, Respectable Street) and Vaughan Lazar (Pizza Fusion) cranked into high gear with addition of the wickedly talented Roy Villacrusis as executive chef and partner.
After the usual delays in finishing up the space next to the Dubliner in Mizner Park, Kapow will debut the week after Thanksgiving. Dominating the space is a huge cartoon-style mural by local artist Michael “Pooch” Pucciarelli. Other features include an open kitchen, walls paneled with wood reclaimed from an Oregon barn and a bar that flows from the 48-seat dining room to the 50-seat courtyard. Following what has become something of a local trend, the restaurant will be as green and the food as sustainable as possible.
The Asiatic cuisine that blossomed so delectably at Villacrusis’s now-shuttered Kubo in North Palm Beach will be reprised in a more casual context at Kapow. A few dishes, like his stellar monkfish liver and foie gras “surf ‘n’ turf,” will make the transition to the new menu, though the focus will be on various small plates and a rotating array of noodle dishes inspired by the season and different Southeast Asian countries, like one featuring skin-on pork belly cooked sous vide with 48-hour broth. Also look for five- and seven-course tasting menus.
But wait, there’s more. Villacrusis says Kubo is not dead, only sleeping, that he and his new partners are looking for a new space in West Palm to revive the restaurant, which to this humble palate was one of the most inventive and exciting restaurants anywhere in South Florida.
So go ahead, hit me. I can take a punch.
