Maple & Ash's Ground-Floor Bar Unveils an Omakase That Leaves The Rules Behind
Maple & Ash's playful approach has proved successful, a consumer-first approach to fine dining centered around steaks without adhering to old rules. Management is trying to bring that energy downstairs at Eight Bar without the need for reservations, a requisite for Maple & Ash. One of Eight Bar's strengths is that a customer can find variety. They can order a burger accompanied by a maki roll with a glass of burgundy without judgment.
Seeing a greater opportunity, Eight Bar is giving sushi lovers a new omakase option, one that doesn't require reservations. 'Omakase' means 'chef's whim,' and Grant wants to give the power back to his diners. Eight Ball's Golden Omakase offering is the Japanese counterpart to Maple & Ash's popular 'I Don't Give a F@ck,' a $225 per person tasting menu option.
The $150 Golden Omakase is more of a 'customer's whim' — diners can decide on the spot.. It's meant to break rules, not beholden to tradition: 'I didn't want it to be a drag-out two-and-a-half-hour experience,' Grant says.
That's not to say the menu is amateurish. Hari Chan, a sushi chef who's spent more than a decade in Chicago behind restaurants like Kaze and Macku — before working for companies including Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises and Hogsalt — is ensuring Eight Bar's menu matches the standards he's set at his previous establishments. The menu isn't 100 percent sushi. Grant describes a scallop dish slow-roasted with ramps and left in the shell. For maki fans, one of the popular items is a King crab roll. An optional beverage pairing costs $75.
Diners can expect about seven courses. Grant says they check in with diners around course five to see how they're doing. Grant says that they don't want customers to feel like they need a slice of pizza at the end of their meal, but they also don't want to overstuff them.
Hearty eaters may earn a surprise at the end of their meals — if they have room in their stomachs. Grant teases a fried chicken sandwich: 'So it's not typical,' he says.
Maple & Ash opened in 2015 in the Gold Coast near two of Chicago's most beloved steakhouses, Morton's and Gibsons. The restaurant ascended thanks to its reverent attitude and lavish buildout. The restaurant has survived despite an acrimonious split with ownership. A group of the restaurant's former investors has also taken ownership to court with a laundry list of accusations.
Now dubbed Maple Hospitality, the reformed company is pursuing expansion opportunities, including a space in New York.
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