Atlas Restaurant Group’s new Harbor East spot,
Azumi (a traditional Japanese girl’s name meaning safe harbor), is a fine-dining Japanese restaurant set inside the former Pabu space adjacent to the Four Seasons Baltimore Hotel.

“We stuck with the concept of Japanese cuisine because there’s nothing else like it in Baltimore,” says Atlas partner Alex Smith. “There’s no other restaurant that serves the types of thing that we are serving on this menu, and we thought that concept was unique to the city.”

While Pabu’s focus was
izakaya (Japanese small plates), Azumi offers a broad menu (“probably four times the size of Pabu’s,” says Smith) with more of a fine-dining angle that highlights the traditional foods of Japan.

Smith says that Azumi’s menu has been inspired, in part, by the top Japanese restaurants in the country such as Nobu, Zuma, and Morimoto.

Highlights of the menu will include fish flown in daily from Japan (kampachi, yellowtail, for example) as well, as premium-grade, “A5″ Waygu beef (not available elsewhere in Baltimore), live sea urchin, and an extensive sushi menu.

Though some of the vestiges of Pabu remain, such as the bamboo ceiling, designer Patrick Sutton went all out in in achieving Smith’s design directive to repurpose the space, while also remediating some of Pabu’s design flaws.

“Pabu did not have a clear sense of arrival, partially because you came into the side of the bar,” says Sutton. “We took the bar that used to face the glass and moved it next to the sushi bar to create an active bar-lounge aspect to the space. We also put booths all along the windows, so you are engaged in views of the harbor. Now, it’s much more understandable as a space.”

Presiding over the kitchen will be chef, Eiji Takase (who goes by “Taka”) a native of Japan, now living in Fells Point and known for his knife skills. Takase’s resume includes a stint as the executive chef at Japonais in Chicago and a head chef gig at Shibuya in Las Vegas.

His goal? “To be successful and earn a Michelin star,” says Takase, smiling.

As they prepare for opening day, Smith and his business partner George Aligeorgas, who also co-own
Ouzo Bay, gave us a sneak peak of the dishes and the décor.

For reservations, call 443-220-0477.

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Moving forward, the spaces will be leased to The Atlas Group, owned by local restaurateurs Alex Smith and George Aligeorgas of Ouzo Bay. A new coffee shop/cafe will reopen by June 16, and following renovations, a rebranded restaurant will open in the Pabu space.

Though we’ve hearing rumors of a closing for many months now, the exit of the wildly talented Jonah Kim was a sure sign that changes were in store. The likelihood is that Baltimore—and Four Seasons hotel guests—weren’t ready for the introduction of the somewhat esoteric Japanese tapas cuisine.

Given the great see-and-be-seen vibe and top-flight food served at Ouzo Bay, we’re exited to see how Smith and his partner rebrand the space. When it opened in 2012, Ouzo Bay was an instant Harbor East hit, and rose to become our number-one rated restaurant in 2013.

Full disclosure: Ouzo Bay is next to our offices at Baltimore and a favorite stop for an after-work drink or octopus appetizer. We’re hoping the new spots are equally good. 

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Japanese
Taiko drummers, a sake station, and music by DJ Jay Gray will be just
some of the events at the party, which begins at 6 p.m. The restaurant’s
spring cocktail selection will also be available.

Okonomiyaki (a savory Japanese pancake), fried chicken (pictured),
and pork loin will be featured on executive chef Jonah Kim’s menu,
followed by desserts from new executive pastry chef Dyan Ng.

The cost is $30 plus tax and gratuity with a cash bar. To make reservations, call Shannon Toback at 410-223-1464 or email her.

Regular dining hours at PABU will resume on Saturday.

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The
dinners will be held on February 6, 7, and 8. There will be two
seatings at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. And, good news, reservations will be
taken.

At an earlier Artifact collaboration with D.C.’s Toki
Underground, diners lined up to get a seat at the first-come,
first-serve dinners.

The upcoming “takeover,” as Artifact tweeted
today, comes at a good time for Jonah. This week, Pabu had to close
temporarily due to damage caused by a water leak, according to its Facebook page. It may take seven-10 days to re-open for dinner.

In the meantime, if you haven’t had Jonah’s great food, now is the time at Artifact Coffee.

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And, of course, both bars are rolling out their new spring cocktails. If you want spring in a drink, try Wit & Wisdom’s Edinburgh Rose, pictured, made with Edinburgh gin, Lillet Rouge (French aperitif wine), house-made rose petal syrup, lemon, and an egg white garnished with rose petals. This cocktail is clean, the gin doesn’t bog it down with juniper, and the egg white blends the sweet and tangy flavors of the drink.

Lead bartender Joseph shared some of his history with us and he has worked in the Caribbean, on the Eastern Shore, and in some of the finest craft cocktail bars in D.C. His resume is reflected on the drink menu. There’s the Red Rum Punch made with Mount Gay Eclipse rum, passion-berry tea, lemon, orange, and sugar cane syrup garnished with a mint sprig and orange peel. This drink—which should properly be sipped on a patio—was tropical enough without being overbearing. It was more tart than sweet and the tea added an aromatic quality. A local must-try is the Eastern Shore Shandy made with local Sloop Betty vodka, lemon, house made Old Bay Syrup, and Heavy Seas Small Craft Warning, garnished with an Old Bay rim. This take on a classic shandy is like a crab feast in a glass—spicy, buttery, and delicious.

The last drink we sampled was the Farragut, an extremely well-balanced mix of Four Roses bourbon, Nux Alpina walnut liqueur, sugar-free maple syrup, orange, and lemon, served over an ice ball and garnished with grated cinnamon and an orange peel. This cocktail hit all the right notes: smoky, sweet, and smooth. The perfect drink for those chillier spring nights.

Then we made our way over to PABU. This was my first time visiting the Japanese restaurant and bar. And it was a great night to do so. Because of its one-year anniversary, PABU brought in guest chefs from Roy’s and The Food Market to create dishes, and featured dessert from Charm City Cakes. All of the food was excellent (especially a to-die-for soft-shell crab with lime-cilantro dipping sauce from The Food Market’s Chad Gauss).

We sampled PABU’s spring cocktail menu as well, guided by lead bartender Nick Jones. Highlights for us included the Cobra Kai (Jones’s tribute to Karate Kid), with Dewazakura Oka sake, Lillet Rouge, white tea syrup, lime juice, and sparking wine. The sake’s cherry flavor married nicely with the tart lime and light, white tea. We tried additional sake with the help of Sommelier Tiffany Dawn Soto, who recommended the Okunomatsu Sparkling Daiginjo, which was like the champagne of sakes—bubbly and sweet with notes of melon and honey. Perfect way to cap our night!

Of course, these two places are on the swankier side of Baltimore bars (cocktails were $9-12 each), but if you’re feeling fancy or just simply want to celebrate springtime, these two Four Seasons gems—with incredibly knowledgeable staff—are the perfect places to do just that.

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