By Nancy Varekamp
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Jason and Shira Yovu’s Retro Game Bar had been in business for 10 months at 6720 N. MLK Jr. Blvd. in Woodlawn when the pandemic forced it to close its doors for last spring’s first period of no indoor gaming, drinking or dining.
The owners rallied with a covered, heated outdoor patio, continuing to serve up craft cocktails and sticking to a menu of gourmet hotdogs with creative toppings. They had stocked their indoor bar with games from a personal collection, which customers could play at various stations hooked up to vintage televisons. In the outdoor setting, some customers brought their own video gaming devices to play. But the imaginative hotdogs weren’t selling. From the beginning, Jason Yovu reported, the hotdogs had taken a back seat to the 1000-plus video games and craft cocktails. In Retro Game Bar’s new reality, the food didn’t fare well for takeout or for delivery.
“People assumed they were just another hotdog,” he said. Facing a lengthy ban on indoor dining beginning in November, the Yovus sought a different cuisine, and Japanese food topped the list.
“A lot of our video games come from Japan, and that’s brought a lot of the Japanese culture over here,” Yovu said.
The Yovus posted a Craigslist ad and Alec Stevens responded, passing an audition with his Japanese cooking skills. Customers are finding the food a good fit – both indoors at the bar, now, and at home. The menu items are easily packaged for takeout and take well to reheating, Stevens said.
“Japanese food is comfort food,” he said. As a video gamer, Stevens enjoys the relaxation of sitting on a cozy couch, game controller in hand, with a serving of Japanese curry.
The Yovus dubbed the bar’s kitchen “Yoshi’s Kitchen” in honor of Stevens’ great grandmother, who immigrated from Japan. Her skills and recipes were passed down to Stevens’ mother and then to him. Shira Yovu designed a logo of a cheerful, elderly Japanese woman with a bowl of steaming curry. It now appears side by side with Retro Game Bar’s logo at www.rgbpdx.com and at the game bar.
Article From & Read More ( Japanese comfort food scores space on Woodlawn game bar menu - Hollywood Star News )https://ift.tt/3bZgvZA
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