The newest contender on the Athens late-night munchies menu is raw and untested on Court St.: sushi.
In two to three months, 28 Court St. will be Ginger, an Asian fusion kitchen and frozen yogurt restaurant, said Ray Harper, the new location’s manager.
The new location will be targeting college students by staying open late on weekends, serving quickly and keeping prices low, Harper said.
“It’s a brand new style (the owners) are trying,” Harper said. “It will be fast and casual but with the same quality food and recipes.”
There are three Ginger locations already in Columbus, two Royal Ginger’s and one Blue Ginger. Harper said the new restaurant is completely different and is comparable to Chipotle, with Asian food.
The Hibachi-style kitchen takes traditional methods and flavors from a range of Asian cuisines and blends them together with a modern twist, Harper said.
“After choosing your rice, protein and vegetables, you top the dish off with one or more of our hand-made sauces, which are prepared on-sight with only the freshest produce and highest-quality ingredients,” Harper said in an email.
Ginger will also offer ready-to-order sushi, something that is fairly hard to find in Athens.
“I’m from Columbus, so I’ve had a lot of different sushi there,” said Lindsay Radomski, a senior studying psychology at Ohio University. Radomski said she has been to the Blue Ginger location in Columbus and enjoyed her meal there.
Although Radomski said that sushi in Athens is “kind of a weird concept,” she said the restaurant could be successful if it follows in the footsteps of the Columbus Ginger locations.
“If they can do it in Columbus and have it deliver every day, I feel like they could efficiently do it here as long as they follow those same standards,” she said.
Prices will range from seven to nine dollars and the restaurant is catered to students’ needs, Harper said.
“We’re definitely trying to have it open late on the weekends to around 3 a.m.,” he added.
Harper said that the restaurant will also serve alcohol, so even though it’s not a sit-down restaurant with servers, you can still enjoy an Asian beer.
“We’re trying to tailor to college students who need to be in and out and on their way,” Harper said, “but if people want to hang out and have a drink, they’re welcome to do that.”
Radomski said Ginger might not be as popular of a choice during the after-hours food rush that comes around 2 a.m. when the bars close, but it’s more of a place for dinner and a drink.
“When you’re out at a bar, I don’t know if you would necessarily say, ‘Let’s go to Ginger, a sushi restaurant,’” she said.
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