Austin-based Hai Hospitality announced today it plans to open Uchi Newport Beach, a sushi bar-themed restaurant, in Mariners Mile by 2026.
Uchi Newport Beach will be Uchi’s eighth location overall and first in Orange County.
The restaurant was the brainchild of Tyson Cole, an award-winning chef. He created Uchi to feature a combination of traditional and modern Japanese dishes, including sushi, sashimi, makimono, yakimono, tempura and omakase.
“I love the vibrant fine dining scene in Orange County,” Cole, a one-time dishwasher who was raised in the Houston area, said in a statement. “Securing a highly visible spot in the center of the county’s Gold Coast region is very difficult, and we are excited to be able to partner with a local developer who has spent several years entitling and permitting a unique spot for our new restaurant.
“Newport Beach is a dream destination for Uchi, and we’re incredibly honored to bring our unique culinary experience to this remarkable community,” Cole, who worked at several sushi bars and Japanese restaurants in the Austin area, continued.
Uchi’s Newport Beach location, to be at 2510 West Coast Highway, would accommodate 175 guests, including bar seating.
Hai Hospitality opened the first Uchi, which in Japanese translates to ‘house,’ in South Austin in 2003 and has since expanded to Charlotte, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Miami, Scottsdale, Arizona, and West Hollywood, California.
