Popular hibachi food truck opening first brick & mortar restaurant today
From food cart, to food truck, to now a full-blown restaurant, a local spot for fast-casual hibachi is proving that it’s possible to follow your dreams.
Blasian Grill, owned by Joe Russell and Chef Kosal Long, just opened their first brick & mortar restaurant after being parked at 801 Harrisburg Pike for awhile. Their food truck immediately became a popular spot for high-quality hibachi, fried rice, and soba noodles.
Although their loyal customers didn’t mind grabbing a box and eating it on the curb or in their car, Russell and Long knew that expanding to an actual restaurant was their next step.
“The business is going really well – we rocked with the truck for a few years, but we need more space to cook more food with more demand, and all of that,” explained Russell.
The new restaurant is where their food truck used to be, at 801 Harrisburg Pike. Customers can enjoy their favorites, like the Teriyaki Tofu hibachi, or Trio Combo with steak, chicken, shrimp, and their signature spicy yum-yum sauce, and choose to take it to-go or sit down and enjoy in their dining room, which offers limited seating for 20-30 guests at a time.
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And although they’re sticking true to their hibachi-style of cooking, there won’t be onion stacks lit on fire, or shrimp thrown in your mouth, or eggs tossed through the air (but Chef Kosal could do that – he was trained at a Japanese steakhouse). “We don’t need that,” laughed Russell. “We focus on food quality. We’re trading in tricks for the quality.”
The name of the business is a nod to Russell and Long’s blended families of Asian and Black identities. Long is married to Russell’s sister. They both unfortunately got laid off years ago in the exact same week, and they took it as a sign to start their own restaurant business. “He was a chef, I was in business, so we thought, ‘Why not do our own thing with food?’”
The duo is planning on keeping their food truck for special events and catering. They’ve catered graduations, weddings, and other parties, and will continue on doing so.
Stop by their new location for some of the freshest hibachi in town during their grand opening today, June 7, from 2pm-10pm.
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