WASHINGTON 鈥� says it’s “so hot right now,” calls it the “next big food trend” and the refers to it as the 鈥渃raze鈥� that “has taken the country by storm.” But to Mikala Brennan, it鈥檚 just poke. 听
鈥淲e鈥檝e been serving poke from the [Hula Girl] food truck and now the restaurant for five or six years, so to have it now just in the past year become this trendy item, it鈥檚 kind of funny to me,鈥� said Brennan, chef and owner of in Shirlington, Virginia. 听
鈥淲e already knew it was a great dish.鈥�
And while poke is old news to Oahu native Brennan, the traditional Hawaiian dish is new to a lot of East Coasters 鈥� but that鈥檚 about to change. Poke outposts are popping up in cities such as Philadelphia, New York and Chicago 鈥� and D.C. is next. 听
In its simplest version, poke听is cubes of raw fish (ahi tuna is the most popular), dressed with shoyu (Hawaiian soy sauce), sesame oil, ginger, onion, chili peppers and seaweed.
However, Brennan says there are endless interpretations and variations. Some pokes are made with octopus or shrimp, some are mixed with avocado or mango, and some are served on top of rice or salad.
鈥淵ou have purist people and then you have people that are OK with taking some chances and messing with what鈥檚 good,鈥� Brennan said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 interesting to see the 鈥榗hef-ing up鈥� of poke.鈥�
In Hawaii, poke听is everywhere 鈥� from beach coolers to fine-dining establishments, and even grocery store counters.
鈥淚nstead of having just a deli case, you have a deli case and then next to it, you鈥檒l have a poke听case. And you鈥檒l find 10 to 12 different varieties of poke听鈥� tuna with green onion, tuna with regular onion, tuna spicy,鈥� Brennan said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 very accessible. It鈥檚 something that you don鈥檛 think twice about grabbing a pound and bringing it home.鈥�
In D.C., it鈥檚 not as ubiquitous, but it is getting easier to find. At Brennan鈥檚 restaurant, she makes three different types of poke, including salmon poke, grilled octopus poke and ahi tuna poke.
Maki Shop and District Fishwife , and later this year, Washingtonians will be able to get their fresh-fish fix at Northern Virginia鈥檚 new fast-casual poke听spot Lei鈥檇.
Husband and wife team Lisa Nguyen and Au Dang, co-founders of the restaurant group Happy Endings Hospitality, are the force behind the new concept. They decided to focus exclusively on poke听after falling in love with the dish on a Hawaiian vacation and then going through withdraw upon their return to Washington.
鈥淭he DMV area is very diverse and there are a lot of different cuisines, but we couldn鈥檛 find poke听anywhere,鈥� Nguyen said.
She hopes Lei鈥檇 will fill the void.
The restaurant will be set up similar to Chipotle鈥檚 service model. Diners will pick a base (rice or salad), choose from five different proteins (salmon, tuna, shrimp, duck and tofu) and finish off their poke听bowls with sauces and toppings.
Similar concepts have experienced success in and , and more food entrepreneurs are . 听
鈥淚t鈥檚 fast, it鈥檚 fresh, it鈥檚 healthy, it鈥檚 customizable,鈥� said Dang, who hopes to open Lei鈥檇 by December 2016.听鈥淚t鈥檚 also perfect if you want to fulfill a sushi craving, but you don鈥檛 want to have to go to a sit-down restaurant or you don鈥檛 want to have to pay a fortune for it.”
So why is the excitement over poke听just now hitting this side of the mainland? Brennan鈥檚 answer is simple: 鈥淧robably because we鈥檙e 6,000 miles away from Hawaii,鈥� she said.
True, but with poke听making a splash in the District, the distance between the nation鈥檚 capital and the 50th state has never been shorter 鈥� at least on the plate.
鈥淚 guess I鈥檓 kind of tickled to see that it is such a big deal out here. I kind of laugh in ways because it鈥檚 a trend 鈥� it鈥檚 just poke听to us,鈥� Brennan said.
鈥淚 guess I鈥檒l just wait to see when it hits Cheesecake Factory. Then you know it鈥檚 everywhere.”
