Eat Street Buddha Kitchen & Lounge

Glad we used the groupon while there was still time!
The place was deserted at 5:30 on a Thursday and they had retro slow jams blaring. We ordered a few entrees because we could not get the happy hour prices with our groupon and they were alright. It was definitely nothing to write home about, but an ok meal. Our server was great and with the lack of crowds we could be as loud as we wanted to (not gonna lie, that was a perk! Especially while rocking out to 90’s Brian McKnight).

You suddenly closed down yesterday,
I hope your employees get their pay.
It was nice that you kept the cream cheese puffs left over from Azia,
but you probably would have done better slinging pizza.
Your curry was fine that I ate,
but why the rectangular plate?
The space never seemed quite right ever with floors of terrazzo a ceiling of tin,
but the name, oy vey, that’s what really did you in.

Remember Azia? This place does not even come close.
Dined there for the first time a couple of days ago. I made the mistake of ordering appetizers. (A good gauge of restaurant quality is appetizers.) I have never been to a place where EVERY appetizer sucked, but alas, these did. You could feel the vacuum down Nicollet.
They obviously don’t make their own appetizers there. Deep-​fried, reheated wonders straight from Costco’s frozen aisle. Oh, and deejay blaring douche music in an *(almost) empty restaurant matched the food.
Fortunately, our server was great. Which is why I gave this two stars instead of one.

Why? Oh… why is there no contact after a menu drop off? No ice water. No server eye contact amongst the 3 in the section we’re seated at. Walking immediately by us multiple times. Unbelievable to be invisible… my friend and I.
Not a slammed, double sat server. Slow late supper time 8pm.
Perplexed…
Will be asking Groupon for my first refund… ever.

Overly salty… for most entrees.
I really want to like this place and have tried it a couple of times. Singapore noodles with beef is delicious. Unfortunately, everything else is on the salty side.

Eat Street Buddah Lounge positions itself between East Street Social and Icehouse which perhaps is the fancier side of Eat Street, but I don’t think this place fits the mold and shouldn’t be reviewed as such. Eat Street Buddha Lounge is first and foremost a bar, and frankly the bar set up is pretty cool. It’s the center of the room and it’s huge. You must be able to sit at least 30 people right up there. The ambiance is definitely Asian influenced, but it’s not over the top like Amazing Thailand. I thought it was a pretty cool vibe for dinner and I can only imagine it gets better with their DJs which apparently are Thursday through Saturday every week.
My boyfriend and I started with some specialty cocktails (because we had the groupon) and thought they were very tasty but not necessarily overly strong. I had the Bluesy Basil Rita which was basically a subtly flavored blueberry margarita on the rocks, thankfully without lots of sweet and sour and a sprig of fresh basil. I’m really not foodie enough to appreciate all the flavors that come in presentation finishes, but I totally got this one! There’s no basil in the drink, but every time you take a sip you get a big whiff of the basil and honestly it’s a pretty cool combo. My boyfriend got the BlackBerry Collins which was manly enough as a fruit drink because it wasn’t pink, but the glass was so skinny and filled with ice it felt a little skimpy for ten bucks.
For dinner we split the Red Dragon and the Braised Beef coconut curry. I loved the Dragon Roll, but I know nothing about sushi, so maybe this is the perfect option for a casual sushi fan or first timer. It was filled with tempura shrimp, avocado, crunchy onion and topped with spicy tuna and a delicious sauce which I assume was mayo based. Yum. Our server was kind enough to split our entrée for us and one roll and one split entrée was enough to fill both of us up easily. The braised beef was obviously tender, but the curry was almost sweet with the coconut milk. It was a nice blend of soft and crunchy textures, the noodles and beef vs the onions and edamame. I really enjoyed this entrée as well.
Overall we had a nice time. The service was definitely on the slow side and the window we were seated next to was pretty dirty, but again, it’s a bar. I would come back to try more cocktails if we were in the area.

I was very disappointed with my visit to ESBKL. The first negative was that it was very cold inside the restaurant. It was an unseasonably cold evening in May, and the heat was definitely not on inside.
Another red flag was that it felt like there were more people working here than there were eating. After being seated (right in the traffic going in and out of the kitchen), we asked for an appetizer recommendation between the Tuna Guacamole and the Cranberry Wontons. The waitress lead us toward the wontons as she described the guacamole as «interesting…» This appetizer was mediocre at best. It was sweet, but lacked spice or something to make it more complex in flavor.
We ordered the General Tso’s Chicken and Beef Short Rib Curry. Both were extremely disappointing. The chicken dish came out lukewarm with very few vegetables. There was a sugar sauce that the chicken was set upon — not mixed in. Also, there was none of the «szechuan pepper» flavor that was in the item description in the dish whatsoever. The only flavor I got was sugar. The short rib curry also had a sugary flavor. The sugar overpowered the flavors like cinnamon and clove, which are strong flavors, so it is easy to see just how much sugar was in this dish. Both items were of very pour quality and were priced at $ 16 and $ 18 each. Plus, my stomach hurt for hours after eating here — much like the gut rot feeling one gets after having a couple of malt liquor beverages.
I am giving this restaurant two stars because the waitress was a really nice person and steered me away from items that could have been even worse than the pour food I had. My recommendation to this business is to quit livening up your dishes with sugar and use spice instead.
Bottom line, skip this place and order Chinese delivery instead. You will be happy you did.

ESBKL has a very confused identity. There’s a huge bar, seating on the side, and dance floor in the back. Unfortunately, ESBKL can not pull it off.
Went in for dinner. Got seated with direct view of the kitchen door, with staff going in and out. Strange since there were so many other open tables. Looked through the menu and immediately decided to steer away from sushi. When Yellowfish and Shrimp Tempura are the only fish options, you know that the restaurant is not turning over the fish quickly enough to keep it fresh.
Asked the waitress recommendation for an appetizer. She steered us away from the ‘sushi grade’ salmon guacamole, as it was not spicy like you would expect. Hmmm… Ended up getting the cranberry wontons. Came out cold, not much flavor other than sweetness.
Ordered some items from the wok for entrees. Short rib curry and general tso’s chicken. Expected it to be upscale fusion, what we got was cheap dirty Chinese restaurant. The quality of the meal, and I mean this with the highest level of sincerity, was lower than Leeann Chin. Both dishes had way too much sweetness, and no other flavor. Absolutely no spice, vegetables were scarce, and the meat was unseasoned. The general tso’s chicken was overbreaded, fried and they dumped a sauce over it. Remember… these dishes were $ 18 and $ 16 each…
I have literally paid $ 20 for better Asian food to be delivered to my door than what I received on a $ 60 tab.
Atmosphere was fine. The dining area was subpar, and staff were walking through left and right. Waitress was nice. Surprised how slow service was given there were as many employees as customers.

I really wanted to like this place but expectations were not met. Sigh… Here I go.
Andrew and I had plans to meet another couple at 6:30pm Friday night. We were early and went to grab a drink at Eat Street Social next door. The bar was set high at Eat Street. Friendly bartenders and the manager was hilarious. Drinks were made just right! After wrapping up, we walked to Buddha Lounge. From the outside it appeared to be lively but as we walked inside, it was surprisingly not crowed at all. After being greeted by the hosts, we sat down at a booth next to the window. Most guests were seated next to the window. This explains why I thought it was so lively. The rest of the place was empty. They had a significant amount of empty tables. I looked at the menu and found everything to be asian. That’s expected though. After struggling a bit with a drink choice, the waitress recommended the lychee cocktail. It came out as a martini. I don’t like martini’s. I didnt want it to go to waste so i sipped on it for two hours.
i ordered the pad thai and my husband ordered the halibut that comes with noodles. i specifically told them no peanuts and no sprouts. when the food came out, it had peanuts… the manager came by and asked if i am allergic, i said no, i just dont like the taste… they took my food away and came back a min later with it… they litterally scooped the peanuts out. i was not surprised but i didnt complain… just very disappointed. my husband’s dish was not worth 25 bucks. it tasted poorly cooked and lacking of asian flavors. our waiter was not impressive either. she spilled beer and said, its only a little bit… she also spilled water on me… she didnt know how to explain the menu when asked simple questions as to how things were prepared.
i wont completely give up on this place… maybe i’ll try it for happy hour… maybe

I visited ESBKL (quite the acronym, huh?) with a friend due to the enticing Groupon deal — and I am glad I did! One of the few keys to my heart: sushi.
Although the Groupon was somewhat restrictive, we still went crazy on their menu:
— Edamame: obviously
— Land & Sea Spring Rolls: really yummy, especially with the peanut sauce
— Dynamite Roll: one of my go-​to classic rolls — done well here
— Spider Roll: another classic roll done well
— The Red Dragon roll: my favorite roll that we ordered
— Crispy Stir Fried Tofu: normally I love curry, but for some reason I just wasn’t a fan of this dish
Our server was quick — side note — it was a Sunday evening, the style is lounge-​y (hey, they try!), and the food was tasty. Check them out and good luck saying their name 5 times fast.

The happy hour menu here is ridiculous! I’ve been here about three different times and pretty much have covered most of the happy hour menu. Happy hour for drinks start at 9:30p and happy hour food starts at 10pm. The Thai curry mussels are delicious! Lettuce wraps are my favorite; I would definitely recommend the wraps! The spiced chicken wings I wasn’t too crazy about. The hand wrapped won tons were really good I would recommend trying those also. I’m not a huge fan of spring rolls but we ordered the land and sea spring rolls and they were actually pretty good. The sauce may have had a lot to do with it, sauce is boss. They have a dish called «chill plate» basically an assortment of seafood; shrimp, oysters, crab claws and lobster claws. Delicious! The shrimp are not your average shrimp they are the size of your palm, no joke!
There are live DJ’s on Thursday nights which makes the atmosphere a lot of fun. I would encourage you to stop in on a Thursday night and try some of their endless choices on their happy hour menu! They do have a full dinner/​sushi menu also but we usually gravitate towards the happy hour menu. Lots to choose from and great prices.

Seems like most people are drawn here hoping to find Azia Part 2. That’s the only reason I came, too. I was hugely disappointed.
The service itself was friendly, but took FOREVER. There were only a handful of other tables and what appeared to be a lot of servers, but it was slooooow.
The space already seemed dated and drab and it was freezing. I had to eat with my long down coat on.
And the food was really very horrible with one exception: the seaweed salad was good. But everything else was terribly off. My friend and I had planned on losing the weight we gained over the holidays with the food poisoning we were sure we were going to get, but alas, they failed us even there.

Yes, ESBKL (marketing team fail) seems desperate to impress and portray a sexy lounge vibe. It’s clearly not a winning strategy for a handful of Unilocalers. But, it worked on me. A fun enough Friday night at the bar with two girl friends, some Asian bites, and a jazzed up mojito.
Initially, we were seated in the dining room past the bar. Quite spacious and also quite empty. Isolated was not the way we intended to kick off our weekend. We promptly relocated to the bar.
The bar crowd was sparse enough that we easily found three adjacent openings, but still generated an energetic, social buzz. The bartenders were friendly and eager to serve us, especially the one that was blatantly enamored with my friends (to the extent he wouldn’t even make eye contact with me… not indicative of stellar/​professional service, but I’ll let it slide!).
I left the sushi-​ordering up to my friends. Whatever roll we were served was not bad at all, with a Sriracha-​induced kick to it. I also ordered super tasty and densely packed (with quality ingredients) spring rolls (the non-​veggie version with chicken), just $ 8 and plenty to satiate my hunger.
The highlight of my experience: Enter the Dragon. A fruity, refreshing mojito made with muddled strawberries and dragonberry (a fictitious berry schemed up by Bacardi), which tasted a bit like bubblegum (ew, I know, sounds terrible, but it’s not). Flawlessly made! (The online menu lists this drink at $ 10, but I really thought it was a bit more. Maybe not.)
The service was very good in the bar area! The food and drinks were prepared and delivered quickly. And, best of all, the bartenders were perfectly content splitting items 3 ways, without even the most subtle displays of irritation that such a request often conjures.
Buddha Kitchen has not attained the level of hipness it seems to desire, nor will it ever with a name like that. But, it’s cool enough for me. Tasty bites, a wicked good cocktail menu, and quick, friendly service.

My friends and I haven’t had much luck when it comes to our pre-​No Coast brunches lately. Last year it was World Street Kitchen, this year another mediocre meal was had at Eat Street Buddha (maybe it’s just restaurants with Street in the name). Admittedly, we were all pretty excited to try this place out after seeing the space sit vacant for a while but this excitement soon turned to regret after actually eating here.
The restaurant itself wasn’t terribly busy for a Saturday morning but service was still relatively slow. One of my friends ordered their chicken lettuce wraps which tasted funny and were covered in a weird mayo sauce. I ordered the short rib benedict with a side of curry hash and have to say that I wasn’t impressed with it. The short rib was dry, the benedict sauce was sparse and curry hash (which I thought would have a light curry seasoning) was caked in curry powder… and also gave my indigestion.
Growing up watching the G.I. Joe cartoons they used to end the show with a sappy message about how «knowing was half the battle.» Well now I know the next time I’m on eat street to pass this place up and head for better options.

I miss Azia*. Eat Street Buddha Kitchen & Lounge isn’t Azia, but it’ll do every once in a while.
I should start out by saying that I don’t eat seafood (or fish) so the majority of the menu is lost on me. But, I really enjoyed sitting at the bar, which doubles as a sushi bar, watching the chefs make rolls and the bartenders mix drinks.
The service here sucks. I’ll just put that out there. Others have mentioned it, and they’re right. I had more interactions with the staff here asking the sushi chef questions about shucking oysters than I did with our server who was there to help us order.
I had the lettuce wraps for my meal, and even though it was a fall-​apart, soupy hot mess, it tasted pretty good! I was just happy that I was in good company and could eat this messy dish without worry. I also had the fried rice which sadly was classified as «old rice and a bunch of stuff thrown together» kinda meal. Ya know, the one you make with all of your leftovers in the kitchen.
OH OH OH, I forgot to mention the drink I had. «Fashioned in Fig» (bulleit bourbon/​angostura bitters/​muddled california mission figs/​house cherry maple gastrique/​splash of soda)
The bartender originally poured my drink and then said he could smell that it was missing something (whut?) and added a splash of orange juice (which is NOT in the drink ingredients) and then repoured it into a glass without ice. Whatever. It tasted good. More places should make drinks with figs in them. I’m a fan of that.
ESBKL is a sexy, sexy place, though. The red lighting and dark interior would make it a great place for a first date.
*For the record, I also miss Tom Pham’s Wondrous Azian Kitchen. A lot. But I think I’m the only one. Oh well, haters gonna hate.

I only recently heard about this place after one of my buddies suggested we go here.
The space is pretty big with lots of seating at the bar, booths, some tables and a private room in the back for private/​large parties.
I found the menu overwhelming as there were just too many options. For dinner I finally decided to go with the general tso chicken which was good. The pieces of chicken were thinly cut, breaded, fried, coated in a sweet sauce and served with onions and pineapples. The dish could have used a little spice and more chicken. For just over two bucks more I upgraded to the fried rice which was actually really good. It was only about 1cup of rice (I like fried rice and could have used some more) and wasn’t greasy, overly seasoned or anything like that. Just rice, some veggies and a bit of soy sauce. It was a light dish which is uncommon for rice.
To drink, I went with the Hello Kitty which was good. It wasn’t too sweet, but it was a bit strong which surprised me. I’m not a light weight (when it comes to drinking), but this one took me over the edge. Perhaps if I had had more rice and chicken in my meal it wouldn’t have been an issue.
Anyway, I thought this place was okay and my dinner companions enjoyed their meals as well so overall it was a good experience. If you plan on going, check out the menu beforehand or check out the pics posted on Unilocal if you have time.

After much hype I had to come and check out this place. It did remind me a lot of Azia, which i miss so much. The three of us should a variety of sushi rolls and also some pad Thai like rice dish. I enjoyed the Buddha roll it was amazing. Although I did ask for a side of ell sauce and she remembered right as I was finishing my last roll. oh well too late. Whatever you do do not get the hello Kitty drink it’s overpriced and not good at all, as I now know now from other reviews on Unilocal,about that drink. Hope the restaurant reads that the drink sucks and takes it off the menu. The menu has a lot on it and it was difficult to decide what to order. I would definitely go back this place seems great for groups and there was a surprise birthday party going on in the back which looked a fun idea to remember if I ever need to plan anything.

It’s difficult for any business to replace the former Caterpillar Lounge and Azia that were essentially institutions on Eat Street. I occasionally have flashbacks of the amazing food (oyster wings anybody?), the kick-​ass parties with bellowing house and hip-​hop music, the sexy red lighting, and TVs on the wall playing old school kung-​fu flicks. Not to mention, this is the place where I met my girlfriend (who I’m still dating). Haha. When these places closed down, it was so hard to let go!
But after a while, fans, including myself, couldn’t deal with the huge void and on-​and-​off– again rumors that Tom Pham would resurrect the Caterpillar Lounge and Azia. That’s why the opening of Eat Street Buddha Kitchen & Lounge was a huge freakin’ deal for folks in the area. It’s like dating for someone for three years, breaking up, and then FINALLY getting back in the dating game. It’s risky and scary, but also exciting!
I went there with my lady on a weeknight to try it out. I was digging the intimate red ambiance and Chinese décor. I ordered the Dark and Spicy, which consisted of kraken spiced rum, lemon, and ginger brew. I love ginger, and the Dark and Spicy did it for me. We both ate the Chocolate Lava Cake. It wasn’t the best –a bit heavy on the flour-​, but it wasn’t terrible either.
All-​in-​all, I had a good time! I’ll have to return a couple more trips here to review the food.

I’ve had better way sushi from grocery store deli cases. Seriously, this place was so terrible, it exhausts me to write this review. I’m puzzled by the glowing reviews people have given this place – are y’all getting paid to write good stuff or what?!
I was a huge fan of Azia and the Caterpillar Lounge back in the day, so when I heard this spot was going to be reopening as another Asian fusion restaurant featuring late-​night DJs (like Caterpillar did), I was stoked. Sometimes a gal likes to have some cocktails & sushi and sway awkwardly to lounge-​y house music without schlepping all the way downtown, ya know? So my hopes were high!
We went on a Friday night for late-​night happy hour. First impression of the interior was «this looks like a cheap Chinese-​American restaurant.» Complete with bottles of Kikkoman soy sauce on the table (whut!!!). Azia was SO beautiful and had a really special, exotic feel to it, and the way they redid the layout of this place is whack. Also, it was 11:30, and there were only about 15 other patrons there. By the time we left around 1, it was empty except for the staff, the DJ (who was excellent, btw) and his two friends. Not a good sign!
Our server was unfamiliar with the menu and couldn’t tell us anything about the sushi rolls, and also didn’t know what kind of whiskey & bourbon they carried. We were not brought waters. Also, he gave me a dirty plate. We ordered the spicy tuna, Philly, and rainbow roll, and I ordered the Hello Kitty cocktail because it sounded adorably delicious. It was not and I sent it back, because seeing as how there are no actual DRINK specials during Friday night happy hour (Edina, is that you???), I wasn’t about to pay $ 11 for a crappy cocktail.
Our sushi rolls came out, and they were THE WORST. The rice was hard, sticky, and cold, and the fish was poor quality – imitation crab with mayo in the rainbow roll, ick. The rolls were cut very inconsistently, so some pieces were huge & some were tiny. A huge disappointment since I had been craving sushi for a long time, and this was supposed to be a special treat for us.
Prediction: closed by Spring. We walked by around 6:45 last night (Tuesday) and saw there were only 2 occupied tables. Not going to cut it in an area like that where I’m sure rents are astronomical.

Eat Street Buddha You Know It’s True
I’m in love with you, Buddha, ’cause you’re on my mind, you’re the one I think… Yes, Milli Vanilli was my inspiration for writing my next food blog. Come on, you know you’re singing it right now in you head and hating that it’s going to be in your head for the rest of the day. It is true though, there’s a new restaurant in town that I fell in love with. My loooooove is for Eat Street Buddha Kitchen & Lounge located on Nicollet Ave in the Whittier neighborhood of Minneapolis right on the the corner of 26^th street.
You’ll get your chance to fall in love with this awesome new restaurant starting September 30^th, 2013 when the Buddha officially opens its doors for the first time. So how did I get a chance to experience what the Buddha has to offer before the rest of you? My wife was their photographer throughout the entire process and we were invited to one of their VIP soft opening events and we got to bring 2 guests with us as well, which were my parents. Every picture that Eat Street Buddha will be using comes from the photographic eye of my wife with Honeybee Photography. Okay, back to the food! :)
We started our night with a few drinks while we waited for our table to be ready and every plate that passed by looked absolutely amazing. I started to get even more excited to try the food that I was seeing in all the pictures my wife kept showing me. All the important people (Owner, G.M. Sushi Chef, Director of Operations and Regional Director) continued to walk by and say hi to us (mainly my wife). We decided to ask what dishes they thought we should try, with a plan that each of us would order a different meal so we could try four different dishes. Here they are!
There’s an app for that! No, not your smart phone, your hungry belly! We ordered a sushi roll called the Red Dragon and the Land & Sea Spring Rolls. The Red Dragon Roll was easily one of the best specialty sushi rolls I’ve ever had. Shrimp Tempura, Spicy Crab, Avocado on the inside with Lemon Slices, Spicy Tuna and Sweet & Spicy Sauce on the outside. If you like sushi — this is a must! I’m not a fan of spring rolls, but Buddha’s Land & Sea, well, lets just say, there was nothing left on my plate! Crispy Sweet Key West Shrimp, Glazed Chicken, Fresh Herbs, Mint, Napa Cabbage and a Tangy Peanut Sauce all wrapped in a non deep fried version — WOW! My wife would also suggest the Orange Crush Roll — it’s «Amaze balls!» as she puts it. :)
We’ll just go around the table and start with my wife’s meal. She ordered the Pepper Crusted Big Eye. Sliced Rare Tuna, around Wasabi infused Potato Purée and fresh Blueberry Ponzu Sauce. I’ve seen and tried seared tuna at the chain restaurants a number of times, but they come NO WHERE NEAR the quality that you’ll get from Eat Street Buddha. The fusion of flavors alone will make your taste buds very happy! I’m not a wasabi guy, but once my wife said she was full, the potato’s didn’t last long on her plate.
This is going to sound crazy coming from a Minnesota raised guy brought up on pan fish most of his life, but my favorite fish was available on the menu and I of course went with it. Miso Glazed Halibut! Fresh Alaskan Halibut, Caramelized Miso Glaze, Warm Orange Glazed Noodles and Grilled Asparagus. You can keep the Asparagus, but the Halibut and noodles… Ooh, ooh, ooh, I love you! The Operations Director asked me for my honest opening about my meal and I told him that I would personally add a little more Miso and Orange Glaze to the dish, but it was outstanding to say the least. The Halibut was cooked perfectly and the noodles were not over or under cooked — they were perfect! It’s a must try if you plan to visit the Buddha. I almost forgot the best part. They brought a second Halibut out by mistake and instead of bringing it back, they let me have it — I couldn’t say no!
Lets move on to my parents meals. I unfortunately wasn’t able to get a photo of them and they weren’t dishes that my wife took photos of during any of their shoots as well. They were however absolutely amazing like the previous two and the first was my mom’s, Spicy Pork Chow Fun. Wide Rice Noodles with House Ground Spicy Pork, Pickled Carrots, Scallions, Spring Peas, Cilantro and Wok Fired Glaze. Yet another meal that was topping the «Best I’ve Ever Had» list. This dish was not too spicy nor was it lacking a spicy kick either. If the Eat Street Buddha Lounge & Kitchen is going for a fusion of flavors, they nailed it with this one!
We finish with my dads meal and it’s certainly not least, Shellfish Curry. Diver Scallops, Jumbo Prawns, Mussels, Lobster, Baby Bok Choy, Shiitake Mushrooms all sitting in a Panang Coconut Curry Sauce. Most foodies would probably start with all the great seafood in that dish I just described. I’m a little different and anyone who knows me knows loving seafood is a given! Panang Coconut Curry Sauce is one of my favorite ingredients for a meal of this nature and I even looke