Within the next week or so, a new Pan-Asian restaurant — Tomukun Noodle Bar — will be opening on East Liberty Street.
Tomukun will feature traditional, Pan-Asian dishes with primarily soup-based noodles, co-owner Tom Yon said, adding that he believes Tomukun will be unique to Ann Arbor.
“We want to create a nice dining atmosphere with great food at an affordable price,” Yon explained.
Yon said he wants to try to create an affordable dining experience with dishes averaging in price from seven to 12 dollars.
Yon said he co-owns the restaurant with Victor Kim and Noerung Hang, who will be the restaurant’s head chef.
Yon said he believes Tomukun’s Japanese ramen dish, which contains of a pork-based broth that is slow cooked for several hours, will likely be the most popular menu item.
He added that the restaurant will serve traditional yet popular dishes.
“Anyone that is familiar with Asian food will be familiar with our food,” Yon said.
In the fall, Tomukun will be a late-night bar in addition to a restaurant, according to Yon.
The restaurant has received approval from the city and the state for a liquor license, which will go into effect over the summer, Yon said. Once it receives the license, Tomukun plans to serve Korean, Japanese, and Chinese beers, as well as Soju-Korean rice wine and Saki.
“We will shut down the dinner menu at 10 and then offer an appetizer menu so bar goers can have appetizers with their drinks,” Yon said.
Located on East Liberty Street near State Street, the restaurant will be part of a revitalization of the area, Yon said.
“We love the location,” Yon said. “It seems like Ann Arbor is trying to revive (East) Liberty (Street).”
Additionally, the owners said they believe Ann Arbor is a great place for a noodle bar, a concept which they said is popular across the country.
“We modeled Tomukun off of the popular noodle bars in larger cities around the country,” Yon said.
Yon, Hang and Kim said they hope for a clientele of students, locals and visitors, having already hired a staff of students and Ann Arbor residents.
All three owners have experience in the restaurant industry. Yon managed Asian restaurant Yotsuba on Washtenaw Avenue for three years. Hang’s family owns several Pan-Asian restaurants throughout southeast Michigan and has worked with Kim in other restaurants around the area.
When Tomukun opens, it will serve food from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays, and 12 p.m. to 10 p.m. on weekends. It will initially be closed on Mondays, but Yon says this is only temporary.
LSA sophomore Devyani Upadhyaya said she wasn’t sure if she would go to the restaurant.
“It sounds too similar to the other restaurants on campus, like Noodles and Company or Sadako,” she said. “I might try the bar when I turn 21 though.”
But LSA junior Spencer Smith said he will definitely try the food when Tomukun opens.
“It sounds like something that I’d be interested in,” Smith said. “It will be nice to have a restaurant with Asian cuisine right here in town where I can sit down and have a nice meal without eating a lot.”