Japanese cuisine and Chicago-style deli food may seem like an odd juxtaposition, but Carson City resident Tony Pastini believes he has a winning combination.
"It's about variety," he said. "You may want sushi, and your wife may want something else, and there's something for the kids, too. It's a dual restaurant, half American, half Japanese."
Although the new Kim Lee's Sushi & Carson Valley Cafe, in the Scolari's shopping center in Gardnerville, may seem quirky at first glance, Pastini is not a man to be underestimated. Since 1988, he has owned and operated more than 10 dining establishments in Northern Nevada, including three Japanese restaurants, six Chicago-style delis, and a pizzeria. He has sold all but two of those restaurants, Kim Lee's Japanese Restaurant & Sushi Bar in Carson City, at the intersection of Telegraph and Carson streets, and his new location in Gardnerville, which he owns with Japanese chef Roger Golondrina.
Pastini is originally from Chicago, where his father was a professional baker and his mother an executive chef.
"I grew up in the business," he said.
It doesn't hurt that he's also a National Restaurant Association food safety instructor and a registered food safety instructor for the Washoe County Health District.
"You're not going to get sick in my restaurant," he said.
Inside the kitchen, Pastini opened an oversized freezer filled with a variety of frozen meats from Chicago.
"It's all Vienna meat," he said. "They've been around for a hundred years. We buy top sirloin roasts, 95 percent fat free, and grind them down into our hamburgers. And the fish " we buy our fish whole and cure and package them ourselves."
Pastini said a true Chicago-style eatery uses food products produced in Chicago, whether Vienna beef, pastramis and hot dogs, Chipico pickles, or crisp 6-inch rolls from Chicago's Gonnella Baking Co., all in Pastini's new restaurant.
"We only use quality brand names," he said.
The same goes for the Japanese cuisine.
"We're not just a sushi bar, but a full-line Japanese restaurant," Pastini said. "A lot of Japanese restaurants are very Americanized. We've kept ours Japanese. Every product comes straight from Japan."
The restaurant offers everything from specialty rolls, such as the Wayne Roll (crystal shrimp, cooked scallops, special sauce and tobiko), to traditional Japanese fat noodle soup, known as udon.
"We don't buy our sauces; we make them from scratch," Pastini said, pointing to a pot of simmering teriyaki. "Our own teriyaki, tempura sauces and batters are all made here from Japanese recipes."
Pastini also imports a wide selection of sake.
"Right now, we have about 12 different kinds," he said. "We're also getting some really unique wines, about 50 different types."
Pastini stressed that his restaurant is not a fast food restaurant.
"It's a place to relax, but not a place to get your food in five minutes," he said. "The food's not touched until you order it."
He said business has already been booming.
"Friday nights are insanity here," he said. "People always spend money on comfort. They'll give up luxuries, but not comfort meals. They'll always go to that local restaurant that has a price range they couldn't match in their own homes if they tried."
Kim Lee's is located at 1329 Highway 395, suite 2. Business hours are 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday. For more information, call 782-3400.
