Hold on to your bao, Kaiju is opening next month

The much anticipated Kaiju Bowl and Bao made its first appearance slinging ramen at last month’s Thrive NC food festival. Now it has an opening date.

Kaiju will open for lunch Friday, July 6 and Saturday July 7 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and then close to regroup on Sunday. Ken Yowell, owner of Oak City Meatball Shoppe and the temporary closed Calavera Empanadas, is opening Kaiju, focusing mainly on bao, the pillowy steamed buns, and a rotating roster of Asian noodle bowls.

The restaurant made the announcement on its Instagram account Tuesday afternoon. Kaiju will have a bar with high top yellow chairs and a dining room with a large graffiti mural.

Yowell first announced the restaurant last summer, saying it would move into the former Dickey’s Barbecue space on Davie Street, a few doors down from his other restaurants. Yowell is also in the midst of reopening Calavera in the former Tasty 8’s Gourmet Hot Dog space on Fayetteville Street. Calavera closed on Davie Street in February, but a deal was struck in April to move into Tasty 8’s, with plans to reopen sometime this year.

This story was originally published June 19, 2018 at 6:44 PM with the headline "Hold on to your bao, Kaiju is opening next month."