FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM NOVEMBER 30, 2017 • HOLIDAY • THE QUEENS COURIER 61
dining out
Photos courtesy of Sapps Restaurant
Sapps Restaurant will open in Long Island City on Nov. 28.
New Japanese restaurant in
Long Island City will serve sushi
pizza, teriyaki dishes and more
BY ANGELA MATUA
amatua@qns.com / @angelamatua
Shih Lee, the owner of popular waterfront
eatery Shi in Long Island City, is
adding to his restaurant repertoire with
a Japanese restaurant set to open on Nov.
28.
Lee, who also owns Mexican restaurant
Skinny’s Cantina in Long Island City, will
open Sapps Restaurant at 27-26 Jackson
Avenue. Eric Lehrer, the beverage director
for Sapps Restaurant, said Lee wanted
to recreate the experience he got at a
Japanese restaurant he used to frequent
called Sapporo East in Manhattan, which
is now closed.
Th e new space, which used to be a factory,
is 2,000 square feet and includes
a mezzanine for private parties. It also
includes a mural by Colombian-American
artist Andrés García-Peña. Lehrer said
the owners wanted to pay homage to
the neighborhood’s industrial and artistic
history – the 5Pointz grafi tti mecca was
located near the restaurant – while adding
a modern twist.
Sapps Restaurant will off er more traditional
Japanese dishes such as specialty
sushi rolls and teriyaki dishes but will
serve Asian fusion dishes like sushi pizza.
Chef Mitsuri Kita will be handling the
menu. Kita is originally from Osaka and
came to the United States when he was
23 to become a chef. He has worked in a
number of high-end Japanese restaurants
and is also a restaurant consultant.
Lehrer said that he and Lee are excited
to open a location on Jackson Avenue,
especially because the area has seen more
development in recent years. Lehrer has
been the bartender and manager of Shi
since it fi rst opened nine years ago and
said the owners and staff have established
many relationships with Long Island City
residents.
“As a business owner, you would like
to get in on the ground level. Prices and
rents are only going to go up in Long
Island City,” he said. “From an operations
standpoint we’re just happy that we have
the opportunity to be a part of the community.
It actually is a community where
you see a lot of the same people who all
live around and you become very close.”
Th e restaurant will be open and serving
a limited menu until its offi cial opening
on Tuesday, Nov. 28. For more information
or to make a reservation, visit sappslic.
com.