Located in the sleek Hudson condo building on Fayetteville Street in Downtown Raleigh is a new Japanese restaurant with a vibrant interior and tasty sushi. Sono opened last week, a bit under the radar, and is slowly gathering customers through word of mouth. Unlike its neighbor Yancy’s, Sono takes up very little facade real estate and is a bit more stylish and contemporary than The Mint located one block North. A nice amount of attention was paid in the development of Sono, from the restaurant’s food to its interior design. These two elements, in parallel consideration, are why Sono excels in a big city way.
From the outside, it is obvious that Sono aims to impress. At night, the space glows and customers can be seen sitting at the bar and the cocktail tables adjacent to the front windows. The space, designed by local architect Bret Page, who was also in charge of Yancy’s interior, is quite slick. In Japan, the color red has various meanings and symbolism, including fertility, wealth, and the thwarting of illness and demons. From the bar to the walls, the color red blazes throughout the interior of the restaurant. The arrangement of the bar at the front and tables in the back create a very intimate feeling in the rear and extremely urban atmosphere along the sidewalk’s edge. Page uses other traditional Japanese symbols including bamboo within the design of the interior. An ecoresin material, which I’ll simply refer to as 3form, is used below the bar and in various screening applications. An expensive product, but very beautiful, it has bamboo threads cast into it and is back lit, red under the bar and in other cases, brightly with fluorescents. Unknowingly to Page I’m sure, the same bamboo version of 3form was used in a model unit of the Hudson upstairs.
One of the few disappointments in Sono, is the over lit bathroom. The restaurant is very low lighting but when you step into the bathroom it is a optical shock. Although the fixtures and design of the bathroom is very minimal, the lighting needs to be less dramatic and more subtle like the rest of the restaurant. Also, the televisions above the front bar and the sushi bar could either be left out or project interesting, and possibly artistic, material. Maybe something like Japanese anime or hire local artists to make abstract films for the screens. Instead there is either CNN or ESPN blaring on them. Somehow, I would rather some ambiance or even the Japanese show Most Extreme Challenge with my sushi and dimly lit dinner than Anderson Cooper or Most Damn Shocking Moments in Sports History. Why the continual obsession in every bar/restaurant that opens in town? Maybe there should be a recall on televisions too. The furniture choice, on the other hand, fits the atmosphere, as does the massive print of a Japanese female sprawled across one wall, losing one shoe in the process.
(Note: As a result of this article, we have been informed by Sono ownership that the bathroom lighting has been addressed.)
The sushi selection ranges from your simple rolls to Tuna Ecstasy and the Screaming “O”. Prices follow suit. Entrées include various steak, chicken and fish options and come with steamed rice and a couple of side choices. The traditional Japanese soups are available as are a large selection of small plates (appetizers), cold or hot. The lunch Bentos look to be a good deal, although they do start at $10, as do some of the sandwiches which are a Japanese twist on standards such as a burger and phili (sic) cheese steak. I tried a couple of rolls while I was there on Monday, including the Salmon & Avacado, the Spicy Tuna Crunch, and the Spider Roll. While all three were very fresh and a good amount of food, the Spicy Tuna Crunch had the most layers of taste and texture. Prices of these rolls ranged from $4.50 - $6.50 which is similar pricing as Wild Ginger and Sushi Blues, the two closest sushi venues. The quality of Sono was quite better and the atmosphere exceeds the previously mentioned restaurants twofold. It is about as progressive, without being over indulgent, as any interior to hit Downtown Raleigh in the past couple of years.
Beers on tap include Guinness, Blue Moon and Miller Lite. Soon, Sapporo will be offered as a cultural puzzle piece. As well, Sono has a nice selection of Martinis and specialty drinks, including the aptly titled Sono, which includes Finlandia mango, triple sec, cranberry juice, and pineapple juice. My buddy Sam described it as “tasty albeit femme, but overall a good one to get you going.” In Japanese, Sono means “garden” and when combined with niwa, it literally means “pure place” or “pure garden”. Sono Raleigh isn’t exactly pure, but it succeeds in being slick and atmospheric, which I will only assume was their intention in the title or maybe it is simply a place “to get you going.” The peaceful rock garden before some Friday night rock n roll. Calm before the storm.
Lunch:
Mon-Fri 11am-2pm
Dinner:
Sun-Thurs 5pm-10pm
Fri-Sat 5pm-11pm
Some anime might be fun here though…