EastWest Kitchen and Bar ‘a creature of its own’

Upon entry into EastWest Kitchen and Bar, a giant, brightly-colored tiger and dragon mural stares back at restaurant-goers. It welcomes them into a place with a warm atmosphere, Chinese lanterns, exposed brick and a set up of intimate tables and booths, each featuring red candles and sparkling glassware.

Colby Conklin, owner and operator of EastWest Kitchen and Bar along Second Avenue North, said that even though most people refer to his restaurant as “Asian-fusion,” a more accurate description would be Western-styled and Asian-inspired. They serve food that dips frequently into both worlds. 

When he opened the restaurant, he wanted to take the quality food served at Asian food favorites around town and add his own touch of ambiance, signature cocktails and a more manageable, one-page menu.

“EastWest is totally its own creature and its own concept,” he said, with inspiration from the renowned Momofuku’s, a personal favorite eatery of his in New York. The bao buns are particularly inspired from that restaurant, he added, and are a popular concept at EastWest, served with his own three specially-created menu items: soft shell crab, made with chili aioli and jalapeno sweet onion slaw; smoked pork belly, with homemade house sauce, cucumbers and scallions; and short rib, served with ginger scallion relish.

EastWest Kitchen and Bar originally opened up in June 2017, and Conklin said since then, they’ve kept their menu largely the same due to its popularity. 

As soon as it opened, it was well-received by Birmingham locals because of previous pop-ups they had done around town to get people in the know about it. Conklin, EastWest chef Joey Mitchell and much of the staff came from the restaurant group in Tuscaloosa who owned FIVE and Chuck’s Fish, where Conklin said he worked in partnerships for about 10 years.

“I loved the situation I was in, but in really moving forward, I knew I wanted my own restaurant after just being involved in partnerships. ... [Chef] Joey also gave me a lot of inspiration. He’s hardworking and an incredibly talented chef. In my opinion, he deserved his own restaurant, and I wanted to give him ownership,” Conklin said. 

The menu is made up of four classic rice bowls and a variety of small plates, which Conklin said contains their most popular menu items — Chinese Duck Nachos, made with wontons, kimchi queso, cilantro, onions and jalapeno, in addition to the Korean Fried Cauliflower, cooked in tempura batter, garlic-ginger sauce and scallions — and then the staples, from their signature Mongolian ribeye to seared salmon to seafood like garlic shrimp or crab cakes. 

Some of the favorites cocktails, he said, include the East 75, Silk Road and the Japanese Cocktail. 

“Cocktail programs are huge now. Everyone wants their hip drinks,” he said, which is why they also make sure to serve a variety of draft beer, domestics and wines.

Conklin said many people who frequent the restaurant aren’t aware that they have an entire private dining space upstairs. The space, which is the same size as the table area downstairs, is primarily used for parties and catering. Another aspect of the restaurant that some people aren’t aware of is the fact that they serve lunch on Fridays and brunch on Saturdays, in addition to their dinners. 

“The space upstairs has its own private bar, which is very unique, so people can immediately grab a drink because of the buffer in the beginning with large parties,” Conklin said. “Also, it’s a blank canvas as far as tables and chairs. We can set it up however we want.”

Most small plates are around $6-13, while rice bowls and main dishes are around $14-16. All the cocktails are each the same price of $9. 

The location, Conklin added, has been one of his favorite parts of opening the restaurant. 

“We love this area along Second Avenue. It’s a breath of fresh air, this is more that local feel,” Conklin said. “It’s kind of what makes it cool, that it is not named anything, it’s just Second Avenue.”

EastWest Bar and Restaurant has Tapa Tuesdays, where they feature a variety of rotating tapas, like fried oysters and steamed and fried gyozas, as well as Whiskey Wednesday, with a whiskey and wing deal.

For more information, go to eastwestbirmingham.com.