After their success with three Los Angeles locations in Westwood, the Miracle Mile and Palos Verdes, Poke Me is coming to Orange County. On Friday, August 18, they will hold a Grand Opening for their first Irvine location at Heritage Plaza, at Trabuco Road and Culver Drive. As part of the festivities, Poke Me will be giving away 25 swag bags of goodies (including Poke Me gift certificates) to the first 25 customers on Friday, August 18 at 12pm. There will also be a prize awarded to someone, the lucky winner will win FREE POKE FOR AN ENTIRE YEAR! The celebration will also include an official ribbon-cutting ceremony hosted by the Irvine Chamber of Commerce.
Poke Me’s key to success is delicious poke. Chef Seungmin (Min) Choi’s poke is both creative and tasty, heavily influenced by his background as a sushi chef. Chef Min told the LA Beat why his poke is so popular, saying “I believe they appreciate the various tastes & how it all mixes well with our house made sauces like truffles ponzu, yuzu wasabi & sweet Habanero. It keeps them coming back for sure & our self serve unlimited toppings bar”. Poke Me’s format is the popular build-your-own, where guests can choose their base such as white or brown rice and mixed or baby kale salad. They then choose a side, including seaweed salad, edamame, avocado, crab meat or spicy crab meat.
Next comes the protein and this is where Poke Me shines. Not only are the old standbys like tuna and salmon available, but more non-traditional ones like yellowtail, scallop and even tofu are part of the ten choices of protein. Mix-ins follow, such as onion, pineapple and masago, a choice of nine sauces and finally the toppings. Toppings include bonito flakes, jalapeno, roasted garlic, corn, tamago and kizami nori. Chef Choi said, “From my many years as a sushi chef, I found that these non-traditional food varieties compliment the traditional Poke taste well”. All of Poke Me’s ingredients are sustainable.
With over 40 choices of ingredients and thousands of combinations, Poke Me can not only satisfy the poke aficionado, but also allow for vegetarians to create a healthy, filling bowl. The ingredients can also be wrapped in a burrito. Poke Me also has a nice variety of drinks as well as the popular and delicious dessert, Macaron Ice Cream. Poke me will be a nice addition to the diverse Orange County food scene.
Poke Me
14370 #C Culver Dr. (Heritage Plaza)
Irvine, CA 92604
Phone (323) 815-1566
Other locations in Los Angeles Miracle Mile, Westwood and Palos Verdes
