Hawaiian street food pop-up Hai Poké has plans to beef up their business into a venue-spanning triple threat.
In the wake of a successful crowdfunding campaign (they hit their $10,000 Indiegogo goal back in October), duo Mico Cordero and Nile Woodson have expanded their rice poké bowl kitchen takeovers to all weekdays, acquired a food truck, and searched diligently for an ideal brick-and-mortar spot.
Hai Poké’s pop-up is five days a week now, at Oddfellows Liquor Bar, Denmark on High, and Red Velvet Cafe. They also recently acquired a fully-equipped food truck, bought from Eric Ling of Bubbles Tea & Juice Company. As of now, the food truck is set to roll out in April, with a brick-and-mortar following in May.
“Our vision was to open a brick and mortar right away, but if an opportunity like this comes our way, we’re going to take it,” said Cordero.
The duo haven’t quite decided on a neighborhood for their permanent restaurant yet, but plan to be between OSU campus and Downtown. They originally had hopes for a North Market space, but Dos Hermanos nabbed the final spot in October. Once they acquire a space, they intend on a quick turnaround and opening date.
The poké team’s ambitions are lofty, but they’re confident in their ability to tailor their business to the Columbus market. They plan to run the pop-ups, food truck, and restaurant simultaneously, if possible.
“There’s no reason why we won’t stop doing the food truck and the pop-ups while we have a restaurant,” said Woodson. “As long as nothing’s cannibalizing anything else, there’s plenty of opportunity.”
“It’s a huge learning curve,” said Cordero. “We’re just going for it.”
For more information, visit www.haicbus.com.
