Two Palm Beach County restaurants — and their respective chef-owners — have joined forces to create a hybrid dining experience in Boca Raton.
In May, local chefs Eric Baker and David Bouhadana combined two popular local concepts, taking over the former Rebel House space at 297 East Palmetto Park Road to offer a unique take on Japanese-style fare with AlleyCat Izakaya and the omakase-inspired Sunset Sushi.
The combined concepts aim to offer a single dining destination where both chefs can expand upon their respective concepts — Bouhdana, a master sushi chef, and Baker with a classically-trained French background.
Baker is best known for his time spent as executive chef of Max's Harvest, later opening his own concept with Mazie's and Uncle Pinkie's Deli, and breathing new life into longtime gastropub, Rebel House.
"We were always limited by space with AlleyCat, and it grew faster than we anticipated. This was the perfect opportunity for us to expand our partnership," says Baker. "It just made total sense to have it all under one roof and our full attention dedicated to one space and dedicated to what each of us do best."
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A Boca Raton native, Bouhadana began making sushi at Yokohama Sushi in his hometown. He later graduated from Andy Matsuda's Sushi Chef Institute in California, and traveled to Japan where he trained under master sushi chefs at Matsuda's family restaurant.
In New York City, Bouhada received numerous culinary accolades, including rave reviews for Sushi Uo, and praise for a string of omakase restaurants dubbed Sushi by Bou, now with 20 locations including Palm Beach Gardens, Fort Lauderdale, and Boca Raton.
While the COVID-19 pandemic imposed social isolation for many, it served as a way to bring Baker and Bouhadana together.
Two great chefs, one kitchen and Japanese-sourced ingredients
After closing his restaurants in response to the lockdown, Bouhadana left New York in 2020, returning to South Florida and quickly opening Sunset Sushi in a short strip mall at 2433 North Federal Highway in Boca Raton. The restaurant became beloved for its energy-fueled atmosphere and Bouhadana's impeccable sushi.
The two chefs met later that year and developed a fast friendship, opening AlleyCat in Boca Raton's Royal Palm Plaza in 2021. The izakaya-style format was the ideal canvas to present Baker's classic French training, offering a wide range of dishes that lend a hint of sophistication while using familiar Japanese ingredients.
Today, diners will find both chefs working synergistically, sharing the same kitchen and Japanese-sourced ingredients to deliver an innovative dining experience.
"The move also allowed us to re-envision the entire concept, with a complete menu refresh, new dishes, new specials, and a large bar, which we didn't have before," says Baker.
AlleyCat moves, menu grows
Since relocating, the AlleyCat menu has nearly tripled in size, with dishes that appeal to the seafood lovers, meat-eaters, and even the meat-averse among us with a variety of small- and medium-sized shareable appetizers, large entrées, and omakase-style tastings and sushi.
While longtime favorites like the pastrami milk bread sando and wasabi-spiked caesar salad remain go-to favorites, a series of all-new offerings shine a spotlight on Baker's culinary fusion.
Starters like the Truffle Salmon Crisps ($24) are a work of art, and a light riff on the traditional crispy rice presentation, slivers of flame-licked salmon laid across small wedges of delicate potato pavé and topped with truffle caviar and a spicy yuzu sauce. A Wagyu carpaccio, a generous layering of sliced Wagyu atop a crispy, house-made tortilla, dotted with dollups of ponzu aioli and yuzu kosho ($21).
A standout entrée, the short rib kabayaki ($63) is one meal you won't want to share. Thin-sliced orbs of 72-hour Wagyu short rib practically melt on your tongue, the fatty meat cut with a citrusy-sweet soy glaze that coats the Asian pear and salad it's served atop.
When it comes to sushi, a decadent list highlights upmarket ingredients like snow crab, toro, hokkaido scallop, and foie gras. The most creative, however, just might be the shrimp scampi roll: tempura prawns wrapped in spinach, nori, and rice and drenched in a warm lemon- and garlic-infused scampi butter poured tableside from a gravy boat ($32).
A lineup of weekly specials offers the ideal way to sample it all with various savings, from the daily happy hour featuring reduced-price sushi and small bites priced $5-$15, an all-day $5 lychee martini available Sunday through Thursday, the duo's Japanese twist on taco Tuesday, and a "Highballs & Handrolls" deal on Thursday.
Take Baker's hand roll-style tacos — a trio of Wagyu short rib barbacoa, chipotle tuna, and hamachi "al pastor" — found on the regular menu but available for $20 alongside spicy wasabi-infused margaritas. Cradled in homemade taco shells crafted from dashi-flavored nori that is painstakingly dried, hand-formed, and gently baked, the tacos are a perfect display of Baker's unique culinary perspective.
Timing is everything to dine on Sunset Sushi's specialties
Next door, the space once home to Uncle Pinkie's Deli, a private dining room houses Sunset Sushi. The restaurant operates Wednesday through Saturday as an 8-seat, reservation-only omakase bar featuring Bouhdana and his sushi chef, Snezhana Briukhanova. The two-hour dining experience, priced $160 per person, offers diners 16-18 courses with a focus on Tokyo-style sushi using specialty fish delivered daily from Japan.
On select Tuesdays, Baker himself takes the stage, presenting his own take on omakase-style dining with Chef Baker's Counter, a fusion of Japanese and French cuisine delivered via a curated 15-course tasting menu for the same price.
The new space is also home to Bouhadana's "Tuna Tuesdays" event — an often sold-out spectacle. Held once a month, the high-energy evening allows guests to watch as Bouhadana engages in saku — the Japanese method of deconstructing a 200-plus pound tuna into blocks of meat.
"It's two very different experiences, and two chefs, all in one space," sums up Baker. "There's really nothing else like it in the area."
AlleyCat and Sunset Sushi in Boca Raton
AlleyCat Izakaya and Sunset Sushi are located at 297 E. Palmetto Park Rd., Boca Raton, 561-353-5888, alleycatboca.com, sunsetsushi.com.
AlleyCat is open 4 p.m to midnight Tuesday through Sunday; Sunset Sushi is open Wednesday through Saturday with various seatings from 7 to 11:30 p.m. available by reservation only via OpenTable.
