New Japanese Izakaya Entering Little Italy

Announced earlier this summer for Little Italy, Japanese restaurant and bar Cloak & Petal now has a due date of early December. The new proprietors of the sweeping 7,500-square-foot India Street space, which previously housed the short-tenured Entrada, include owner/chef Isamu "Sam" Morikizono (Tajima Restaurants), Cesar Vallin (Prospect Bar, The Rooftop La Jolla) and Seitaro Takahashi, who runs over three dozen restaurants in Japan.

Leading the kitchen of the izakaya, a Japanese version of a gastropub with an emphasis on social dining and drinking, is executive chef Trace Jerome, a veteran chef with over twenty years of sushi-making experience. Jerome first moved to San Diego to train with sushi master Junichi Fukushima; since then, he’s worked at well-respected local spots including Hane Sushi, Taka Sushi and Shino Sushi and spent time training in Japan, where he also ran his own restaurant in the Yamagata Prefecture.

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In addition to an extensive array of sushi and sashimi, Jerome’s menu for Cloak & Petal will include a variety of other dishes based on Japanese ingredients and flavors ranging from tempura shishito peppers stuffed with crab and scallop and finished with green tea salt to pan-seared duck breastand served with kabocha squash puree and orange ponzu glaze. The plates will be paired with sake, Japanese craft beer and cocktails.

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Reimagined by a design team that includes Rachelle Domingo Rogers, Robert Hall, Jennifer Hone and artist Shane Bowden, the open layout will include a central bar and a backroom for private events.