After the year we’ve had, a “coming soon” sign on almost any piece of vacant real estate is good news. And those of us who live and work near Riverside Village now have such good news. Bite a Bit Thai Sushi is opening in the former Inglewood home of Rudie’s Seafood and Sausage.
Rudie’s closed last year at the beginning of the pandemic, though some of the favorites from the Rudie’s menu are available down the street at Mitchell Delicatessen. (Rudie’s was owned by Mitchell owners David and Wendi Mitchell.)
Bite a Bit owner Manatsawee Insawang came to the Nashville area from Thailand three years ago. She’s traveled across the U.S. and was charmed by Nashville, particularly its proximity to rivers, lakes and outdoor spaces. So she decided to open her first restaurant here. Her idea is to serve plates of artfully designed Thai food, highlighting the bright colors of her fresh ingredients. Takeout containers will have dividers, sort of like bento boxes, so you can still have that wow factor even when you are dining at home.
Bite a Bit’s menu will include dishes most Americans are used to, such as red and green curry, Pad Thai and Pad See Ew. Monthly specials will include delicacies such as whole red snapper, and Insawang will be importing some ingredients from Thailand, combining them with local produce and fish. Vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options are planned. Thai cuisine’s reliance on coconut bases makes going dairy-free fairly straightforward, Insawang says. Sushi rolls will run the gamut from avocado to wagyu, and staff includes a sushi chef with more than 20 years’ experience.
At 25, Insawang (her friends call her “Benz”) is energetic about bringing her native cuisine to the neighborhood. I was a regular at Watanabe Restaurant and Sushi Bar, which was next door until 2014, so I am matching her enthusiasm for a return to Asian dining at that corner. Like Watanabe, Bite a Bit will have a full bar, and Insawang plans to stock local beers and bourbons. Prices will vary based on ingredients; sushi is not inexpensive, she notes, but the idea is for Bite a Bit to be priced as a regular neighborhood joint, not a special-occasion spot.
Insawang’s crew has already started demo inside. The space will have an open kitchen, with booth seating as well as seating at the sushi counter in a post-pandemic world. There will also be seating on the outdoor patio in the back. Depending on the construction and permitting process, we could have Thai food in the neighborhood within two months.
