Key points:

  • Asian-American comfort food restaurant Mushi Ni opened on March 24 in Inman Park.
  • Located on Elizabeth Street, just off the Freedom Park Trail, the pop-up-turned-restaurant is owned by chefs Michael Le and Tanya Jimenez.
  • Expect a variety of bao like soft shell crab and chicken longanisa, snacks of umami fries and crab Rangoon puffs, and Peking chicken platters with cocktails at lunch and dinner.
Peking chicken feeds two people for $25. (Photo by Beth McKibben)

Today marks a milestone in the professional lives of Atlanta chefs Michael Le and Tanya Jimenez: the couple opened their first restaurant, Mushi Ni, in Inman Park.

Both Le and Jimenez are veterans of the restaurant industry. Jimenez worked for Gordon Ramsay in New York City before moving to Atlanta to work for Anne Quatrano at Bacchanalia. Le was a chef consultant for One Hotel in Miami, then worked for Palmer’s in Peachtree City and Senoia Coffee and Cafe in Senoia. 

But after years of running Mushi Ni as an Asian-American comfort food pop-up and food stall, Le and Jimenez swung open the doors to Mushi Ni the restaurant on March 24, anchored with a full bar. They partnered with Ian Jones of Victory Brands (Lloyd’s, Stereo, Victory Sandwich Bar) in the venture. Le and Jimenez met Jones during their kitchen residency at Victory’s former Westside Provisions District cocktail bar, Little Trouble. Mushi Ni resides around the corner from the Inman Park location of Victory Sandwich Bar. 

Located near Harbor Coffee on Elizabeth Street just off the Freedom Park Trail, Mushi Ni features many dishes Le and Jimenez made popular during residencies at Global Grub Collective in East Atlanta Village and Little Trouble, and later at their Chattahoochee Food Works stall. (Think duck confit and soft shell crab bao, umami fries tossed in Japanese spices and fresh herbs served with Sriracha ketchup, and devilishly decadent tempura-fried Oreos.)

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Via Mushi Ni/Instagram.

Now thoroughly staffed with a proper kitchen and a bar, Le and Jimenez come to Inman Park with an expanded menu that includes entrees of Peking chicken accompanied by scallion pancakes, pickled vegetables, a duo of hot sauces, and fried rice ($25), and savory bowls of bone-in beef shank noodle soup ($22). 

Expect dumplings, Parisian-style crab Rangoon puffs stuffed with real crab meat ($13), and updated takes on Mushi Ni bao, like chicken longanisa (sausage) garnished with a quail egg and chimichurri ($7), or tofu sisig topped with caramelized onions and peppers, vegan mayo, and diced green onions ($6).

A tight list of wine and beer, along with cocktails such as a tamarind whiskey sour, Thai tea martini, and shochu lowball, round out the bar menu. Pours of sake and soju (fermented Korean rice spirit) are also available.

Dessert may not yet include Mushi Ni’s tempura-fried Oreos, but a rich and gooey chocolate olive oil cake complemented with the zest and flesh from calamansi (Filipino lime-lemon) more than holds its own.

With music bouncing between hip-hop, pop, and party tunes, and staff clad in branded mechanics shirts, Mushi Ni offers a menu full of dishes that hit the wallet well under $20.

Mushi Ni, 337 Elizabeth St., Inman Park. Open Tuesday – Thursday and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. 

Beth McKibben serves as both Editor-in-Chief and Dining Editor for Rough Draft Atlanta. She was previously the editor of Eater Atlanta and has been covering food and drinks locally and nationally for 15 years.