Sansei restaurant set to move to nearby Kukui Mall | News, Sports, Jobs
The Maui News
Sansei Seafood Restaurant & Sushi Bar will move a short distance north on South Kihei Road to the Kukui Mall, according to an announcement.
Plans call for Sansei to occupy the mall’s free-standing restaurant building on the north side of the property and open in early to mid-2019.
“I am excited to build our next generation Sansei restaurant in the new Kukui Mall in cooperation with all the new businesses and new Kihei luxury theaters,” said Sansei founder D.K. Kodama. “Sansei will continue to offer the fresh, award-winning and imaginative menu that our customers have come to expect and love.”
“Sansei” refers to Kodama being a third-generation Japanese-American.
In late January, Houle Financial Corp., a Maui company, announced it had purchased the Kukui Mall for an undisclosed amount. And, the announcement said, the mall’s former fourplex movie theater had been leased to Regency Theatres with plans to offer a “state-of-the-art movie experience.”
Recently, workers could be seen preparing the theater for opening.
And, Chris Millen of Colliers International, the mall’s exclusive leasing representative, said he understood the theater “had opened with little fanfare this (past) weekend.”
“Apparently, they did so under the radar,” he said in an email.
The landlord wasn’t initially aware of the opening, he said, “but word spread pretty quickly.”
Plans for upgrading the old theater included installation of electric luxury recliner seating and renovations with fine finishes and an “island” theme. Planned technical features included Christie Digital projection and Dolby Digital Sound.
Consolidated Theatres had been an anchor tenant at the mall for 20 years. The Kukui Mall Theaters closed in November 2012. The mall is located across from Kalama Park on South Kihei Road.
The announcement of Sansei’s relocation was accompanied by a statement that Houle Financial would announce leases of mall units to bring occupancy to 90 percent or more.
Other tenants include Taco Bell, Coldwell Banker Island Properties and Coldwell Banker Island Vacations.
“I have a very high level of ongoing leasing activity that will absorb the majority of the center’s vacancy in the very near future,” Millen said. “We anticipate Kukui Mall to promptly return to its former status as one of South Maui’s premier retail destinations, offering a high-traffic, quality tenant mix of dining, retail and entertainment uses.”
The first Sansei opened in March 1996 at the Kapalua Resort. Other locations opened in Honolulu, Kihei and Waikoloa, Big Island, in 2000, 2002 and 2008, respectively.
The restaurant serves contemporary interpretations of sushi and Asian cuisine.
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