Owner: Siri Warasitthinon
By Ann Marie Byrd, Feature Writer
Kuma Sushi, located at 303 Pollock Street across from City Hall, in downtown New Bern, is the latest arrival on the local restaurant scene. This much-anticipated establishment is chic and inviting, with modern lines and earthy color schemes—and most importantly, great Japanese food.
In true New Bern style, the owner, Siri, named the restaurant “Kuma” since it is the Japanese word for bear. “A few years ago my cousin and I were walking around in downtown and were saying that we needed more variety in the types of restaurants that are offered. It would be nice to have sushi. Then in 2022 we were offered the space on Pollock and started our planning,” says Siri. “We are offering the highest quality sushi, sake and even ramen, which is made in-house. What is most important to us is quality. Our rice is exceptionally good and we have our fish delivered weekly, so it is very fresh.”
The head chef, Janya Swangsri, has been creating sushi for over 20 years. She is known for being a perfectionist in her presentation, and she is always eager to please her customers.
Janya’s signature dishes are the best-selling sassy roll, which is spicy tuna with avocado, cucumber, masago roe and crispy tempura in a crab soy wrap. The black dragon roll is a favorite with crab, cucumber, and avocado, topped with the sweetness of flamed unagi eel.
“The sashimi plates are artfully created because presentation is very important here, and the beauty of the dish adds to the dining experience,” says Geoffrey Savitz, who is the manager of Kuma. “Our sashimi features salmon, tuna, albacore, yellowtail, octopus and snapper. We also feature a nice selection of sake, which is rice wine. This might be new for many people that haven’t tried really good quality sake that range from dry to sweet and have been created by ancient brewing methods.”
Siri was born in Thailand, and has worked in her parent’s restaurant, Thai Angel, for the last four years. Her mother and father, Natpreeya and Sombat, also owned a Thai restaurant on Neuse Blvd for 15 years, and she has learned the business from them—and so the family tradition continues.