One 23rd Street restaurant closes, another opens, with elaborate dishes including something called an Avocado Bomb

I’m no expert, but I do know that balance is important in the cultures of the Far East. That is why if I have a pound of rice on the right side of my plate, I always strive to have a pound of noodles on the left side. I don’t know if the same principle applies here, but I do have news of one longtime Lawrence Japanese restaurant closing, but a new one opening up right across the street.

First, the closing. DonDon, the Japanese rice and noodle bowl restaurant in the Louisiana Purchase Shopping Center at 23rd and Louisiana, is set to close at any time now. Ikuko Fox, the owner of the establishment, told me she is negotiating a closing a date with the landlord currently. She said the restaurant may stay open until the end of July to satisfy some lease requirements, but will close sooner, if possible.

The restaurant — which features Donburi (rice bowls) and Udon (noodle bowls) — has been in business for seven years. Fox said she’s closing the business simply because she is ready to retire.

No word yet on what may take its place in the strip center, which is between Mr. Goodcents and Panera.

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Noodle and rice lovers, though, shouldn’t fret much. A new Japanese restaurant has opened across the street in The Malls Shopping Center.

New York sushi chef Vincent Yu has moved to Lawrence and opened Nagoya Japanese Cuisine at 711 W. 23rd St. But if you think Japanese food has to be served in a bowl, think again. The restaurant is looking to make a name for itself with some visually stunning dishes. Take a look at some of these photos that the restaurant provided me during a brief visit recently.

That’s something called an Avocado Bomb, which I once tried to use as an excuse for why guacamole ended up on the kitchen ceiling. This is a different dish though. It features spicy crabmeat, mango, cucumber and other ingredients wrapped in thin avocado with hot sauce.

If you are truly international, like I am, you sometimes mix your Japanese with your French, as in filet mignon. Here’s a teriyaki version that is on the menu.

Also, if you are like me and look wonderful in a ship captain’s hat and can effortlessly work the word “dinghy” into any conversation, check this dish out. It is called the Love Boat, and features eight pieces of sushi, nine pieces of sashimi — thinly sliced raw fish — and a couple of Japanese rolls.

And finally here is a look at a variety of sushi rolls. The restaurant has more than 40 different rolls, and I apologize for not having the names of all these. (I got distracted and was trying to hire a crew for my Love Boat.)

In addition to the sushi and sashimi, the restaurant also offers multiple dishes for those who aren’t into that style of food. Those include multiple teriyaki and hibachi versions of chicken, steak, shrimp and salmon. Also on the menu are a variety of soups, noodle and fried rice dishes.

Yu said he previously worked at several sushi and Japanese restaurants in New York City, but this is his first venture at owning his own restaurant. He is running the restaurant with his family, who on the day that I was there also served as his translator.

“I came to this town and I just really liked Lawrence,” Yu said of his decision to open the restaurant.

For those of you trying to picture where the restaurant is located, it is next to the Westlake Ace Hardware store in the spot that for many years housed the Royal Peking Chinese restaurant.

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