Seafood Served Up In City Point

The former home of City Point Kitchen has blossomed into a new Asian-inspired seafood restaurant replete with Hokkaido-style scallops served over polenta, oysters tucked between a crispy breading atop a tuna and salmon base, and a wide variety of fresh sushi.

The kitchen is overseen by a team of four chefs hailing from Caribbean to Italian cultural influences, and the restaurant was founded by a couple — including a former VA social worker — looking to breathe new life into a historic area along the city’s waterfront. 

Larry Wang and Bilian ​“Nia” Chen shared a peck as they cut the ribbon at the grand opening of that new restaurant, Little Lotus, during a ribbon cutting in City Point Friday afternoon. 

City Deputy Economic Development Administrator Carlos Eyzaguirre welcomed 40 people to the waterfront restaurant on the Pequonnock Yacht Club’s centennial campus. “[City Point’s] beauty is unmatched. Really, it will go toe-to-toe with any of our shorelines statewide.”

The 98 S. Water St. location, which previously housed the now-shuttered City Point Kitchen, is considered a historic building. Little Lotus is Wang’s second Connecticut restaurant, after Red Lotus in Shelton.

For Mayor Justin Elicker, the restaurant’s offerings speak for themselves. ​“I just tried the Ocean Blue Crab Cake… Oh, yeah,” he nodded at the audience. ​“You have got to try it, it’s unbelievable. The preparation that’s going on behind the counter is high, high quality.”

With the help of a $12 million state grant, Elicker said, the city hopes to renovate the Long Wharf corridor — and bring new life to the area with the help of restaurants like Little Lotus. ​“People will actually be able to access City Point through… a beautiful trail that goes through there, and so as that development happens, it’ll be more of an opportunity for people to enjoy this beautiful gem that is here.”

The opening of Little Lotus is just one of several new ventures in the neighborhood. ​“We support small businesses. We really, really do,” said Hill/City Point Alder Carmen Rodriguez, who ​“does ribbon cuttings every week now,” according to Eyzaguirre. ​“Little Lotus is open! Come grab lunch, and let’s spend some money in our community!”

The city officials turned it over to the restaurant owners, who were beaming from ear to ear. ​“The theme behind our project here, and the reason why Nia and I are still here in our golden years, is we want to still be of service,” shared Wang. ​“If you’re in the hospital system, the VA system, in a restaurant, a janitor at a school — you can always be of service.”

Entrusting Little Lotus to a four-chef team with such diverse backgrounds, Wang and Chen ​“always promise bigger tables, building bridges, and building community through food.”

Inside the restaurant, styled with a coastal flourish and detailed with cerulean blue, guests were greeted with a buffet style sampling of Little Lotus specialties. Those includes the Hokkaido-style scallops, oysters, and plenty of sushi.

Wang defines fusion not by the cuisines at play, but by the chefs in collaboration. ​“Many restaurants say they’re fusion, but they have just one chef curating the menu. Here, I decided to have several chefs, one with Caribbean influences, one with Italian and French influences, one with Spanish influences… so, it will be a seasonal menu alongside the Japanese food you see here.”

“My mom doesn’t eat sushi, but she would still have so many options here,” said Nadine Nelson, who had a scallop in one hand and sushi in the other. ​“My family is from Jamaica, so I love lamb chops, for example. But, most places don’t season it right, so I usually make it at home or find an Indian or Caribbean restaurant. I’ll definitely be coming here often.”

Wang had no time to slow down during the opening, making it a point to speak to as many attendees as possible — and ensure that they had tried the food. ​“Have you eaten? At least take some to go,” became the owner’s refrain.

Even when Wang finally took a moment to rest, this reporter could only ask a question or two before being offered second and third helpings.

Wang knows how to sell his food. Growing up as the son of two Taiwanese New York University students-turned-restaurant owners, he began working in the kitchen at an early age — ​“which I hated,” Wang laughed.

After pursuing a career in Veterans Affairs social work for 40 years, Wang returned to the restaurant business with an understanding of food as a tool for social change. According to Wang, most of his employees dream of opening their own restaurants in the future; and, by investing in their hard work, he believes they are building bridges for themselves.

On the community-building front, the restaurant specializes in the 14-course omakase dining style, meaning ​“I’ll leave it up to you” or ​“chef’s choice,” served primarily at the island in the center of the restaurant. ​“We force people to sit together at the table, right? And they’re all from different backgrounds… and they sit and talk and get to know each other.”

“This current administration for this country is very scary; breaking bridges, smaller tables. This is a place where we’re gonna build bridges,” Wang explained. ​“It doesn’t start from administration, but building bridges and building big tables starts in little villages. We can do our part, just keep keeping the community together.

On a personal note, the restaurant is a testament to Wang’s love for ​“his angel,” Chen: ​“My wife loves the little beachy area… so, my wife has a beautiful place to sit in the summer, and,” he sighed, ​“it’s good for her health.” Chen has personal health concerns, which prevent her from spending time in busy enclosed spaces.

“I built this for her,” Wang smiled at his wife, Bilian — meaning lotus.