He recognizes that most people still know him for Toki, so he says he's been trying to walk the line between new and familiar items. So while the mobile Maketto won't serve ramen, diners will be able to sample a noodle soup. "The food we’re doing here you won’t be able to get at Toki," he says.
The event, nicknamed Shoo-Fly Underground, runs from 5 to 10 p.m. each evening. Should diners be worried about supply? "I challenge them to sell me out," Bruner-Yang says. "I have a lot of food here."
The menu will change throughout the week, but to give you an idea of what to expect, here's Monday night's bill of fare, styled like our favorite Chinese restaurant placemats.
In addition to the food, the Maketto road show includes clothing by fashion line Durkl, the other major component of the pending food-and-dining complex at 1351 H St. NE. "It's an operation. We bring in all of the clothes, all of the cooking equipment," Bruner-Yang says. "We set up the shop." So far no one has been "weirded out" by eating next to racks of clothes, he notes.
Maketto's residency at Shoo-Fly follows another road trip to Richmond, where Bruner-Yang cooked for one night at Rappahannock, the sister restaurant to the Union Market oyster bar. Still to come: Philadelphia and Brooklyn. Bruner-Yang says Maketto will also be dishing up food at the Capitol Riverfront's Parcel Market the weekend of Dec. 12.
How close is Maketto to opening on H Street? Bruner-Yang demurred, but said the operation was "getting close."
"It's the unicorn of restaurants," he says.
Shoo-Fly, 510 E. Belvedere Ave., Baltimore. 410-464-9222. www.shooflydiner.com.