The Local newsletter is your free, daily guide to life in Colorado. For locals, by locals.
For a restaurant debut months in the making, the opening night was surprisingly chill. Aside from one couple finishing their meal at the other end of the sushi counter and a family toward the back of the restaurant, we were pretty much alone with the staff’s attention. If you’re thinking, Oh how sad, it must have been a dud, you’d be wrong. Instead, this one just hasn’t quite popped off, perhaps in part to their old-fashioned opening (meaning, gasp, no PR).
Boulder’s Wellness Counter, run by husband-and-wife team Phoebe and Steven Lee, opened its doors to Pearl Street (and pouring rain) on May 18 after several delays. The Lees are no strangers to the Front Range culinary scene; they’re the masterminds behind plant-based Japanese eatery Wellness Sushi in Denver, so they hoped their Boulder debut would draw a crowd. That’s not quite what happened.
“Our opening was much quieter than we expected, and to be honest, it was discouraging for Steven and me after spending so much time, energy, and resources bringing Wellness Counter to life,” Phoebe says. But what happened next might have been even better than a flashy, but flash-in-the-pan, opening. “Instead of relying on a traditional PR-driven launch, Steven and I started working the dining room ourselves. We greet guests at the door, introduce ourselves table by table, and spend time connecting with people personally. Those conversations turned into relationships. Guests returned with friends and family.”
The Boulder clientele are loving the decidedly not vegan 80-seat restaurant, where a dry-aged fish program and a chef’s-counter format brings diners closer to the fresh, gleaming cuts waiting to become sushi. New patrons, especially those familiar with Wellness Sushi, may be confused at first. They may think, Why try something new at this location when the all-vegan menu was already working? And why confuse people by choosing a similar name?
Well to answer the first question, chef Steven wanted a new challenge. He is passionate about bringing fish back into the program and developing new recipes. But, they didn’t ditch the vegan-friendly format entirely, Phoebe says, highlighting the five plant-based handrolls (cucumber, mushroom, avocado, jackfruit, and eggplant) they brought over from the Denver location, as well as a bevy of vegetarian cooked dishes like clay pot rice bowls. The veggies here, just like at Wellness Sushi, are cooked and sliced to replicate the texture of the raw fish, and the vegan eel sauce shows the kitchen’s commitment to delivering fish-free dishes just as nuanced as the real deal. To answer the second question, the Lees kept a similar name because wellness is still at the core of their mission: “At both Wellness Sushi and Wellness Counter, it’s all about intention and inclusion,” Phoebe says.
During our visit, the sushi bar didn’t have an omakase option yet, although Steven is developing one now. That didn’t stop us from asking for one anyway, and the chefs were eager to indulge us. Joshua Castillo, the executive chef who previously held the same position at Sushi Den, created a personalized menu for us of nigiri bites along with a few hot dishes—per our request to try a bit of every part of the menu.
We started with the nigiri, most notably a dry-aged akami (tuna) that melts with a clean finish and, of course, the wagyu with Osetra caviar. Among the heartier bites, the wagyu tartare over housemade shokupan is a can’t miss. Our favorite of the handrolls, which are bigger and feature more elaborate toppings than at Wellness Sushi, was the blue crab crowned with caramelized shallots. For vegan options, the skewered tempura miso eggplant with arare rice puffs steals the show.
Service (understandably) had a few kinks to be worked out. Were we supposed to order from the server who kept checking on us, or the sushi chef in front of us? It wasn’t clear. No matter; the hospitality was friendly and knowledgeable, and the culinary eye extended all the way back to the bar.
My first cocktail, the Nigiri Martini, smelled as good as it tasted with notes of furikake hitting my nose before the umami-forward, rice-washed gin even touched my tongue. Dip the nori, clothespinned to the side of the glass, into the drink for a savory way to soak up your last sip. My husband’s Ink & Oak was a take on an old fashioned that was both sweet and savory, with a peanut butter and sesame aftertaste. Later in the meal, sake and wine pairings (again, this wasn’t on the menu, but will be soon—or just ask!) brought out flavors in the food we didn’t even know were there. Matsuzaka Green Vineyard’s 2020 muscat from Yamanashi, Japan is a light red wine with hints of yuzu and lime zest that cut through the fattiness of the pork belly skewer to bring out the sweetness of the meat. It’s one of the few sushi spots in town to tout wine from Japan (the only other we are aware of is Ukiyo), though these robust flavors go a little better with the cooked dishes. Look to the extensive sake menu for sushi pairings that won’t overwhelm your palette.
That rainy opening night, the crowd never really materialized. Two weeks later though, Phoebe told us business had already begun picking up thanks to Boulder’s favorite marketing strategy: organically formed relationships. Judging by the quality of the proteins, the thoughtfulness behind the drinks, and the hospitality woven through every part of the experience, it’s easy to see why diners keep coming back—and why finding an empty seat at the counter may not stay this easy for long.
“It takes time,” Phoebe says. “And in Boulder, it takes a bit more time. The community is smaller. But once people came in and liked it, they spread the word. We feel very welcome in Boulder.”
Wellness Counter is located at 1117 Pearl St., Boulder. It’s open Monday–Thursday from 3–10 p.m., Friday & Saturday 12–11 p.m., and Sunday 12–10 p.m.
