Atlas Restaurant Group to open Japanese concept in Harbor East

Atlas Restaurant Group is taking its newest concept underground in more ways than one.

The Baltimore-based group announced Tuesday that it will open a “Tokyo underground Izakaya” eatery inside Harbor East’s historic E.J. Codd building, alongside the company’s new corporate headquarters.

The 3,000-square-foot, Japanese pub-style restaurant will be connected by a “custom-built tunnel” to a previously announced Atlas concept in the same space. Guests will be able to “seamlessly transition” between the two eateries, said Alex Smith, president of the hospitality group, in a statement.

Customers at the yet-unnamed 50-seat restaurant can expect handrolls, sashimi, sake and more on the menu, created by Timur Fazilov. The chef is known for his work at another Japanese-style Atlas restaurant, Azumi, which sits about a half-mile west.

Atlas wants the corner of South Caroline and Aliceanna streets “to regain its landmark status and infuse exciting energy that will benefit the city as a whole,” Smith said in a statement.

In October, Atlas announced that it planned to use 6,000 square feet of the E.J. Codd Company building for another one of its restaurants, and an additional 15,000 square feet for its offices.

The building is already home to a Patagonia store, which had its official opening in November 2022, in what became the outdoor retailer’s first space in Charm City. Their shop is more than twice the size of an average Patagonia store, totaling a reported 15,000 square feet, according to the Baltimore Business Journal.

Correction: This story has been updated to correct the year when Patagonia officially opened.