Table Talk | New Media restaurant has Morimoto ties

Downtown Media now has a downtown restaurant.

Win and Sunita Somboonsong, who also own Newtown Square's Teikoku and Mikado, Thai Pepper in Ardmore, and Flavor in Wayne, just opened Azie at State and Orange Streets (610-566-4750), the former West End Saloon.

Azie's cosmopolitan vibe starts at the bar, already packed with lawyers and other Delaware County high rollers sucking up sake. Colorful, smart-looking dining rooms are accented with inlaid stone and mosaic tiles. ("Like The Brady Bunch house, but updated," as my nostalgist daughter explained.) A clear bubble light fixture in the second-floor private dining room dangles through an opening to light up the entryway. There's also a roof deck for warmer weather.

The Somboonsongs' corporate chef, Takao Iinuma - a Japanese culinary teacher who assisted Masaharu Morimoto in the Iron Chef America series and who sous-chefed for Morimoto in Philadelphia - has rolled out a global menu that starts in Japan (awesome roll section) and ventures west through China and Thailand. Kazuyuki Mitsui, who worked at Morimoto, is executive chef.

It's open weekdays for lunch (entrees: $14 to $18) and Mondays through Saturdays for dinner (entrees: $14 to $25).

New and on the way

The Ugly American - just love that name - is aiming for a Nov. 29 public opening at Front and Federal Streets, in the former La Vigna.