Japanese fare in U-Village neighborhood

What's new? Here's a little taste:

The U-Village neighborhood has a terrific new restaurant, Shun (2510 N.E. Blakely St., Seattle; 206-522-2200). Mature foliage surrounds this Japanese cafe, snug behind a gas station across the street from 7-Eleven. You might remember the spot as Thai Dusit, but show up now and you'll remember it for moderate prices, beautiful preparations and a lovely remodel — inside and out.

Sit at the sushi bar and watch as co-owner and sushi chef Kotaro Kumita composes specialties like bara-chirashi ($9.50), carefully placing oshinko (pickled vegetables) and delicate tamago (omelets) over rice, dressing and tossing a generous assortment of raw fish and garnishing it with shiso leaf.

Or relax at one of the sleek wood tables in a room painted in soothing earth tones, ordering prettily presented favorites like black cod kasuzuke, salmon teriyaki and seafood tempura from the kitchen of chef Yoshi Nishizawa — late of Nishino. Lunch 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Mondays-Fridays; dinner 5-9:30 p.m. Sundays-Thursdays, 5-10 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays.

It's a Taki kind of day

Plans are afoot for a big-time makeover of Edmonds' gonzo-busy beachfront bar and grill, Rory's (105 Main St., 425-778-3433). But meanwhile, owner Rick Colgan just opened a second small-town hangout way up the block.

There's no sea or sand at his new Taki Tiki Bar & Grill (518 Main St., 425-778-3548), but party-hardiers are already hanging from the rafters at this noisy little tiki-shack where the walls are plastered with surf's-up tchotckes, beer is proudly served in a can, snacks like "Honolulu Dip" feature microwaved Velveeta, and $125 buys (Par-tay!) a bottle of Dom Perignon in a plastic ice bucket with a side of Spam-on-a-stick.

On a check-out mission we bypassed the bubbly-with-Spam, the Spam burger and the grilled Spam and cheese, opting instead for a bacon cheeseburger with steak fries ($7.25) and a plate of Mahana Ribs ($12.25). That marinated kalbi-style beef arrived over "sticki" rice on pink-plastic picnic ware with a honking-green side salad sprinkled with shredded cheese.

Bear in mind: The bar is big, the place is small and you'll have to fight for a table, literally. In fact, I almost punched the young guys who showed up 10 minutes after we did and, butting in line, commandeered the recently vacated table that should have been ours. But then I remembered: I'm a lady! Open daily from 4 p.m. till they throw you out.

From Samba to Piccolo

Hold the Antonio Carlos Jobimand and cue the Antonio Benedetto: Last month, Maple Leaf's Samba Brazilian Restaurant was sold. And before you could say, "Pass the brodo with escarole!" it re-opened as Café Piccolo (9400 Roosevelt Way N.E., Seattle, 206-957-1333; www.piccoloseattle.com).

Proud new owner Nick Carlino is at the helm of this show, impressing his neighbors with house-made pastas, home-baked breads and a Slow Food philosophy that extends to his use of organic meats and poultry and sausages from Rainier Valley's cured-meat man, Pino Rogano.

Carlino has cooked around town for 15 years at establishments that range from Duke's to the Dahlia and he's feeling fortunate to have finally found a place to call his own.

With his wife, Trisha, waiting tables and son Dylan washing dishes, he says this family operation is all the more fun since he's working for himself "creating my own environment." The personal touch, he says, "is what makes a neighborhood restaurant," and I couldn't agree more.

Customers get to put their own personal touch on dinner at Café Piccolo by mixing and matching fettuccine, spaghetti, ravioli or penne ($9.95-$11.95) with sauces (including Bolognese, puttanesca or sage and brown butter), and adding meats and/or seafood ($3.95-$4.95).

And on Thursdays, locals can stop by the Café Piccolo booth at the Lake City Farmers Market to pick up fresh bread and pastas to make dinner — Piccolo-style — at home. The restaurant serves dinner from 5-9 p.m. Tuesdays-Thursdays and Sundays, and till 10 p.m. on Fridays-Saturdays.

Meanwhile, Samba's owner Sam Hassan says his hard-fought attempt to negotiate his way into the long-vacant Vivanda space in the Pike Place Market has so far come to naught. But I'd bet you a caipirinha and a bowl of feijoada, we'll be hearing from that peripatetic restaurateur again soon.