Colin Yoshimoto, the chef and public face of well-liked Southeast Portland poke spot Poke Mon, has been dismissed by the restaurant's owners, Yoshimoto confirms.

"The owners and I had disagreements on where the company was going, and I was let go on Wednesday," Yoshimoto told The Oregonian/OregonLive on Monday.

Poke Mon opened in 2016, just as the current poke wave was beginning to crest on the mainland. The restaurant came from four friends, professional skaters Mike Chin and Brent Atchley, artist Nicholas Hyde and the Hawaii-born chef Yoshimoto, who had previously helped launch both Nong's Khao Man Gai and Nodoguro. The Southeast Hawthorne Boulevard restaurant quickly grew a reputation for its quality raw fish bowls, fried chicken Fridays, chef collaborations, its rainbow of La Croix cans and ambitious sake selection.

In response to Colin's firing, the remaining staff walked out at the end of the week, according to two former employees.

"I was not a part of whatever they wanted to do," Yoshimoto said of the walk-out. "I was just trying to be really positive about everything. I'm a professional, not a vindictive person."

The restaurant, 1485 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd., was shut Sunday and Monday, with a sign in the window saying the closure was for "much-needed maintenance." An Instagram post Tuesday indicated the restaurant had reopened. Messages to Poke Mon were not immediately returned.

Update: On Thursday, October 11, the restaurant announced Steven Woerdehoff, formerly of North 45 and Produce Row Cafe, had been named Poke Mon's new chef and general manager.

-- Michael Russell