Jennifer Biggs

The Commercial Appeal

The building that formerly housed the 19th Century Club opened on Jan. 1 as Izakaya, closed for a bit two months later and reopened with a new chef, then closed again and on July 1, opened as Redfish, a Pan-Asian restaurant with two other local locations owned by Shon Lin and Dana Chen, the couple who own the grand home lumber magnate Roland Darnell built in 1913.

I went for lunch a few days after it opened and was, as I've been every time I've been in the home since its restoration, impressed with what a lovely place it is; the renovation and preservation was well done. It does feel a bit out of sync to be ordering Mongolian tofu in a room that seems more suited to a rich gratin of some sort, but the food was good.

We shared a three roll regular combo and chose a California roll, spicy crawfish and crunchy shrimp. The first two were exactly as expected, but the crunchy shrimp contained a slightly creamy sweet sauce (maybe something as simple as Kewpie mayonnaise) that made it a bit different from the standard crunchy roll; all were good and plentiful.

The lunch menu includes sushi, Japanese lunch specials that are meats served either hibachi or teriyaki style with soup or salad, hibachi vegetables and fried rice; prices range from $9.95 for chicken to $17.95 for filet mignon and shrimp.

Bento boxes, all teriyaki, are on the menu, as are stir fries, rice or noodle dishes and a category called deep-fried chicken dishes that tells it like it is with a line-up of General Tso's, golden sesame, honey and sweet and sour chicken. A small bar menu titled "Drink a Better Lunch" features beer for $2, sake for $3, wine for $5 and a Moscow Mule for $5, limited to two with a $12 minimum lunch.

Back to the tofu: I asked for half chicken/half tofu in a Mongolian stir-fry and it was a winner with a generous plate in a peppery brown sauce with plenty of sauteed onions and a large serving of fried rice.

The dinner menu is mostly an expanded version of lunch, though it includes appetizers and a selection of chef's specials -- two beef, two fish and one chicken -- in the $22 to $35 range.

Redfish, 1433 Union Avenue, is open Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m.-10:30 p.m. and Sunday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Call 901-453-3926 for more information.