SUQUAMISH — Regulars of the old Seaview Chinese Restaurant have a new menu to choose from and new folks to meet.

The former Chinese food establishment in downtown Suquamish is now Seaview Teriyaki, serving up the Japanese cuisine for lunch and dinner.

Seaview Chinese owner Yenh Vong recently decided to close up shop and pass the keys of her enterprise on to her nephew, Jason Vo.

“She wanted me to run the business so she could have more time with family,” Vo explained.

Vong owned Seaview Chinese for 10 years, offering Chinese and Vietnamese foods.

However, Vo wants to keep things simple with just teriyaki entrees and is considering offering Vietnamese noodle-style items in the future.

“I would like to have food quality,” he said.

Vo said the food is cooked with fresh ingredients, not pre-packaged foods.

“I think that’s the best way to do (it),” Vo said, noting that he learned how to cook teriyaki from his cousin Chung Nguyen, who owns several teriyaki restaurants in the area, including Chung’s in Poulsbo Village.

“He does teriyaki very well,” Vo said. Vong is also teaching Lam how to make egg drop soup.

The menu consists of teriyaki rice dishes with a choice of tofu or meat — chicken, beef and pork. The restaurant also serves stir-fried noodles and vegetable sides.

“All that, I learned from Chung,” Vo said.

Vo moved from Hawaii within the past year and learned how to cook teriyaki from his cousin for nine months in Seabeck before moving to North Kitsap two months ago.

While living in Hawaii, Vo worked in the restaurant industry, mostly cooking Vietnamese-style barbecue. He said he had planned to open a restaurant in Hawaii but when he visited his cousin, Vo changed his mind and learned the new cuisine.

“I learned that people here like teriyaki more than barbecue,” Vo said.

Besides the new menu, the establishment has received a new look. Vo and his girlfriend Thuy Lam closed the former business in November to refurbish the kitchen and cooking areas with brand new floors, lights and workspaces.

The Suquamish location was another determining factor in Vo’s decision to take on his aunt’s business. The restaurant faces the Puget Sound and Seattle can be seen on a clear day.

“When I came here and saw it, I loved it,” Vo said, adding that the people he has met on the mainland are nice, too.

Since opening about a month ago, Vo has noticed he is already getting regulars.

“People over 60 come a lot on the weekend and sit down, relax,” he said.