For many diners, having an omakase-style sushi bar meal in Vancouver can be a bit cost prohibitive, with the experience ranging in price from just shy of $100 a person to well over $300 at various popular Japanese restaurants.
However, a popular and more affordable alternative to pricey chef's choice dining that hits similar notes of an interactive and customized sushi bar experience is to take a seat at a hand roll bar. As the restaurant concept enjoys its growing global popularity, Vancouver is set to have a new option in the sector called Oshi Nori.
The planned hand roll bar - with a mix-and-match menu of cylindrical sushi hand rolls - is setting up shop at 1055 Mainland St in Yaletown. The address may ring a bell as having once been home to Phat Sports Bar, which closed a few years back and subsequently had its 2,000-square-foot space divided in two; Oshi Nori is moving into the portion of the address that was most recently a hair salon.
Oshi Nori is the venture of veteran restaurateur Paulo Lyra, whose Eleven 11 Ventures Group is behind several established local food businesses, including Craffles, which began as a stall at the Lonsdale Quay market and now includes a buzzy downtown Vancouver location (with another in the works).
Giving Vancouver another option for sushi handrolls
Lyra tells V.I.A. by phone that his introduction to sushi hand roll restaurants goes back some time; he has operated similar concepts in his native Brazil as well as in the U.S., though he notes that Brazilian sushi hand rolls differ from the traditional Japanese style.
Vancouverites may be familiar with the traditional Japanese hand roll bar by way of the city's current offering, Hello Nori. Lyra believes that Oshi Nori will be a welcome additional option for the Vancouver restaurant scene.
In Vancouver, where on "every corner you see three or four sushi places," says Lyra, having multiple options for a hand roll bar meal gives more people "the opportunity to learn more" about the concept.
Oshi Nori will feature a calm and minimalist design, with guests seated around a square bar where they can enjoy interacting with the chefs as part of the meal. The restaurant will also feature a patio - "If you're in Yaletown, you have to do a patio!" says Lyra - though the diners will be trading sitting in the sunshine for the chance to get one-on-one time with the chefs.
The Oshi Nori menu is being handled by an incoming chef Lyra is bringing in from Brazil along with a top-secret local talent who has lengthy expertise in traditional Japanese sushi preparation (but whose name Lyra cannot yet reveal).
Diners can expect an array of freshly-made sushi hand rolls, available individually or in sets, served in a casual environment with great service.
City of Vancouver leaves small business owners waiting for permits
While Lyra has had the keys to the Oshi Nori space since the start of July, he says he's awaiting permits from the City of Vancouver to begin construction in the space, voicing frustration at the fact that small business operators are left waiting for so long to have paperwork issued or inspections set up. "I contact the City almost every single day," Lyra says.
The plan is to have the doors open in September, following a quick turnaround of the former salon space.
Once Oshi Nori is open in Yaletown, Lyra says the intention is to franchise the brand across Canada, adding locations where the market warrants. He's taking a similar approach to his other ventures. "We want to replicate," he says of his restaurant concepts. Craffles is poised to move into a larger space at the revamped Lonsdale Quay, while at the same time, Lyra is working to ink a lease on the west side of Vancouver for the restaurant.
To keep up with Oshi Nori's launch in Yaletown, follow @eatoshinori on Instagram.
Update Dec. 11, 2023: According to Google, Oshi Nori will open on Jan. 11, 2024. V.I.A. has reached out to Oshi Nori regarding opening plans but has not received a response.
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