(Bloomberg) -- Before Nami Nori opened its doors in downtown New York in 2019, people knew temaki as the conical hand roll that chefs pass across the counter at sushi restaurants. Owners Jihan Lee, Taka Sakaeda and Lisa Limb changed the game, serving the rolls open-faced in custom-made tacolike stands, the better to admire gourmet fillings such as scallops with XO sauce and tobiko, or cured salmon with onion cream, which made my list of best dishes that year.
Among the people paying attention to those temaki: Pharrell Williams, singer and men’s creative director for Louis Vuitton.
In mid-December, when Nami Nori expands to Miami, Williams will officially be on board as a new partner and adviser in parent company Launchpad Hospitality. The category-crossing entrepreneur first met Lee, Sakaeda and Limb in late 2022, when they catered the launch party for Joopiter, his global digital-first auction house and content platform. “He enjoyed it so much that he came to the restaurant to dine the next day,” Limb says.
“Nami Nori has been one of the those places where it’s exactly what everyone tells you it’s going to be, dish for dish,” said Pharrell over email, about why he wanted to go into business with the team. “There’s nothing like when a recommendation delivers on a referral and description.”
The new Miami restaurant will be located in the Design District, with a fine-dining concept, Matsuyoi, on the floor above.
“Our name, Nami Nori, translates to ‘riding the wave,’ and we can sense the swell has arrived in Miami,” Limb says about why they chose South Florida for their first outpost outside the tristate area. The team also has restaurants in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and Montclair, New Jersey, as well as a chic Japanese bakery, Postcard, next to their West Village flagship.
The menu at the upcoming 74-seat Nami Nori will be a carbon copy of the ones at their other locations, with a few market-driven dishes specifically geared to Miami. Signature temaki will include tuna poke with fried shallots, as well as kanpachi pineapple temaki with chipotle and tomato. They’ll also serve fluke ceviche with shiso and plum leche de tigre. Limb says the brand’s tropical, sunny flavors will make the mainstays a fit in Miami.
The drinks program will include beer, sake, wine and cocktails created in collaboration with Molly McClintock, that mirror the Williamsburg location. Likewise, the design at Nami Nori Miami will be similar to the New York originals with blond wood walls and sand-colored, coral stone tile floors and both counter seating and tables.
“As we expand, we are very focused on maintaining consistency across the brand, which we think will be the key to our success as we grow,” Limb says.
Matsuyoi will contrast Nami Nori’s sunny vibe with sultry clay plaster walls, torched walnut wood finishes and charcoal-colored terracotta tiles in a space that includes a 10-seat counter, a 17-seat lounge and a private dining room and terrace. Upstairs, Sakaeda will serve an omakase menu with Japanese-inspired dishes such as miso-glazed roasted carrots with carrot ginger dressing, finished with toasted pistachios.
“Being in the Design District, we thought that a high-end concept would be a perfect fit for the neighborhood,” Limb says about their first fine-dining spot. Matsuyoi’s cocktail program will highlight Japanese ingredients and spirits, with cocktails like the Get Lucky, a mix of gin, sake and green apple.
Williams will facilitate projects beyond restaurants for the hospitality group, and his influence is already in effect. Nami Nori’s next location will open in 2025 in Virginia Beach—Williams’ hometown. “I live there. And one of the greatest gift is to be able to have a Nami Nori in all the places we reside in,” he says. One dish that will always be on the menu at all outposts going forward is the spicy tuna dip with crispy rice chips, a favorite of the multi-hyphenate.
For the rolls, Limb passes on advice from Pharrell. “Pro tip: he recommends getting the crunchy nori on all the temaki instead of plain nori. It’s a substitution that we can make.”
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.