Rice & Nori, a fast-casual restaurant in Little Tokyo and South Pasadena, is preparing to open a new location in La Canada Flintridge at 711 Foothill Blvd.
The company’s third site is expected to open in a strip mall that includes tenants Gio’s Bakery, Jersey Mikes, Haruka Japanese Restaurant, Handel’s Homemade Ice Cream, CHICO’s, and MEGAFIT, according to intel received by What Now Media Group. A representative from Rice & Nori confirms with What Now Los Angeles that this location is opening at this site in late December or early January. It’s unclear at this point which space it will move into. Customers can expect freshly made Onigiri and Temaki.
This is a massive accomplishment for Rice & Nori, which is owned and operated by Mika Nakata Shenefelt and Regina Chen. They opened Rice & Nori the day before Thanksgiving 2018, next door to the sprawling Marukai market in Weller Court. Last year, the duo opened the company’s second location, the South Pasadena Town Square, offering a variety of Japanese onigiri and hand rolls.
Rice & Nori tapped George Architecture for its second site, which became the architect’s first completed project utilizing their real-time rendering software, Enscape. Enscape is a seamless Revit plug-in that allows colored renderings, walk-throughs, and virtual three-dimensional experiences, all driven by Revit content. This project featured clever space-making elements, an efficient and compact floor plan, and an elegant and sophisticated yet simple materials palette. It’s unclear if Rice & Nori owners will see the same architect for the company’s third location.
