For a little while, it seemed that Houston’s sushi restaurants were in trouble. President Donald Trump’s sweeping global tariffs raised prices on Japanese goods, and as operators passed the higher costs downward, consumers were left feeling more squeezed. But sushi chefs, much like fish, have a way of adapting to choppy waters.
Temaki, or hand roll sushi, has been around since the mid-20th century, jumping from Japan to California in 1987. But it didn’t immediately catch on nationwide; only in the last seven years have Houstonians been seeing hand rolls, mostly at restaurants specifically specializing in them.
After an initial wave, then a lull, the food item of fillings and sushi rice wrapped in a crispy sheet of seaweed are starting to pop up more and more in Houston, at places like Handies Douzo, Hando, Kokoro, NoriNori, and now Koyo.
What’s behind this newfound sushi roll momentum? According to industry watchers, it appears to be fueled from both operators who want to keep costs down and diners who want a high-quality sushi experience at an affordable price.
Jonathan Horowitz, founder of Convive Hospitality Consulting and longtime industry professional, told Chron a number of old and new factors are feeding into the city’s hand roll restaurant spike. For one, Asian cuisine has always been a “hot” category, and sushi also overlaps with the healthy dining segment. Plus, it’s somewhat cheaper to make hand rolls happen.
“That type of concept has lower overhead than other types of restaurants: smaller physical footprints, lower labor costs, less buildout (don’t need full kitchen hot lines), streamlined menus, and lots of cross-utilization of products,” Horowitz said. “[Operators] can add alcohol into the mix to increase PPA (average check per person) and create a more elevated experience.”
Horowitz added consumers like hand rolls because they hit a reasonable middle ground between fast-casual and full-service prices. Houston influencer Esmeralda Obispo, better known by her social media handle @antojoshouston, has been to Koyo in Webster, NoriNori twice, and Hando four times.
“What I find enjoyable about them is that usually they’re very trendy quick places you can catch a bite at, Obispo said. “They feel like somewhere I can eat without too much commitment of sitting at a table, booking a reservation and doing the whole show of going out to eat.”
The trend doesn’t appear to be slowing down, either. Koyo Hand Roll Bar, originally based in Webster, opened its second location in the Heights earlier this month. Meanwhile, Duckstache Hospitality of Handies Douzo fame has plans to open locations in Uptown and East Downtown sometime within the next year. There are already three locations of Handies Douzo out there.
“There are so many places to eat and it all feels so heavy and big portioned that hitting up a hand roll place just seems like a good idea,” Obispo said.