A new Japanese cafe and restaurant boasting authentic dishes from handmade onigiri to cheesy pepper edamame recently made its grand opening in the Ridgewood community at the end of August.
Hi-Node, located at 68-38 Forest Ave., joined the busy area of delicious restaurants and cafes on August 19 in the space where Plein Air Cafe used to be before closing its doors for good earlier this year. Now, with new ownership and a new vision, the space has transformed into a cozy Japanese restaurant that has been offering something new and exciting to the neighborhood as the community gets familiar with its delicious dishes.
The restaurant specializes in onigiri, or rice balls, wrapped in rice and nori, with choices like ginshari, a classic plain rice ball, tuna mayo, mentai, a spicy cod roe with a savory kick and more. They also offer sushi hand rolls, from spicy salmon to California, salmon avocado, and shrimp tempura.
The newly opened restaurant has other unique and tasty offerings to try, like their U.S. Wagyu Yakiniku Rice Sandwich, which is their signature rice sandwich, made with tender wagyu beef grilled with special sauce, and their Pork Katsu Sandwich, made with crispy pork cutlet and house-made tonkatsu sauce and cabbage. The restaurant offers an array of sashimi bowls and has a variety of must-try side dishes, from their aonori French fries and Kara-age, bite-sized chicken marinated in soy sauce, garlic, and ginger, and double-fried.
Hi-Node even has an assortment of must-try Japanese desserts and drinks, like their organic matcha soft-serve ice cream and Shiratama matcha Anmitsu, a rich organic matcha soft-serve topped with chewy shiratama mochi. For those looking for a refreshing drink, they have options like their cold hojicha strawberry latte, strawberry matcha, hot and iced coffee, and Japanese soda, to name just a few.
Whether guests are interested in dining in or ordering their food to go, the new restaurant is bringing a taste of Japanese cuisine and culture to the area, perfect for lunch or dinner throughout the week or weekend meetups with friends.
Hi-Node is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. To see more of their menu, visit their website or follow them at @hinodeny
