When couple Rav Randhawa and Dana Romano came across growing onigiri-centric chain Onigilly Japanese Kitchen at a trade show in Los Angeles, they were intrigued. Founded by Koji Kanematsu in 2007, the rice-ball chain, which has developed seven locations across the San Francisco Bay area, offers an extensive menu of onigiri options, bowls and sides such as miso soup and edamame.
When Randhawa and Romano toured the corporate locations in the Bay Area and did a taste test of the food, they were impressed and wanted to add it to their burgeoning franchise portfolio.
“For us, the most important thing was to like the product,” Romano told What Now Los Angeles. “We were ready and willing to let the deal fall apart if the food didn’t meet our expectations. We were so excited to have the experience and the food match the innovation that Koji has brought to the concept.”
Now, the duo are preparing to open their first franchise location with the brand at Del Amo Fashion Center in Torrance. The space, located near Philz Coffee, is 1,300 square feet — a larger footprint than most other franchise locations in development.
“We’re excited to have a little bit of a bigger space to host more of the community,” Romano said.
Randhawa and Romano both have corporate backgrounds and they hope to bring their experience in operations to the franchise as they open the forthcoming spot in Torrance and seek to expand to additional Onigilly locations in the future.
The Torrance location is slated to open in the summer. Randhawa and Romano hope that its opening will bring a fresh, accessible food option to the local community.
“You can get a really filling and nutritious meal at an economical price,” Romano said. “That’s something that’s important for us in a market where a lot of people are trying to figure out how to spend their dollars in the most efficient way.”
Onigilly has other spots across Southern California in its sights, as well, as it pushes for a 20-unit expansion in Southern California this year. A franchise location is heading to San Diego this spring, and there is an Orange County location opening at Brea Mall this summer. A recent interview with director of franchise development Kevin Siegel revealed that the brand is also targeting Seattle, Reno, Las Vegas and Hawaii this year.
