HINOKI ROLLS ON After 21 years, Hilton Head Island’s favorite sushi place still serves up the finest Japanese experience. BY BARRY KAUFMAN
There is a term called moritsuke that comes to mind when you dine at Hinoki. The Japanese art of food arrangement, mortisuke turns every plate into a canvas. Through the seasoned eye of a skilled practitioner, a simple sushi roll becomes a wonder to behold, its interplay of colors, textures and ingredients setting the stage for the flavor that awaits. It’s a term that comes to mind at Hinoki, because within this storied institution they’ve expanded the art of moritsuke to encompass every aspect of the restaurant experience. It begins before you even 16
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PHOTOS BY ROB KAUFMAN
enter, with the New Orleans Plaza walkway to the door feeling like a trip through a bamboo forest, stone ishigumi gardens peeking between the stalks.
And then you step inside a restaurant brilliantly subdivided into smaller intimate spaces and the grand dining room presided over by a suit of samurai armor and a raised dais of chabudai tables. Through windows to one side you spy the recently revamped walled zen garden, two Japanese maples lending a sense of serene beauty. And then you spy the sushi bar and the real star of the show, Chikara “Chi Chi” Yamagishi. His larger-than-life personality and ever-present smile are worth the price of admission alone. It’s been a complete feast for the
