Pharrell Williams’s Nami Nori Hand Roll Concept to Open in West Palm Beach
By Julia Echikson April 30, 2026 3:25 pm
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Nami Nori, the hand roll restaurant backed by musician Pharrell Williams, is coming to West Palm Beach, Fla.
The firm behind the Japanese-inspired concept, Launchpad Hospitality, inked a 4,300-square-foot lease within West Palm’s new Nora District, according to the landlord, a joint venture led by Place Projects.
The restaurant, which will include an outdoor patio, will open next year at 855 North Railroad Avenue, across the street from the IGK hair salon. A representative for the developer declined to provide the length of the lease and the asking rents.
“What makes Nami Nori so compelling is the combination of exceptional food, a thoughtful customer experience, and a high-design yet welcoming environment,” Joe Furst, founder and managing principal of Place Projects, said in a statement. “It’s exactly the kind of business we’re building Nora around.”
The new restaurant comes a little over a year after a Nami Nori outpost opened at the Design District in Miami. Nami Nori was founded in New York and today has locations in the West Village and Williamsburg as well as Montclaire, N.J., and Virginia Beach, Williams’s hometown. The chart-topping artist and producer is a partner of Launchpad Hospitality, alongside Taka Sakaeda and Jihan Lee.
The first phase of Nora District launched late last year and includes 13 industrial buildings that were converted into about 150,000 square feet of retail space. The developers — a partnership that also includes NDT Development and Wheelock Street Capital — obtained a $84 million construction loan from Bank Ozk in 2024.
Other retail tenants that have already opened include New York establishments H&H bagels, Juliana’s Pizza and Van Leeuwen Ice Cream, as well as Warby Parker and [Solidcore].
Later this year, the 201-room Nora Hotel is set to also open. A partnership with BD Hotels, which owns the Bowery and the Jane hotels in New York, the six-story property will house a Pastis French bistro and secured a $75 million construction loan in 2024.
Julia Echikson can be reached at jechikson@commercialobserver.com.
