Restaurateur Kevin Liu is expanding his Asian food empire, again. Just five months after opening Mai, a Japanese-French fusion concept in the Seaport district, Liu has opened NoriNori, a casual Japanese test kitchen in Brookline next to Cleveland Circle.

Like many of Liu’s concepts, NoriNori features the signature handrolls, a taco-style sushi presentation that wraps rice, fish and other ingredients in a large piece of dried seaweed (nori). For snackers, the nori fries are tossed with savory homemade seasoning and served with mentaiko mayo. But the heart of the menu is the bento boxes, a completely new offering among Liu’s restaurants.

Bento boxes are available for lunch and dinner and come with seven different protein options in the categories of chicken, beef or fish. The miso-buttered cod, available in handroll form and as a bento box protein, is a bestseller. So is the beef tongue bento box that comes in at $21.

In a nod to the student-heavy population of Cleveland Circle, the prices are intentionally accessible. Handrolls are $5-6 apiece and bento boxes, featuring protein, rice, soup and salad, range from $19 for juicy grilled chicken to $27 for yakiniku, grilled wagyu steak.

“We want to provide a meal for under $30 rather than just a dish,” said Liu. “The concept is affordability without cutting corners on ingredients.”

NoriNori is Liu’s biggest restaurant yet, at about 3,000 square feet. The space previously housed Sushi Momento.

Despite the more accessible price point, a boon for customers in tough economic times, the design of the space is chic, draped in black with subtle neon accents and sculptural metal decor pieces. Diners will also spot a giant Labubu at the host stand. The quirky monster dolls have become an unintentional hallmark of Liu’s restaurants.

The restaurant is in the midst of the bureaucratic slog of securing a liquor license; when it comes through, Liu plans to open a highball bar program. Highballs are tall, often simple mixed drinks that use soda or another carbonated mixer as a key ingredient.

They’re popular in izakayas, Japanese pubs.

As always, Liu uses his favorite dishes as inspiration. For NoriNori, chicken nanban was a savory starting point. That dish, served here in bento box form, is a juicy fried chicken breast topped with creamy egg salad.

“This is common practice in Japan, but not here,” said Liu. “We want to do something that Boston has not seen before.”

ON THE WEB

Learn more at norinori.kitchen