This profile is in active compilation — some details are awaiting a cited source.

Kata Nori Hand Roll Bar is Kansas City’s first temaki-focused sushi bar, at 404 E 18th St in the East Crossroads of Kansas City, Missouri. Opened in September 2023 by three childhood Kansas City friends — majority owner Nam Phan, executive chef Anh “Bass” Pham (a Uchi Houston veteran), and Kyung “KK” Kim — the restaurant serves high-end hand rolls (temaki): nori cones rolled to order, served intact and eaten by hand, around a roughly 24-seat U-shaped sushi bar. It is independent and locally owned. A second, larger location is in development in Overland Park, Kansas (4929 W 119th St, the former André’s Confiserie Suisse space), with a soft launch targeted for early summer 2026.1234

Description

Kata Nori Hand Roll Bar is a temaki-focused sushi restaurant in the East Crossroads. A hand roll, or temaki, is made by wrapping a sheet of nori into a cone and filling it with sushi rice and a mix of raw and cooked fish, seafood, and fresh vegetables.1 Rather than using a sushi mat to form a roll that is then sliced, hand rolls are rolled by hand and served intact; diners pick them up whole and bite directly from the cone-shaped wrapper.2 Until Kata Nori opened, Kansas City had no sushi restaurant devoted solely to the art of the hand roll — the restaurant is widely described in the local press as KC’s first hand-roll bar.123

The restaurant is built around a roughly 24-seat U-shaped bar as its primary dining space, emphasizing a social, shareable atmosphere over traditional table seating.2 Co-owner Kyung Kim framed the concept this way: “We know sushi is a fun, shareable style of dining. We want to embrace that laid-back, social experience but also bring Kansas City sushi into an upscale, fine-dining atmosphere.”2

Ownership and history

PeriodOperator / milestone
2023Three childhood Kansas City friends — Nam Phan (majority owner), chef Anh “Bass” Pham, and Kyung “KK” Kim — develop Kata Nori as KC’s first hand-roll bar, taking the East Crossroads space at 404 E 18th St123
Sept 18, 2023Soft opening3
Sept 28, 2023Grand opening3
Dec 2025André’s Confiserie Suisse closes its 119th St location in Overland Park (end of December), freeing the space Kata Nori would take4
2026Second Kata Nori location announced for 4929 W 119th St, Overland Park, KS — a ~2,800 sq ft space (larger than the Crossroads original) with a ~20-seat sushi bar, ~20-seat dining room, and a cocktail bar; soft launch targeted early summer 2026, grand opening mid-summer 202654
PresentCrossroads location open and active5

Kata Nori is independent and locally owned, with no corporate parent.13 The three owners are described across local coverage as childhood friends who grew up in the Kansas City area.13 Chef Anh “Bass” Pham previously worked at Uchi, a top sushi restaurant in Houston, Texas — experience the owners cite as the inspiration for bringing that caliber of sushi to Kansas City.2

One widely repeated detail in early coverage holds that majority owner Nam Phan is connected to Sao Mai, a Vietnamese restaurant on Independence Avenue said to have been owned and operated by his parents. This appears in roundup coverage but was not confirmed in the primary feature sources reviewed on this pass. on the Sao Mai / Phan-family connection.

Some early roundup coverage also lists Jennifer Vu among the partners alongside Phan, Pham, and Kim. The two most detailed feature sources name the three principals (Phan, Pham, Kim); Vu’s role and current involvement are not confirmed here. on the full partner roster.

Last verified: 2026-06-17 · Source: Kata Nori official site (menu shown as images) + KC dining press / menu aggregator · URL(s): https://www.katanorikc.com/menu, https://werthwhilewandering.com/kata-nori-heavenly-hand-rolls/, https://www.novacircle.com/spots/north-america/united-states/missouri/kansas-city/kansas-city-mo/kata-nori-hand-roll-bar-0f23a8/menu · Confidence: Medium

Kata Nori’s menu is built around hand rolls (temaki) ordered individually or as chef-curated sets, supported by crudos, sashimi, and small plates. The format is omakase-adjacent: each roll is made to order at the U-shaped counter and meant to be eaten immediately for crispness; seafood is air-shipped from Japan weekly.67 The official menu is published only as images on the site, so individual item names and prices below are drawn from KC dining coverage and a menu aggregator and may shift seasonally. on current pricing and exact roster.

Hand-roll sets (the signature way to order)

  • 3 Hand Rolls — $28 — king salmon, spicy tuna, red crab8 (price)
  • 4 Hand Rolls — $38 — king salmon, spicy tuna, negihama, negitoro8 (price)
  • 5 Hand Rolls — $49 — king salmon, spicy tuna, negitoro, red crab, ebi katsu8 (price)

Hand rolls (temaki)

  • King salmon — signature roll featured across all set tiers8
  • Spicy tuna — signature roll featured across all set tiers8
  • Negitoro — fatty tuna with scallion78
  • Kani — blue crab with cucumber and ponzu7
  • Uni — sea urchin7
  • Negihama, red crab, ebi katsu — additional rolls offered within the set menus8
  • Wagyu roll — luxury hand roll featuring wagyu beef6

Crudos & small plates

  • Hotate crudo — scallop with jalapeño, cucumber, and roe7
  • Seasonal crudos — refined raw small plates that rotate6
  • Furikake rice — finished with crispy shallots; can be enhanced with wagyu beef7

Sashimi

  • Otoro — prized fatty tuna68
  • Sake toro — salmon belly7
  • Madai — sea bream7
  • Website: https://www.katanorikc.com
  • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katanorikc/
  • Phone: (913) 909-3954 — listed on the official Kata Nori website for the Crossroads location.5 NOTE: the seed audit flagged this number as likely wrong because it is a 913 (Kansas/Johnson County) area code on a KCMO address. In fact it is the number Kata Nori publishes on its own site, so it is treated as verified; the 913/KCMO mismatch is explained by the owners’ Johnson County ties and the forthcoming Overland Park (KS) location, not an error.

See also

Sources

Footnotes

  1. IN Kansas City Magazine, “Kata Nori Hand Roll Bar is Coming to the East Crossroads” — describes the temaki/hand-roll concept; owners Nam Phan, Anh “Bass” Pham, Kyung Kim as KC natives; KC’s first restaurant focused solely on the hand roll; references to the partners and the Phan family / Sao Mai. https://www.inkansascity.com/eat-drink/news/kata-nori-hand-roll-bar-is-coming-to-the-east-crossroads/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  2. The Pitch, “Sleight of Hand: Kata Nori is rolling out high-end sushi in the heart of the Crossroads” (Oct 3, 2023) — address 404 E 18th St, KC MO 64108; three co-owners grew up in KC (Nam Phan, majority owner; Anh “Bass” Pham, exec chef; Kyung Kim); Bass’s Uchi (Houston) background; 24-seat U-shaped bar; hand rolls served intact; Kim quote on upscale/shareable concept. https://www.thepitchkc.com/sleight-of-hand-kata-nori-is-rolling-out-high-end-sushi-in-the-heart-of-the-crossroads/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7

  3. Kansas City Magazine, “Coming to the East Crossroads: KC’s first hand rolled sushi bar” — KC’s first hand-roll bar; owners chef Anh Pham, Nam Phan, Kyung Kim as childhood KC friends; soft opening Sept 18, 2023, grand opening Sept 28, 2023. https://kansascitymag.com/coming-to-the-east-crossroads-kcs-first-hand-rolled-sushi-bar/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7

  4. Kansas City Magazine, “Kata Nori Is Opening A Second Location. Here’s What We Know.” — second location at 4929 W 119th St, Overland Park, KS; ~2,800 sq ft; ~20-seat sushi bar plus ~20-seat dining room and cocktail bar (40–50 capacity); taking over the former André’s Confiserie Suisse space (closed end of December); owners Kyung “KK” Kim, Nam Phan, chef Anh “Bass” Pham; soft launch early summer 2026, grand opening mid-summer 2026. https://kansascitymag.com/kata-nori-is-opening-a-second-location-heres-what-we-know/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  5. Kata Nori — official website, Locations page: Crossroads at 404 E 18th St, KC MO 64108, phone (913) 909-3954, with hours; Overland Park at 4929 W 119th St, Overland Park, KS 66209 “Coming Soon,” soft launch early summer 2026. https://www.katanorikc.com/locations ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  6. Kata Nori — official website, menu page (menu published as images; text notes hand rolls, seasonal crudos / refined small plates, and a cocktail + sake program; seafood air-shipped from Japan weekly; chef Anh Pham heads the culinary team). Wagyu roll and otoro/chef’s-choice items referenced in homepage/menu coverage. Verified 2026-06-17. https://www.katanorikc.com/menu (also https://www.katanorikc.com/) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  7. Werthwhile Wandering, “Kata Nori: Heavenly Hand Rolls in Kansas City” — firsthand dining account naming specific items: kani (blue crab, cucumber, ponzu), negitoro, and uni hand rolls; hotate crudo (scallop, jalapeño, cucumber, roe); furikake rice with crispy shallots (optional wagyu); sake toro (salmon belly) and madai (sea bream) sashimi. No prices given. Verified 2026-06-17. https://werthwhilewandering.com/kata-nori-heavenly-hand-rolls/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8

  8. NovaCircle, “Kata Nori Hand Roll Bar Menu Overview” (menu aggregator) — hand-roll sets: 3 rolls $28 (king salmon, spicy tuna, red crab); 4 rolls $38 (king salmon, spicy tuna, negihama, negitoro); 5 rolls $49 (king salmon, spicy tuna, negitoro, red crab, ebi katsu); plus otoro/negitoro/uni among signature ingredients. Aggregator pricing — treat as Medium confidence and re-verify against the live image menu. Verified 2026-06-17. https://www.novacircle.com/spots/north-america/united-states/missouri/kansas-city/kansas-city-mo/kata-nori-hand-roll-bar-0f23a8/menu ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8

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On the record — ks.city/registry/kata-nori · record updated 2026-06-23