The future home of Cocoron.Photo: Jenny Miller
Japanese-born chef Yoshihito Kida has worked as a noodle-maker at Soba Totto, and soon he'll open his own soba shop, Cocoron ("heartwarming" in Japanese). "Japanese people know soba, but American people do not; soba is very healthy," he tells us. His buckwheat noodles will be topped with kimchee, scallions, cucumber, daikon, and hard-boiled egg, among other options. When we saw the space, it looked nearly done (the former Don the Verb clothing shop has been outfitted with a wraparound counter that looks onto an open kitchen), but Kida has been waiting two months for ConEd to turn on the gas. Booze isn't part of the opening plan, but the chef-owner eventually hopes to serve a selection of sakes.
Cocoron, 61 Delancey St., nr. Allen St.; 212-925-5220