Vegan Island: Hinoki

My husband and I used to love eating fish sushi. In fact, it was the meal we shared on our first date and many dates after that. We didn’t wake up one day and decide that we no longer liked the taste of fish sushi. Instead we happened to learn about the plastics and other toxic contaminants from ocean pollution getting into the flesh of fish which is then consumed and the overfishing of the oceans. Luckily we have access to delicious plant-based vegan sushi at Hinoki on the south end of Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, to please and nourish us instead.

We like to start off our meal with soup and salad. I request the miso soup WITHOUT dashi. Dashi is a class of soup and cooking stock used in Japanese cuisine. It forms the base for miso soup, clear broth, noodle broth, and many kinds of simmering liquid to accentuate the savory flavor of umami. The most common form of dashi is a simple broth or fish stock made by heating water containing kombu (edible kelp) and kezurikatsuo (shavings of katsuobushi – preserved, fermented skipjack tuna or cheaper bonito) to near-boiling, then straining the resultant liquid. Dashi is not vegan.

Requesting miso soup without dashi at Hinoki or other Japanese restaurants is a special request that requires custom made soup. Please ask nicely and just skip the miso soup if the request can not be honored. It’s a good idea to call for reservations and let the restaurant know at that time that you’ll be requesting miso soup without dashi so that the kitchen staff can plan ahead.

The mixed greens salad with ginger dressing is delicious and a great compliment to the soup. Eating at Hinoki is the only weekly meal that I eat with chopsticks. Eating the salad with chopsticks requires a bit of extra effort for me and is worth it. Make sure to use the soup spoon to get the remaining salad dressing from the bottom of the bowl. Every bit is delicious!

My husband orders a bowl of brown rice with his soup and salad. Spoonfuls of rice dipped into the soup is delightful. Also, a spoonful of rice into the empty salad bowl to soak up the remaining dressing is also delightful. Try it and thank me later.

With my meal I enjoy a hot cup of green tea. Even on a hot summer evening the soup and tea are marvelous. We usually dine when the restaurant opens at 5:30pm and sit by one of the lovely windows in the main dining room. It’s our sacred weekly dinner date and it demarcates when our work week officially turns into the weekend. Every Friday at 5:30pm when I feel my body ease down into the chair at Hinoki, I feel like I’ve been whisked away on vacation. I love the whole ritual and process so much!

For my entrée I order two rolls made with brown rice, avocado, asparagus, cucumber, and scallions. Of course, the nori seaweed is already part of the roll. I truly appreciate that Hinoki offers brown rice as an option to white rice. It has such good flavor with the green vegetables (avocado and cucumbers technically are fruit, but you know what I mean).

My husband orders two rolls with white rice, tofu, miso paste, and scallions. He is vegan but doesn’t love eating vegetables quite as much as I do. He enjoys wasabi and I do not. We both use soy sauce for dipping the vegan sushi roll slices.

It’s a fairly healthful, simple meal and we enjoy eating it on a regular basis. We are both so predictable and order the same meal every week. When life is busy throwing curve balls, it’s nice for some things to be steady and constant. We know we’re going to be well fed and well cared for at Hinoki.

The hostesses, wait staff, and sushi chefs couldn’t be nicer. We are always greeted with smiles and warmth. Our food arrives promptly and my cup of green tea rarely empties.

Hinoki is located at 37 New Orleans Road with ample parking. They are open for lunch Tuesday through Friday 11:30-2pm and for dinner Monday through Saturday 5:30-10pm. Visit their website, and find reviews on TripAdvisor, Yelp, and on the global vegan food finder database HappyCow. All seating is indoors. You can choose to sit at the sushi bar, in the sushi bar area, in the main dining room, in the side dining room, or sit at a sunken table. There is also a private dining room for larger parties and a cocktail lounge if you have to wait for a table. During the summer months and on weekends, I’d recommend calling (843) 785-9800 for reservations. It is family friendly and high chairs are available.

I thoroughly enjoy eating veggie sushi at Hinoki and look forward to one day perhaps getting to eat some plant-based ahimi at Hinoki. Until then, we’ll savor our blessings at a great local restaurant that has accommodated us and our eating preferences for nearly two decades.