From doughnuts to ramen, here are 5 restaurants expected to open in Louisville in February
February is here and there's much to look forward to, from Super Bowl snacks to Valentine's Day sweets.
At least five new restaurants are expected to open in Louisville, including a once-closed doughnut shop, two ramen restaurants, and a new location of a Venezuelan eatery.
Read on for details about the eateries set to open this month.
Know of a restaurant opening in February missed? Send a note to ahancock@courier-journal.com.
Hi-Five Doughnuts
1940 Harvard Drive, hifivedoughnuts.com
Hi-Five Doughnuts is finally coming back. The popular doughnut shop launched in 2012 and grew from a mobile business into a small brick-and-mortar in Butchertown. Hi-Five moved out of that space in November 2022 with a plan to open its new home by early 2023. After some delays, Hi-Five's owners hope to open by Feb. 14 in the Douglass Loop.
Hokkaido Ramen and Sushi
5207 New Cut Road, hokkaidoramenlouisville.com
Hokkaido Ramen and Sushi is set to be the newest restaurant to open at Colonial Gardens , the food complex in south Louisville. The menu features appetizers such as fried oysters, sesame balls and deep-fried octopus dumplings, several sushi rolls, poke bowls, 10 options for ramen and bubble teas. It is expected to open in February.
Jin Doshirak
211 S. Fifth St., jindoshirak.com
This restaurant serving Korean food and sushi is coming to downtown Louisville in the former space of All Thai'd Up. Song Kim, who previously worked as the chef at Osaka Japanese Restaurant, founded Jin Doshirak. Osaka shut down in September, following a large fire that damaged the building at 426 W. Market St.
Jin Doshirak, which translates to "lunchbox" in Korean, is expected to open in February or early March, according to the restaurant's Facebook page.
Kiwami Ramen
1700 Bardstown Road, kiwami-ramenbar.com
Kiwami Ramen is on track to open this month in the former Wild Ginger Sushi Bistro space on Bardstown Road, following an extension renovation to the building. The restaurant will serve Japanese fare and ramen, made with broth slow-cooked for over 20 hours.
Kiwami Ramen initially targeted a December opening date, however, a sizable remodel is still underway. Co-owner Duy Tran estimates the renovation will cost $500,000. Tran teamed up with his brother, Duc, to open Kiwami and bring "something really authentic" to their hometown of Louisville, he previously said.
Señora Arepa
928 Baxter Ave., senora-arepa.com
The logo for Señora Arepa is already on the side of the building on Baxter Avenue which for years was the home of Taco Luchador. Soon after the taco chain's original location closed on the last day of 2023, work began to turn the space into Señora Arepa, a Venezuelan eatery. Both concepts are owned by Olé Hospitality Group . The newest Señora Arepa, which has another location in St. Matthews, is slated to open in February.
The decision to turn the taco shop into the second Señora Arepa comes after a rising number of taco joints have opened in the Highlands, according to Rick Moir, the group's managing partner.
"We wanted to bring our other concept there and maybe draw some of the crowd we used to have in NuLu," Moir told the Courier Journal. "We wanted to bring something different to the area."
Arepas, seared corn cakes with any number of fillings, are the centerpiece of the eatery's offerings, though many other Venezuelan sandwiches, salads, entrees and desserts round out the menu.
Reach food reporter Amanda Hancock at ahancock@courier-journal.com .
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: 5 new restaurants expected to open in Louisville in February
