By Cameron Lee
December 17, 2025
Onigiri has long been a staple of Japanese culture, dating back over 2,000 years. The crispy nori-wrapped rice balls with savory fillings serve as the perfect portable meal and a healthy alternative to traditional, greasier fast food.
Its early documented origins date back to the Heian period in Japan, where onigiri became a favorite of samurai on the battlefield due to its simplicity and preservable nature, often filled with pickled or salted items.
B&K Tea Cafe, the popular Charlotte-area boba shop that started as a pop-up, founded by Bobby Cain and Kristen Compton in 2021, will now offer its first full-menu onigiri shop at their new flagship location in downtown Cornelius. Partnering with Adrian Maraan, the owner of the onigiri pop-up Oni Stop Riceball Shop, the Cornelius location will feature 16 fillings of the popular Japanese konbini (convenience store) item.
Maraan, a Filipino-American who grew up in Jacksonville, North Carolina, started the pop-up in 2023, serving tightly wrapped onigiri at festivals and events in the Charlotte area. He uses Calrose rice for his onigiri — a medium-grain, soft, and slightly sticky rice chosen both for its texture and a hint of nostalgia from growing up in a Navy family.
“We would always get our groceries in the commissary on the military base, and that was the only brand of rice they sold,” Maraan said. “A lot of sushi rice requires medium to short-grain rice anyway, and this [Calrose] has a pretty neutral flavor.”
Oni Stop offers traditional fillings like spicy tuna and salmon, but their Korean-inspired flavors — fried chicken doused in gochujang and topped with a slice of danmuji or takuan (yellow pickled daikon), or kimchi-filled options — are a must-try. Their tempura shrimp and seaweed options provide crunchier textures, while breakfast varieties with bacon, egg, and Spam offer more traditional American flavors. With multiple protein options — including imitation crab, commonly used in Korean kimbap — there’s a wide array of filling combinations.
Onigiri’s popularity has risen, like many Asian foods and beverages post-pandemic, especially with convenience-store content sparking interest among Americans in products sold exclusively overseas. The Japanese also consume far less commercial fast food and more healthy fast snacks like onigiri, which have considerably fewer calories, fat, and sodium, yet are just as filling as a traditional fast food burger.
“It’s just rice and some form of meat or vegetable. Really fast, and it’s not expensive. Spend like $5 and you’re satiated,” Cain said.
The onigiri market revenue in North America was valued at $1.2 billion in 2024 and is expected to more than double by 2033, according to Verified Market Reports (VMR), an international commercial market research company.
In addition to Americans seeking healthier fast food alternatives, there is growing interest in tastier and more innovative flavors driven by curiosity about Asian cuisine and snacks. What was once called “jelly doughnuts” in popular anime like Pokémon — reflecting the cultural divide between Eastern and Western audiences — onigiri will likely be popping up all over the East Coast in its many variations.
Cain and Maraan will stick to their 16 original flavors for now but intend to experiment with seasonal specials and may eventually offer a build-your-own option.
B&K Tea Cafe has grown to five retail locations since 2021, starting as a pop-up before opening their first brick-and-mortar in downtown Concord in 2022. They also have locations in Huntersville, Kannapolis, Mooresville, and now Cornelius, considered their flagship store, as it is the only location offering the full onigiri menu, also Korean- and teriyaki-style chicken, as well as steamed or crispy dumplings.
Follow B&K Tea Cafe and Oni Stop Rice Ball Shop on Instagram, and be sure to stop by the downtown Cornelius location try the full onigiri menu.
Cornelius
21714 Catawba Ave.
Cornelius, NC 28031
704-237-4813
Concord
17 Union St.
Concord, NC 28025
980-248-1712
Kannapolis
103 West Ave.
Kannapolis, NC 28081
704-932-4928
Mooresville
115 Commons Dr.
Mooresville, NC 28117
704-360-4161
Huntersville
14231 Market Square Dr.
Huntersville, NC 28078
704-274-5910
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