THE BEST: Teppanyaki

[oakapple]

You all know teppanyaki (a.k.a. hibachi), right? That's the Japanese cuisine where you sit in a semi-circle around a flat steel grill. The chef prepares your food and performs a bunch of slapstick knife and spatula tricks. Benihana has popularized the style in the U.S., though there are other practitioners.

This weekend, I wanted to take my son (age 12) to a hibachi restaurant. Benihana was booked, so I tried Ginza (295 Fifth Avenue between 1st & 2nd Streets, Park Slope). Ginza is a lot less "Disney-fied" than Benihana, but the food is no better. I'd recommend it as a show for the kids, but not as serious cuisine.

I have had great teppanyaki once in my life, but it was in a five-star hotel in Tokyo. Anytime I've had it in the West, it has been a Benihana-like show with forgettable food. So it made me wonder: does great teppanyaki/hibachi-style cooking exist in New York? Or are the only options Benihana and its imitators?

[oakapple]

Incidentally, Craig Claiborne awarded two stars to Benihana on May 8, 1970. If there is a more recent NYT review, I can't find it.

[raji]

My question to you would be - what was your experience in Japan like? High-quality beef and vegetables cooked on a large flat grill in front of you by a Japanese men in a French chef's hat?

Teppanyaki in Japan initially came about as a result of the presence of and to cater to all the occupying American forces; beef had only in the country several decades by then anyway. Then, a lot of the theatrics that you see at Benihana were largely the invention of Rocky Aoki. Another angle on that is teppanyaki as conceived by Taiwan - they're everywhere over there, and I bet there is a Taiwanese teppanyaki joint in Flushing. I mention Taiwan because of what we think of "teppanyaki" theirs is probably the tastiest, thanks in part to prodigious amounts of various kinds of black pepper used.

I know where to get a really good Japanese steak (check Kamui Den thread for instance), but when I think Japanese TEPPAN cooking, I think okonomiyaki, monjya, yakisoba, OR Yakiniku or Korean BBQ. Or you may want ishiyaki. But I think teppanyaki as we know it is largely uninteresting food covered in sesame oil...

[oakapple]

My question to you would be - what was your experience in Japan like? High-quality beef and vegetables cooked on a large flat grill in front of you by a Japanese men in a French chef's hat?

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It was too long ago for me to remember the chef's hat (if he wore any), but yes, it was very high-quality beef and vegetables, impeccably prepared.

I'm not in a position to know the history of it. I'm just asking if there are any examples of it being done well in New York, or if the only options are circus acts with mediocre food à la Benihana.

[raji]

Well, I think then this is a case of New York being "too cool for school" because I'm simply not aware of one, certainly not owned by Japanese, other than Benihana, which, for what it's worth, is the original, so, it should be the best of circus acts and most mediocre of foods. ;-) That, and you need a relatively LARGE Japanese restaurant to pull this off, i.e. a house, because the whole teppan setup and seats and whatnot. There are large-box Japanese restaurants in NY, but they're not doing teppanyaki.

If you want more circus, check out Ninja.

Impeccable wagyu & vegetables, Sugiyama's wagyu kaiseki

A great Japanese steak and very modern Japanese cuisinse, LAN

but, sorry boss, no teppan!

[raji]

Oh, there are a bunch in Westchester, which are better than average, Gasho, Nodo in White Plains, but some of those places I haven't been in 20 years.

SO, I'm going to venture to say the best you might find would be the Teppanyaki located at Matsushima restaurant, due to it's proximity to the Mitsuwa, which means it's privvy to a pretty high-quality source of ingredients

http://www.mitsuwanj.com/en/store/matsushima.htm

[raji]

Rocky Aoki dies, but Benihana lives!

[ScottNYC]

There is a great one in NYC called East on E 44th between 2nd and 3rd. Only the front part is around the grill but they have a large menu and on 1 day during the week they have a special half price deal. Enjoy!