I love it when my food feeds me and entertains me. Recently, my dear friend Lauren turned 24 (she looks 12…no really, she looks 12). For her birthday, her husband decided to “surprise” her by gathering a few of her closest couple friends together to go out to dinner and then play glow in the dark putt putt golf (different, but awesome).
The Ukai Japanese Grill:
We had a total of eight people in our party, which is the perfect number for Ukai. The Ukai has two sections of the restaurant. A section dedicated entirely to sushi (I will not eat sushi, not even vegetarian sushi) and a section that is made up of several tables that have a grill built right into the center of the table with seating all around the grill. A chef stands beside the table and prepares your food, very flamboyantly, right in front of you.
I was super-impressed, I think the very tasty and strong bahama mama beverage I was drinking went a long way to my over the top response. The chefs all wear tall hats with a deep carve out in the center. At first I thought this was odd, but not after I saw them take “scraps” from the cooking (empty egg shells, etc.) and “flip” them up into the air and catch them in their hats. Man, this is better than watching a puppet show! They also do “tricks” with the food that is quite entertaining…throwing an egg up in the air and having it come down on a knife like a sword, somehow smashing the egg all over the grill but keeping the shell out of the rest of the food…I mean that takes a surgeon-like talent to do that.
I also saw one chef make a volcano out of a whole onion simply by carving a hole in the top and setting it on the grill and then he kept spinning it this way and that until it worked up an internal steam. Once it got hot enough the onion steam shot out of the top just like a volcano. All entertainment antics aside, the food is super fresh, super delicious, and soothes any “kitchen” fears one might have as everything is prepared right in front of you. You have your choice of steak, chicken, scallops, shrimp, lobster, sushi, etc. prepared just about any way you want it. Tons of fresh veggie selections and intriguing appetizers like the one my spouse and I had: Spicy Tuna Poppers. These are crab, tuna, and cream cheese stuffed jalapeno poppers that are deep fried and then drizzled with chipotle garlic mayo and teriyaki sauce. The combination of all of those flavors is just to die for.
So if you want to have a great meal and be entertained at the same time, give an Ukai style grill a try. Word of advice: wear something lightweight to the restaurant, maybe even sleeveless as it gets quite hot being so close to the grill.
