Teppenyaki - Trying Something Different

Many families rarely get a chance to go out and enjoy a meal together. When they do, its usually a standard family restaurant with a typical menu that includes everything from hamburgers to seafood. Indeed, these family restaurants provide an ideal atmosphere for children with flashy decor and multiple televisions. Ethnic restaurants have gained more fervor over recent years, but much of this fare is designed for the adult family members who enjoy the exotic dishes and a quiet atmosphere. Teppanyaki-style restaurants are unique on all fronts. They combine a unique ethnic fare that goes beyond burgers and fries, as well as a unique family atmosphere that makes the food the main entertainment event.

Teppenyaki is a Japanese style of cooking that uses a flattop grill to cook common American ingredients such as steak and shrimp, as well as traditional Japanese dishes, including okonomiyaki, monjayaki, or yakisoba. This style of restaurant first originated in Japan in the mid 1940s. Although some of the food fare may have been traditional Japanese dishes, these restaurants quickly became popular among American tourists, who found great entertainment in the skilled maneuvers and showmanship involved with serving the meal. The typical restaurant prepares the food in a kitchen and employs a server to bring the food to the guest. Instead, the chef is also the server at a teppenyaki restaurant. Each table is placed in front of an iron griddle, which is where the food is prepared. Then, the food is cooked using a variety of different juggling and entertainment techniques.

There are a number of popular chef's tricks that guests can expect to see anytime they visit a teppenyaki restaurant. For instance, fried rice is a popular dish that is made fresh to order with precise juggling of the spatula and knives. Chopping vegetables is simple enough, but many guests have found themselves fascinated with the chopping techniques that are rarely duplicated at the average restaurant. With other ingredients, such as shrimp, the chef can butterfly and remove the tails instantly and effortlessly, even discarding the tails in their hat for extra showmanship. The crack of an egg or cooking onions is truly and art when it comes to the mastery of these chefs.

Teppanyaki restaurants add a lot of flavor to the average family night out. While many families might find themselves at a trendy American restaurant with nothing offer but karaoke and flashy decor, a teppenyaki restaurant keeps its guests entertained with the art of food.