'I Love it Here' 2.10 - Sakura Tokyo
Recently, a group of my friends and I ventured off to a little place called Sakura Tokyo for lunch and good times. Yes, I had never heard of it either. On the way over, the group was corrected about a few misconceptions we had of the restaurant. For starters, it did not serve Chinese, but Japanese. It was pointed out that they do not name Chinese restaurants after Japanese cities, but I digress. Another is that it is not a sushi bar, which is what we all assumed. The final, and most exciting, is that unlike other restaurants which cook in the back, the chefs at Sakura Tokyo cook the food in front of you.
They what?
Yes, they cook and serve the food in front of you. Each of the tables is built around a small grill, and a chef makes small chat and food all at the same time. This is perhaps the biggest attraction to Sakura Tokyo. The dining area is quite spacious in order to accommodate all the grills and large tables, about 10-12 people can sit at each one and it's not uncommon for several parties to be sat at the same table, but also bland. They don't really have the space to make the place look interesting or nice.
At Sakura Tokyo, they have an offer where you can get a soup, salad, shrimp appetizer, entre, several vegetables, and ice cream for a reasonable price. I recommend that, since I got to experience everything and was a better deal than getting all these things separately.
The real show begins when the chef arrives. Ours made small-chat, and also played games with the food. As I looked around at other tables, I gathered that these little feats could be summed up as to either involving fire or throwing things, if not both at the same time. Simple and slightly cheesy? Of course. But it kept us happy and engaged while our food cooked.
Another important thing to note about Sakura Tokyo is that unlike other restaurants, where everyone at the table gets their food at the same time, we all got our dishes whenever they were ready. Chicken takes the longest to cook. It was worth the wait in our case, but if you're in a rush, hungry, or have little kids, I would recommend going for something that cooks faster, like assorted vegetables or seafood.
On the matter of taste alone, I recommend the swordfish or a beef product. The swordfish was not marinated much, so the natural taste was able to shine through, and was cooked to perfection. The steaks I sampled had great marinades and flavors, and were also very moist. There are perhaps over twenty entrees that are part of this offer, so if you are not a fan of any of the foods mentioned above, never you worry.
