Talking griddles: Teppanyaki cooks get experimental with their grills
Teppanyaki has become popular with local diners, and chefs here are not afraid to experiment with using the teppan, writes Vanessa Yung
JAPANESE CUISINE HAS always been popular with Hong Kong people. For a while okonomiyaki – savoury pancakes – was all the rage, and while the popularity of ramen hasn’t abated, teppanyaki is currently in the spotlight.
This style of cooking uses a metal griddle (teppan) to grill or fry (yaki) ingredients. Forget the flashy antics of places like the restaurant chain Benihana; real teppanyaki is not nearly that theatrical. But that doesn’t mean it is any less creative.
Ginza Iwa Sushi & Sumibi
A local teppanyaki chef, Jacky Lui Kingfai, attributes its popularity to the tendency of diners to “let their mobile phones taste the food before they eat.
Teppanyaki is as pleasing to the eyes as to the stomach,” Lui explains.
Opened in October, the spacious restaurant is on the two top floors of a commercial building in Central and is divided into three areas. The teppanyaki room and charcoal grill dining area take up the lower floor, while the sushi bar is located upstairs.
Watching the chef turn ingredients, such as ozaki beef, abalone, lobster and sablefish into enticing dishes right in front of you in the 12-seat teppanyaki room is entertainment in its own right.