Thursday, March 05, 2009
Playing with food
Larry Bly
Larry Bly runs an ad agency and does freelance writing in the Roanoke area.
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It's taken me a long time to get around to eating at the Ichiban in Roanoke, mostly because I'm not fond of restaurants as theater. The literal meaning of kabuki is "Japanese drama, using stylized movements," which pretty much explains the Ichiban experience.
But watching your cook perform as a Samurai is something to be enjoyed in moderation. Apparently I was the only non-regular in my eating group at a recent visit. Most of them knew the chef/cook by name.
I still do not because he didn't introduce himself and he had no name tag to clue me in. I felt left out. It was like, if you don't know who I am, then I won't waste much time on you. I'm reminded of the old saying about dinner theater: that it's neither good dinner nor good theater. But these kabuki-style places do have their fans.
First, if you don't have an hour for lunch, there's no speeding this theatrical/restaurant experience. Why did you come if you didn't have time to play with your food? My recent foray to Ichiban took well over an hour. I ran close to missing an appointment thereafter.
Secondly, if you're not fond of eating with strangers, then you need to get over it. I begrudgingly joined in the "food fun for lunch bunch." And yes, we had our fun. Plus, there was more than could be consumed for lunch. I left with a "to-go" box and had plenty for dinner.
Thirdly, chopping and preparing a meal on a hot grill really does show off the food marvelously and the flavors pop more than when the food is lugged from the kitchen to the table. Our wait-person didn't know the name of the soups or much else, but she was sweet and made up for that with her quiet dignity and apologies. Fact is, except for the initial drink set-ups, little is required of her, other than getting the bill right. She had no problem doing that, naturally.
Here's a sign of the times: Our grill cook was a white American male.
Go figure. even though he was smooth and entertaining, something gets lost in the translation. Missing, for one, was the Asian accent. In its place, the Southern twang is void of comedic element. male.
The lunch crowd was limited -- there was only one other table -- so I heard most of his act before he got to us. The tables may change but the jokes remain the same: after spinning two eggs on the grill, "Here's the old egg roll." Hardy har har.
The food is pretty much as it always has been in any Kabuki format: teriyaki chicken, hibatchi steak, shrimp, scallops, filet of tenderloin, etc. The luncheon portions run anywhere from $9.95 to $15.95. Exactly how the portions change between the luncheon prices and the dinner prices, which for the same items start at $13.95 and go up to $28.95 for the double lobster, I have no idea.
The luncheon portions are huge -- I had to take most of it home -- and come with a nice soup and salad, plus a small "appetizer" of a shrimp. Speaking of the shrimp, our grill-guy did the traditional "flipping" of food toward the anxious diners. I remember eating at another similar establishment years ago and experiencing a flying shrimp, just past my head onto the wall behind me. All in good fun, naturally.
In addition to the grill items, one might enjoy different fare at the sushi and sashimi bar. Sans entertainment, you may choose fresh sushi, California rolls, red snapper, shrimp, tuna, salmon, mackerel, octopus, surf clams, crab and eel. For our vegetarian friends: rolls of avocado and various tempura combinations. All of this is prepared to order in front of you by a skilled sushi chef.
Ichiban offers some refreshing salads: crab meat su, seaweed salad, and spicy seafood salad.
This format for eating is, in my estimation, better suited for dinner with a ton of friends, thus adding to the fun, laced with a liberal (if too much) helping of those exotic drinks.
The quality of the food at Ichiban is excellent, the service satisfactory, and the prices are reasonable. Full bar service -- there's a lovely sit-down bar in the back.
Ichiban Japanese steak and seafood house
2004 Electric Road
Roanoke, VA 24018
540-772-0168
