Last week, I had dinner with the people from Japanese class, sort of like a get-together to celebrate the end of Japans 2 and have some food fitting the mood.
We went to Konnichi Wa at the Mariaplaats in Utrecht; one of the more well-known Japanese restaurants in the country. The food was good, we had fun and I brought some
omiyage for everyone; a Japanese glass wind bell.
Then came the time to order, and after some thought, we agreed on the Sakura menu for everyone. Konnichi Wa's Sakura menu consists of various courses, ranging from fish to meat, prepared teppan-style on a large hot plate. And that's where things went south, basically. Well, actually, even earlier, when we arrived.
The restaurant tries hard to serve Japanese food in Japanese style (they even offer more traditional food on request, and only when their Japanese chef is in), but they forget to offer the basic things, like a glass of water or tea when you sit down and a little towel to wash your hands and face with, and only one of their staff actually spoke Japanese! (hey, that's what you get when you go out for Japanese with a bunch of students learning the language)
I'm not dismissing them over that last part, though; it's hard to find good personnel these days, let alone Japanese-speaking personnel who are able to cook Japanese and who are willing to work in a restaurant).
The teppan yaki-style of cooking is quite a show; our cook turned out to be very skilful in handling the food and the tools for preparing said food. That show made up partially for the price; at 40 euro, the Sakura menu is quite expensive.
All in all, I had a fun evening, the food tasted good and we spent about four hours there from entering the restaurant to leaving again.
But... the thing is, I just spent two weeks experiencing the real thing, at prices that will get me just a beer or two at Konnichi Wa, and I can't help comparing.
The dishes, while Japanese in nature, were clearly aimed at Dutch customers; no special spices apart from some wasabi, standard sauce for the fish and Gekkeikan sake (just about the utmost standard fare of sake you can get, sort of like the house wine of your local supermarket) doesn't make me want to return here, you know.
The fact that they served Asahi beer helps, but not much and drinks are expensive as well; I spent another 11 euro on three drinks.
My verdict; if you have money to burn and want to have a nice evening with friends and show cooking, go to Konnichi Wa.
If you want to have a real taste of Japanese food, Japanese style; find some other place.
I still have to find that place outside Japan.
Cheers, K.