Aoki Teppanyaki – Making Friends With Great Food In Miami

The chickens and I got together with Miss E. to sample the offerings of a Japanese restaurant that recently opened in Kendall. It was an entirely different and memorable experience.

The décor was unique and very beautiful. We sat inside at one of the teppanyaki tables, which we shared with another family, unusual for us and exciting at the same time because we got the chance to share the food and the show with people we had not met before. Teppanyaki is a style of Japanese cuisine that uses an iron grill to cook food.

This style of cooking places an emphasis on the chef performing a show for the diners while cooking the food, with sometimes a fierce fire leaping off the grill creating a sense of excitement and anticipation.

The show was great, extremely entertaining and the food was also very enjoyable.

Inaka Rice is an Aoki original – healthy fried rice made in authentic Japanese style with a variety of white Japanese short grain jasmine, brown and Chinese black forbidden rice with mixed vegetables and a hint of Japanese somen noodles. It was really quite wholesome and delicious, the leftovers even better later.

Spinning Salad was a tableside salad preparation that comes with a teppanyaki order. Spring and romaine lettuces, crisp and crunchy were tossed in a spinning bowl with fresh vegetables and served with a ginger dressing that was outrageously appetizing.

Miss E. and I shared the Yellowtail Hamachi and Eggplant Miso, both very good and very pretty.

Walking through Aoki Teppanyaki was like taking a leisurely stroll in a small Japanese village. They also have a full bar, outdoor and indoor seating, a kids menu and service that is far above the ordinary.

It is a place I would visit again in a heartbeat. Without hesitation.