My non-emet friend wanted me to ask this...

[Jill in Apartment 413]

And I am curious as well.

I took him to Benihana's for his birthday and he asked me how many emets would eat at a place like that. It was my third time going there, but I have to admit my first time was filled with anxiety and woe. When I didn't get sick from anything I ate there I felt it was a "safe" place and decided to go back twice more. It's buttload expensive to eat there, but the food is DELICIOUS!

If you don't have a Benihana's here's what it's like: You basically reserve a table, go in, and are sat around a big cooking grill. IF you don't have enough people in your eating party, other people are sat with you. You choose what you want (I usually get chicken and steak) and it comes with fried rice, shrimp, and vegetables. The thing that irks me the most is sitting with people I don't know.

So they basically cook everything right in front of you from fresh stuff brought out from the kitchen. This is the part I like. I can watch the guy or girl cook the chicken right in front of me and they are very careful to make sure everything is cooked properly. In fact, if more places cooked my food in front of me I'd probably eat out more LoL! Anyway when they do the steak they ask you how you want it, and then give you a small piece of it to check if it's done enough for you. There I've even had my steak medium well, which is unheard of for me!

So I was wondering, would any emets frequent a place like this? Have you? I would go there more if it wasn't so damn expensive, but say la vie. My friend tends to think that emets would HATE a place like this and I am on the fence on whether I think you guys would hate it, love it, or be indifferent. I personally like it, but it took some getting used to, having strange people at the table with me. They give you SOOOOOOO much food too, I can't even finish half of what they give me and am always worried about the strange looks I get when everyone finishes and I'm the only one getting a take home box....LoL. I'm like, "HOW CAN YOU EAT THAT MUCH IN ONE SETTING?!"

So anyway, comments? Opinions?

[nendre]

well, i don't have any problem with strangers, so i would go there...Why exactly your friend thinks emets would hate it? because of the strangers at the same table, lots of food, having everything prepared in front of you? hm...though my phobia is almost gone, and i think that at the time it was at its worst, i wouldn't go there, but at that time i didn't eat in any public place...

[asianeko]

Ooooh! We have one of those around here, it's called Tokyo Steak House. It's amazing! I totally love it

The only thing I can see an emet being anxious of is perhaps all the other people. At least at TSH they disinfect the cooking surface with fire right in front of you before and after the cooking.

[harmonygirl72]

Yes, I love Benihana and places like that! YUM!

[Kristen11]

Mmmmm one of my favorite places to eat! I love all the food and the sauces to dip your shrimp in. Iv never felt sick from it despite stuffing my face every time I go. I dont go to often though because of the preice. I went for my 16th birthday with some friends and the bill was over $500. Its more of a "special occaisions" plae haha

[Trudy]

I like it, too.

[JadeNight]

OMG! I JUST went to a place EXACTLY like this last week. Except it's called Shoguns. We even sat with another group of people and everything. It was really cool and the food was really good. My anxiety was really bad that night anyways for other reasons so I was already a mess. I am not sure if being there triggered anything more though

[gumdropper1]

That is called Teppanyaki, and I have done it. I agree that you are unlikely to get food poisoning from Teppanyaki. As for sitting with strangers, how is it any different from being in a cafeteria, or at a lunch counter, or at any other restaurant where you're pushed fairly closely up against other diners?

Maybe you should have made a poll of this to find out how many emets are willing to eat Teppanyaki.

Doug

[wargerbil]

If I could find a place where they weren't cooking meat, sure I'd go! I used to love that when I was omni. In fact, it was the only place I liked shrimp!

[ann32]

It's actually called hibachi not teppanyaki, teppanki is the sit down sushi area, I lived in Japan for 3 years. The idea of sitting with strangers doesnt phase me but the cooking of fish chicken and steak on the same grill next to each other does. Needless to say, I've eaten hibachi over 300 times in my life probs and NEVER HAD AN ISSUE! its soooo good!

[joeylynn]

Love Benihana and others like it...never been s* despite stuffing myself to the gills....

Just went 2 weekends ago to celebrate my hubby's B-day. Looking for one in Cape Coral FL to celebrate our 7th anniversary....

Suggestions.

[canadianreject]

That sounds so yummy! I'm not sure if we have anything like that around here, though

But I would definitely eat it! Without hesitation :P

[Elski]

There are a few Korean places here that do something similar to this. I've eaten there before and it was delicious.

I like eating at places where you can see the cooking going on, rather than wondering what's happening in some sweaty, scabby kitchen out of sight where the chef could be picking his nose

[zoëgirl]

I've been to two places like that. One was called Dish and the other was Fire and Ice. The way that those two work is they have plates out and all the food out. Like they have raw meat on ice waiting for people to come take it, and bowls with raw veggies, and then they have sauces. And there is a massive grill in the centre of the room and you put all the food you want on the plate and bring it to the grill and you get to watch them cook it. I like how you can watch your food being cooked so you don't have to worry about what the kitchen might be like and whether it's clean or not.

[fibigrey]

I went to a habachi place once.. I couldn't eat the food.. I watched him cook my chicken, etc, but watching him cook it, I didn't feel as though he cooked it long enough. I couldn't eat it. I probably could if I went back after I didn't die the first time, but you know I want my meat well done, and seeing it on the grill for such a short length of time didn't sit well with me.

[hsbbd]

I went to Benihana's once and I will probably never go back but not because of the food or anything. When I was about 6 or 7 my entire family went out to eat at one and my grandma got sick. She thought it was the food but she was the only one to get sick and I ate most of her food. It was just her liver from being an alcoholic but the trauma associated with this occasion will keeps me from going, not the food. I want to go try one that is not brand name Benihana's and then maybe I could do it

Edit:
I can see how an emet wouldn't like it though because of the food being cooked out in the open where anyone could seemingly get germs on it wereas only 2 people will handle your food in the back I suppose.

[Kristen11]

Zoegirl- You are thinking of Mongholian BBQ. I just ate at one today, those are more in a mall type setting. But needless to say those are delecious also. Just imagine that with 100x better quality food, atmosphere, taste, and with a amazing show the chefs put on,

[gumdropper1]

HEY! Ann32 -- read this from the Wikipedia article on teppanyaki

Teppanyaki (鉄板焼き, teppan-yaki?) is a style of Japanese cuisine that uses an iron griddle to cook food. The word teppanyaki is derived from teppan (鉄板), which means iron plate, and yaki (焼き), which means grilled, broiled or pan-fried. In Japan, teppanyaki refers to dishes cooked using an iron plate, including steak, shrimp, okonomiyaki, yakisoba, and monjayaki.

Modern teppanyaki grills are typically propane-heated flat surface grills, and are widely used to cook food in front of guests at restaurants. Teppanyaki grills are commonly confused with the hibachi barbecue grill, which has a charcoal or gas flame and is made with an open grate design.

[Jill in Apartment 413]

I can't eat at Mongolian BBQ. I mean even my MOM won't eat there and she is so far from being an emet she'd practically eat off a public toilet. Anyway what bugs me out is how they have the food sitting out and it's just on ice. There's meat and stuff out there and who knows how long it's been out and who's coughed on it etc. I dunno, if you can do it good for you, as for me, I've been there twice and I can't bring myself to eat.