Gyu-kaku

Gyu-Kaku is a wonderful bonding experience. Now I don’t normally say that about a restaurant, but most restaurants don’t let you make and break bread at the same time…figuratively speaking. Even Gyu-Kaku says it themselves, their goal is to deliver happiness through their food and experience, and trust me, they definitely deliver.

The idea of Gyu-Kaku is that dining together in an enjoyable atmosphere creates an enjoyable lifestyle. Because I dine out so often, I can truly say I believe this. I love the experiences different cuisine and restaurant s can bring. At GK I had the pleasure of trying their Hawaiian Ahi Poke appetizer and the edamame, not to salty, not to squishy. For an entrée I’d suggest their Kobe Filet Mignon or the Kobe Trio for meat eaters. If you are a non-red meat person, go ahead and try the Garlic Lobster or Shrimp, or the chicken. They also offer a ton of different vegetables items to grill as well as wonderful noodle and rice dishes and tofu.

And save room for dessert, they have s’mores! S’mores at a restaurant that you grill yourself. How cool it that? Or try their banana chocolate ice cream, it is divine. It’s also a great place to take a group, they’ve got set priced menus that make it fun without worrying if you are racking up the bill.

Gyu-Kaku is located all over Los Angeles. I went to the Beverly Hills location at 163 N. La Cienega Blvd, in Beverly Hills, 424-354-3462. For more information on a location near you visit their website at http://www.gyu-kaku.com. The BH location is open Mon-Thurs, 5pm to 11pm, Fri-Sat, 5pm to 12am and Sundays from 5pm to 10pm.

Kaiseki cuisine ( haiku-type)

The term “kaiseki” originally meant a meeting and specifically a meeting of composers of “haiku” poems as it has the same pronunciation as the “kaiseki” used in the tea ceremony. There were originally 2 types of “kaiseki” cuisine, one for a meeting of “haiku” poets and the other for the tea ceremony. But, as people gathering at the poetry meetings were often similar to those gathering at tea ceremonies, the two words were and still are sometimes confused. The “kaiseki” cuisine for the meeting of poets is defined as “kuikiri”, or “eat-out” cuisine, and its purpose is to enjoy the tastes of different recipes without being too much worried about ceremony and formality. The food is served individually at intervals. Recipes are served on individual, small dining tables about 1.2 feet wide without legs. The food is generally composed of “saki-zuke (hors-d’oeuvre)”, “suimono (soup)”, “muko-zuke (a main dish composed of sliced raw fish, etc.)”, “kuchi-gawari (an entr_e to refresh the palate)”, “yakimono (broiled foods)”, “nimono (stewed foods)”, “aisakana (steamed or fried foods)”, “sunomono (food pickled in sweetened vinegar)”, “tomewan (end course)”, etc. But the simplest recipe consists of only three dishes, that are sometimes increased to higher odd numbers such as five (including two soups), seven, nine and eleven. The contents of the menu and the order in which the dishes are served are left to the discretion of the chef.