+++++ Part 1 +++++

Last night we went to Gyu-Kaku in Huntington Beach. It just opened recently. It was great!

They had excellent beef and they had Japanese sweet potatoes (satsumaimo). The Gyu-Kaku resaurants in Japan stopped serving sweet potatoes about 3 years ago. I had the Rosu and Satsumaimo, Mayuko had Bibimba, and our friends had a course meal that incuded shrimp, beef, soup, rice, vegetables and dessert.

The really interesting part of the evening for me was the service. It was great!!!! When we entered, the hostess weclomed us in Japanese, then the whole staff yelled out, too. Our waiter was great. And here is the big surprise... When Mayuko decided what she wanted wasn't on the menu, she asked the waiter about it. The waiter brought the manager to our table and he spoke to us about Mayuko's order. He then told us that he would have it prepared for Mayuko. It was amazing service. Oh, and it was all done in Japanese. I even spoke to him in Japanese.

This visit renewed my faith in Gyu-Kaku.

+++++ Part 2 +++++

We went to Kabuki Japanese Restaurant in Huntington Beach tonight. It was good. It is a decent place, with good food and reasonable prices. Imagine TGI Friday's but with Japanese food. Luckily for me, they serve cooked foods, not just sushi and sashimi.

Let me start by saying that I do not eat sushi. I do not eat any kind of fish. I do not like Japanese food (even though I lived in Japan for three and a half years and my wife, Mayuko, is Japanese). Generally, I do not really like food... any kind of food.

I had the Beef Teriyaki and Mayuko had the Chirashi Sushi (which is really sashimi). Our friends had various types of sushi and rolls. My dinner was excellent and the portion was a good size. Mayuko actually said that her food was good. I was surprised because I don't think she expected to get good Japanese food in America. A few years ago she ate at a sushi place we went to with Jer and his family and she decided it wasn't good and wasn't even a Japanese restaurant. More of an Oriental restaurant. This was much better. Everyone seemed to enjoy the food and like the atmosphere.

Overall I would say it was a good place and I am sure we will go there again.