If you're in the mood for some fine Japanese cuisine, you may want to check out Ichiban Steakhouse & Sushi Bar located in the Village at Pine Shopping Plaza in Pine Township.

My wife and I decided to give this restaurant a try earlier this week and were pleased with our dining experience. It features Hibachi chefs who cook your main course at your table as well as a full Sushi bar. Like any other Hibachi restaurant, you'll be seated with other patrons, so if you're not comfortable sitting elbow to elbow with strangers, you may want to opt for booth seating, but then you'll miss out on the electrifying and entertaining Hibachi chefs.

Ichiban offers a wide selection of meats, seafood and vegetables on its menu. My wife ordered the Hibachi Shrimps ($19.95) while I selected the Hibachi Chicken and Shrimp Combination Dinner ($20.95).

The main course included a good-sized portion of mixed vegetables, rice and noodles—all prepared in front of you by a skilled Japanese chef who keeps you entertained with some flame throwing and knife tricks. Our Hibachi chef, Andy, was entertaining at times and just made the whole process fun.

Each Hibachi dinner also starts off with two pieces of shrimp, soup, and a ginger salad. The shrimp and chicken were tender, flavorful and grilled to near perfection.  

The service itself was great. Since my wife is a vegetarian (except when it comes to seafood) she asked our server, Dana, if the Hibachi chef would cook her meal first. No problem. They were very accommodating in honoring her request.

Our server was also very attentive—she came around at least a half-dozen times during the meal to check on us and made sure we didn't need anything else. When she handed the checks to each of the three parties at our table at the end of the meal, she asked us to make sure everything looked correct.

We were seated at 7:30 p.m. on this specific evening and we were out the door before 8:30 p.m.—an entire meal in just under an hour... they certainly didn't waste any time, and we never felt rushed. If you want to make a reservation, you can, but on the night we went, a weeknight, there were plenty of Hibachi tables and booths. Attire is casual.

For more information about Ichiban, click on our directory listing:

http://pine-richland.patch.com/search/listings?keywords=ichiban