New Japanese Steakhouse Sakura Opens in Toledo, Ohio

A new Japanese Steakhouse,Sakura has opened in Toledo, Ohio. Located at 5294 Monroe Street, this restaurant features a new addition to the Toledo scene-Hibachi cooking at your table. The style is reminiscent of other Japanese steakhouses around the country, and offers those in northwest Ohio a new dining experience. I had the opportunity to go dine there with my wife and this is a review of the overall experience.

Upon entering the restaurant, the style is very clean and modern, the cream colored walls surrounded with large bamboo partitions separating the dinning areas. The walls are decorated with simple pictures of Asian theme. A small bridge connects you from the front door to the hostess counter, that rises over a fountain and pond full of koi goldfish. The hostess was very polite and took our reservation time and brought us to our table, where we were quickly given the menu, drink orders taken and sushi menu handed over as well. The sushi bar offered a wide array of choices from traditional sashemi and sushi to more modern choices like the california roll. we opted on a vegetable roll, that arrived quickly and was thoroughly enjoyed.

Hibachi dining is a unique, entertaining way to enjoy a meal. The table is arranged in such a way that there are 8 seats around it, and you are sat with your party or others you may not know to enjoy the show. The show takes place on the large hibachi grill that sits in front of your dining area. An experienced chef brings out your food items and cooks them right in front of you, along with all the other people at the table. Our cook was extremely skilled in food preparation and entertainment, quick with a knife and spatula and with a joke and barb or two. He bantered equally with everyone at the table, entertaining with his wit and also the "smoke and fire volcano" made from onions-a must see and very impressive.

The chef had a variety of meats available to choose from, we opted for the salmon and fillet mignon options. Each dinner was served with a salad, miso soup and shrimp/vegetable appetizer along with the fried or white rice. Each dinner was expertly cooked, taking the time to monitor the food while entertaining the crowd is not an easy feat! The salmon was amazing, a large portion with a terriyaki glaze and sesame seeds. The fillet mignon was requested medium and came back to the plate as such, a great sign of a strong chef.

Overall, the evening was fun, entertaining and enjoyable. The atmosphere was classy, the chef was very skilled in the culinary and entertainment arts and the food was flavorful and the portions were generous. I would rate Sakura Steakhouse an excellent choice for a new and fun dining experience in the Toledo area.