Benihana

Back in 1981, Japantown's Benihana restaurant opened for business. The Benihana franchise had been around since 1964 so San Francisco had to wait a few years for it's very own teppanyaki restaurant, but it was worth the wait.
Ashe tells us that even from a very young age, she remembers visits to the restaurant became a family tradition. At first, they visited just for special occasions but soon "special occasion" could mean simply: "it's a weekend!". That tradition was put on hold for a decade or two but, like so many others, now that we have our little ones, it has resurfaced.
Today, Grandpa treated us all to lunch at Benihana's. As Ashe had 25 years ago, Rai sat wide-eyed, staring incredulously at the chef working the grill at our table. Knives and metal spatulas were juggled, eggs were balanced and tossed, and caught with skill, onion volcanoes were built, and shrimp tails spiraled through the air, landing gracefully in the chef's tall, red hat. Rai couldn't get enough! The next few years may see us there often, just as Ashe's family had turned several visits a year to several visits per month many years ago.
If we make enough visits, we may be able to answer the one question Ashe had following our visit today: where did all the Japanese chefs go? Things have changed since the '80s and the lack of Japanese chefs in the restaurant today made the experience feel slightly inauthentic. Still, I could see why this chain has enjoyed such success for so many years and why we studied it as a business success case study back in business school.
Thanks, Grandpa for passing the torch or, rather, for re-lighting it!