When we got out of church I was planning to head back to Monticello to help Steve move a washer and dryer off of his trailer and into my shed. However, as we drove down Veteran’s Memorial Parkway toward U.S. 90 Becks said that she had been craving hibachi since Thursday and really wanted Japanese food for lunch.
Having been married for 5 years and navigated 1 pregnancy I knew that this statement was actually an instruction and when we got to where I would normally take a left for home I took a right and headed for Japanica. Becks had been there one time with her friend Courtney and said that it was good.
As we walked in my fear was that we would be seated with a group of people who were out for a peaceful Sunday afternoon lunch. While Mason is a good boy I did not know how he would react to a chef lighting things on fire and tossing shrimp at people. Thankfully the only other people in the hibachi area was a family of 5 that included 3 children under the age of 4.
Once our orders were taken the chef came out with his little cart and began his schtick. His name was George and he said he was a Japanese cowboy. This meant that in addition to twirling his knife like a six-shooter he said banzai and threw in a lot of yee-haws as he cooked our meal of shrimp and chicken. While he cooked Mason sat and watched him intently. When he made a volcano out of an onion and made flames spit out of the top Mason did not get scared and laughed.
He enjoyed the show as he ate a little thing of sweet potatoes and once the food was done his chubby little fingers made a beeline for my plate. I gave him a piece of zucchini to see if he liked it and as I expected he wanted more. Each time I ate a piece of vegetable Mason got a little piece too and he enjoyed the carrots, onions and broccoli as much as I did.
Overall our meal at Japanica was very good and I would go back. As compared to the other 2 local Japanese places I really liked that it was newer than Mori’s (which is a bit shabby), and I thought that the food was a little better than Osaka’s.
Sweet Tea & Bourbon’s Rating:
Atmosphere: B
Taste: A
Presentation: B
Service: A
Cleanliness: A
Price: $$
Sweet Tea & Bourbon 