Inakaya at Venetian Village Serves a Taste of Japan

The new Japanese restaurant in the capital offers diners a unique, theatrical experience.

The Japanese chain Inakaya’s new restaurant, in Abu Dhabi’s Venetian Village, offers traditional robatayaki dishes, served on long paddles. Lee Hoagland / The National

Inakaya, the new Japanese restaurant in Venetian Village - located on the grounds of the Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi - is quickly gaining a reputation not just for its authentic cuisine, but for the theatrical dining experience served with it.

Inakaya opened its first restaurant in Tokyo in 1970 (it also has branches in Hong Kong and New York City). The restaurant specialises in robatayaki – a theatrical Japanese grilling art where chefs play a starring role.

“Inakaya’s concept is based on introducing diners to Japanese traditional culture,” says head chef Keneth Kim. “It presents a unique interactive experience for diners to witness traditional robatayaki.”

As soon as you walk through the doors of Inakaya in Abu Dhabi (in a tranquil setting by the water), chefs bellow out welcoming calls in Japanese: “Hello! Welcome to the restaurant! Thanks for joining us!”. The best seats are along the open counter situated in front of the chefs, who prepare freshly caught fish, meat and vegetables in front of the guests. There is also a selection of sushi and sashimi on offer.

Inakaya’s entrées are presented by grillmasters, called yakikata, who pass them to guests on long paddles (1.2 metres) stretched across the counter.

Of the food, Kim says: “We believe in simplifying flavours to let the fresh ingredients’ natural flavours shine.” The signature dish is kinme-dai, a golden eye snapper from Japan. This is a large, bright pink fish with eerily large eyes; the menu says it’s pole- and line-caught from Japan. Served whole, grilled with sea salt, the fish has crispy skin and opens up to tender, mild flesh inside. Take a forkful of it with a bit of the crushed daikon radish and soy sauce served alongside. You’ll soon understand why it’s Inakaya’s signature dish. In addition to the golden eye snapper, Kim recommends the yellowtail carpaccio, the kumamoto raw oyster and the black cod fillet.

Somewhere in the middle of your dining experience, you’ll hear – and participate in – sanbon jime, a rhythmic, clapping ceremony to thank guests for dining at the restaurant. And at 8.30pm every night, there is a mochi pounding ceremony where chefs ask a guest in the restaurant to pound out a mound of sweet sticky-rice using a giant mortar and pestle. These famous Japanese sticky-rice cakes are then served up to diners (at Inakaya in Tokyo, celebrities such as Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz have participated in the ceremony).

Kim says: “I respect the traditions and ceremonies that Inakaya has. Every day presents a new experience and I truly enjoy watching diners indulge in Japanese dining.”

It’s easy to believe then, if just for one night, that you’re in the heart of Tokyo.

• Inakaya is open daily from 6.30pm to 11pm. For reservations, call 02 404 1921

This article has been amended to reflect that Inakaya is a restaurant located at the Venetian Village, on the grounds of Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi.