Club Kyoto

Kyoto Ohsho is a party just waiting to get started

When I visited Kyoto Ohsho, Ala Moana Center’s new Japanese buffet restaurant, I was reminded of the television commercial about companies being able to change business plans at the drop of a hat. In the ad, a city diner is magically transformed, like a Rubik’s Cube, into a Gap-like clothing store right after breakfast. Later, in the early evening, the clothing store morphs into another business.

KYOTO OHSHO Ala Moana Shopping Center 1450 Ala Moana Blvd. Monday to Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m 949-0040

I thought of the commercial, because Kyoto Ohsho looks as though it is half a Rubik’s Cube turn away from being three different businesses at once. The enormous space, located in the shopping center’s bustling Hookipa Terrace, is sleek and modern, with mustard-, orange- and avocado-colored walls and huge picture windows, which flood the area with sunlight. Up front there’s a beautiful, crystal-clear marine fish tank and, behind it, a dance floor, DJ booth, bar area and, finally, one of the largest, shiniest kitchens I’ve seen. The stainless steel wonder could easily support a hotel, hospital or prison.

Hanging from the ceiling, were concert-grade speakers, softly playing a very lively selection of hip hop and dance music. Is it a club? A restaurant?

As of early January, Ohsho didn’t have its liquor license, according to manager Dave Sasaki, so no clubbing yet. He hopes to be up and dancing by March. For now, he’s just concentrating on the food.

Kyoto Ohsho features an extensive lineup of menu item selections, highlighted by select seafoods and bubbling pots of nabe. The cost per person is $40 for dinner. Lunch, which doesn’t have the nabe or quite as many other items costs $20. I went for lunch.

I started my meal off with a bowl of miso soup, which contained konyaku, gobo, lotus root, carrots, and mushrooms. The broth was a little weak and overall the brew was unremarkable. Next, I moved on to chicken and mixed vegetables dish of onions, carrots, bamboo shoots, mushrooms, pineapple and green pepper, finished off with a thick sweet and sour sauce. The flavors were bright, the vegetables fresh, but it looked and tasted a little familiar. I got dining deja vu all over again when I munched on the nishime, which featured nearly the same vegetable mix, along with potatoes and shredded green beans.

HEARTY PARTY: Part buffet restaurant, part dance club, Kyoto Ohsho offers a wide array of seafood, sushi and other menu items. photo: Jimmy Forrest

The salmon was pleasant, simply grilled and accompanied by a small chunk of Yukon Gold potato, flavored only with salt and pepper. I thought it was a nice, unexpected touch. I also selected three different nigiri sushi: maguro, salmon and ebi. All were pretty good. Certainly not sushi-bar quality, but better than takeout. The Chirashi (maguro, king clam, ebi, tamago, mountain yam over sushi rice) looked better than it tasted. The maguro and clam were sliced pretty thin and the rice was dry.

Then I hit a good streak. The tempura (shrimp, green pepper and eggplant) was crisp and not greasy at all, superior to most buffet varieties, the tonkatsu was also good. It had a very light breading, which still was able to keep the pork moist and flavorful.

All in all, not a bad lunch. Better than a lot of buffets, but certainly nothing that will send you dancing in the streets – at least not yet.

Do you like what you read? Subscribe to Hawaii Business Magazine »