Ichiro Hibachi & Sushi Bar Offers Many Choices For Area Diners

Ichiro Hibachi & Sushi Bar on Newtown Road, Danbury, transports visitors to a Japanese environment, complete with abundant use of wood, screens, and hanging lamps. Beyond the reception area, the restaurant is divided into two distinct sections; the light wood-toned dining room with individual tables and sushi bar with additional seating, and the larger, dark wood-toned hibachi room with its dozen half and full hibachi tables, the latter which can seat up to 18. There are also two party rooms off the main hibachi room; the smaller can accommodate parties up to 20 people, the larger is used for groups of 20 to 30.

The owner and manager is David Pan, who operates another restaurant of the same name in Trumbull. The restaurant, he said, is popular for those celebrating a birthday, anniversary, or other special occasions.

Guests can choose the privacy of individual tables in the dining room, or the conviviality of the community hibachi tables, where talented chefs make the meals on ultra-hot, traditional Japanese tabletop grills, performance style. The managers are quick to note that hibachi guests will not have to wait for a table to fill before food preparation begins. Children especially love the hibachi tables, highlighting the showmanship and dexterity of the chefs.

Hibachi chefs receive a minimum of six years of training in Japan before joining the Ichiro staff, said Mr Pan, and are equally skilled as chefs and performers. Dazzling customers with juggling, slicing, dicing, and pyrotechnics, the chefs prepare a perfectly cooked meal to each individual’s liking.

Hibachi dinners include clear broth onion soup, green salad with ginger dressing, hibachi noodles, vegetables, and shrimp. Entrée choices are chicken, salmon, scallops, shrimp, steak, filet mignon, vegetables, and lobster tail, individually or in combination. Orders for children 10 and under are available in chicken, shrimp, scallops, or steak.

Currently the dining room features an all-Japanese menu, where guests enjoy items such as mixed seaweed salad, spicy seafood salad, and miso or dobin (seafood and mushroom) soups, or any of two dozen other appetizers to kick off a meal. Entrees such as Golden Shrimp (in a light egg batter) or charbroiled tuna include soup and salad, and often rice or noodles, as do the teriyaki and tempura meals.

Ichiro will be introducing a new dining room menu in the near future, featuring the cuisines of Thailand and China, in addition to traditional Japanese dishes. The expanded menu, said Mr Pan, will allow Ichiro to showcase culinary specialties of other Asian countries.

Sushi chefs are on hand to fill diners’ orders, including chef’s special rolls, sushi bar special combos, sushi sashimi entrees, or a choice of three complete dinner boxes. Like the hibachi chefs, the sushi chefs must undergo extensive training in Japan before working in the restaurant, said Mr Pan. To hold the head sushi chef position, a chef needs a minimum of ten years experience.

A lunch menu is available Monday through Friday, but excludes holidays. The hibachi lunch includes clear onion soup, vegetables and a choice of entree, including chicken, salmon, shrimp, scallops, steak, or filet mignon. Three combos are also offered.

Sushi, don buri, noodle soup, and lunch box specials are offered, and most menu items are available for takeout.

Ichiro offers a full bar service, including the traditional sake.

Ichiro, 69 Newtown Road, Danbury, is open seven days a week. Lunch is served from 11 to 3, Monday through Saturday, dinner from 4:30 to 10 pm, and to 11 on Friday and Saturday. Sunday hours are 11:30 to 10. All major credit cards are accepted. Weekend reservations recommended; phone, 203-792-8881; fax, 203-792-8818. For more information visit the website, at www.ichirodanbury.com.