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The Benihana restaurant chain has opened another sushi
restaurant in South Beach, but this one is a fish house with a twist
it offers sushi on a conveyer belt and a unique design by a
world-class artist.
 Conveyer
belt-delivered sushi, called "kaiten" sushi, while a
relatively new concept in the United States, has been around for quite
some time in Japan and has achieved widespread acceptance.
"The guy who originated it used to work for
Coca-Cola," said Kevin Aoki, Benihana vice president and son of
the company founder Rocky Aoki. "His job consisted of taking a
bottle of Coca-Cola and putting it on the conveyor belt. He thought,
'Let's put sushi on it!' So, that's how it all started in 1958; he
opened up a restaurant in Osaka and today, in the last five years,
there are over 5,000 kaiten restaurants in Japan."
Aoki says many traditional sushi bars in Japan are
closing and then re-opening under the kaiten concept because the
concept is so popular. He says kaiten sushi is a little cheaper and a
great deal more convenient.
"Everybody hates to wait for food when they're
hungry," said Aoki. "When you come into a Sushi Doraku, you
just sit down and start eating. You don't have to wait for
anybody."
A 140-foot clear Plexiglas-enclosed conveyor belt
snakes around the deep, rectangular restaurant. Customers looking for
a quick meal simply walk in and sit down on one of the round bar
stools that front the conveyor belt. When they see a sushi dish
passing that strikes their palate, they simply lift the window and
take it off the beltway. The various dishes are color coded, so when
customers finish eating they signal the waiter by turning the wooden
"attention-getter" device red side up. The waiter counts the
plates, presents the diner with a bill and payment is made at the
register on the way out.
The Lincoln Road Sushi Doraku was designed by the
popular Dali-esque artist Rick Diaz, who until recently made his home
in Miami, but now resides in New Mexico. The centerpiece of Diaz'
marine décor is a huge multi-colored, fiberglass octopus suspended
from the ceiling, its tentacles swirling outward and its suction cups
decorated in a variety of shades.
"My first thought when Rocky asked me to design
this restaurant was to take a sea creature that I could use as a focal
point," said Garcia. "And I thought the octopus was just
perfect. As the concept grew, I started using more elements of the
sea."
There are two large fiberglass boots transform
themselves into colorful eels, while the lighting that zigzags around
the restaurant is suspended on something similar to fishing line with
weights that are similar to sinkers and the fixtures in the hallway
ceiling resemble fisheyes with exaggerated eyelashes. Prints of
Garcia's original oil paintings hang on the walls and are for sale.
The art will be rotated periodically to give the eatery a fresh
appearance.
The South Beach location at 1104 Lincoln Road is the
second Sushi Doraku restaurant in South Florida the other is in Ft.
Lauderdale at the Las Olas Riverfront and Benihana plans to open
another later this year in Chicago.
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