Hibana by Koki, one of the first 4 restaurants in Vietnam to receive a Michelin star is located in the large restaurant Koki at a 5-star hotel in the center of Hanoi. This is a restaurant with the style of Japanese culinary art Teppanyaki - the form of using cast iron, iron or steel to prepare dishes, usually grilled, fried, fried.
Hibana by Koki is essentially a "private kitchen," with only 14 seats. Each diner will have to spend from 5.5 million VND to 8.5 million VND for a meal here and must be booked in advance. The restaurant's head chef is Hiroshi Yamaguchi, and Junichi Yoshida, a Michelin-starred chef in Teppanyaki art.
Mr. Hiroshi Yamaguchi said that he is quite fastidious and strict in choosing ingredients. He is involved in all stages of daily preparation of raw materials. Usually, he receives the goods himself, especially from Japan, to ensure the delivery temperature of Yaeyama Kyori beef or the standard size of seafood. In addition, during processing, he and his colleagues will prepare work such as cutting and chopping vegetables.
Their signature dishes are Yaeyama Kyori beef soup, spiny lobster, and crispy grilled beef. The dishes at Habana by Koki all express the message of paying attention to the element of utilizing food so as not to waste. Teppanyaki doesn't just come from the deliciousness and strangeness of Japanese beef or seafood. The price of a meal at a restaurant is the experience of watching culinary artisans prepare and process ingredients, with passion and sophistication.
According to Mr. Yamaguchi, the most distinctive and delicious beef he uses in his dish is Yaeyama Kyori beef. This is a heifer, with a high content of amino acids, healthy compounds. Yaeyama Kyori beef is prepared on a teppan table at low temperature, for nearly an hour, to create a rich taste when served.
Unlike Yaeyama Kyori beef, the types of seafood when selected will depend on the size, not too big or too small, but the average size is suitable for that dish and suitable for the chef's preparation. In addition, sea bass from the Sea of Japan, hairy crabs from the cold waters of Hokkaido are also ingredients used in Koki that are not easily seen in famous restaurants of the world.
With a small number of seats, high-end customer positioning, Hibana by Koki is not for the masses. "What I want is to be able to meet more domestic and foreign customers. I have a hobby of talking, I like to meet guests who have a lot of questions," Yamaguchi said when asked about his desire after receiving the Michelin star. In addition, the Japanese chef said there will be a need to focus more on training customer service staff. Maintaining the same quality of service and food as before the Michelin star is his priority.
Address: Capella Hotel - No. 11 Le Phung Hieu, Trang Tien, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi
Website: https://capellahotels.com/en/capella-hanoi/dining/koki
According to VnE
Photo: Hibana by Koki