ON THE MENU — Port Arthur managers turn idea into menu mainstay for Tokyo Japanese Steak House and Sushi Bar
Published 12:30 am Sunday, April 10, 2022
- Tokyo Japanese Steak House and Sushi Bar is located 3300 Central Mall Drive in Port Arthur. (Chris Moore/The News)
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Many Southeast Texans are familiar with Tokyo Japanese Steak House and Sushi Bar.
The Port Arthur location near Central Mall has been open since 2010, and while the restaurant has two locations in Beaumont, one of the eatery’s most popular menu items was created in Port Arthur.
One day, Manager Quentin Savoie and the bar manager were trying to come up with a new recipe to quench their hunger.
“We came up with the Q&A Roll,” Savoie said. “We were hungry one day. It is very good. It has a lot of flavors and it is a filling roll. It has shrimp, spicy crab, avocado, seared white tuna, habanero tobiko, green onions and ponzu sauce with garlic and mayo. We were just in here and talking. We were hungry but not for anything on the menu because we had it every day.”
The Port Arthur location is one of three in Southeast Texas. (Chris Moore/The News)
He said they told a few people in the bar about the invention.
“We started getting calls from the other locations about customers asking for that roll,” Savoie said. “Eventually, they put it on the menu because it was getting ordered so much.”
Savoie said crunch roles continue to be one of the restaurant’s top sellers.
“It is very popular with people who are new to sushi,” he said. “It is all cooked with fried shrimp and crab meat. For the grill, teriyaki chicken and steaks are a hit. The hibachi experience is cool. For people who haven’t seen it before, you get to have your meal cooked in front of you.”
The restaurant offers a plethora of grilled and sushi menu items. (Chris Moore/The News)
The manager said the hibachi grill makes the dine-in experience unique from most restaurants
“We have a huge menu,” he said. “What is unique is the dining experience, because you get to interact with your chef. You get to see how they cook the food and get a little show, too.”
Savoie said the menu doesn’t change much to provide consistency for their customers.
The restaurant offers hibachi grills, which allows people to interact with their chefs while the food is being prepared. (Chris Moore/The News)
“We do some seasonal specials,” he said. “It doesn’t change too often. One of the rolls that gets ordered around the year is the Christmas Tree roll. It has chicken, crab, avocado, hot sauce and eel sauce. As long as we have the material, we can make rolls that aren’t on the menu. We just have to know what you want in it.”
The manager said he would like to get back to providing a spring menu, which the location hasn’t done in the last few years.
“I would like for it to come back,” he said. “It has mangos and grapefruits and it is something we don’t get very often.”
Visit tokyosteakhousesushibar.com or call 409-729-0641 for more information.
