Sashi’s 5-Iron Chef America extravaganza in Manhattan Beach
Chef Makoto Okuwa prepares to welcome his fellow Iron Chefs.
The autograph seekers were out in full force, cameras snapping as fans of a popular TV show followed every move of their favorite stars. At most celebrity events, the people who are the focus of attention have nothing more to do than bask in the adulation, wave, and perhaps snag another canapé from a tray. That wasn’t true of this event in Manhattan Beach – the stars were busy chopping, sautéing, grilling, tasting, and directing a small army of staff who copied their every move.
The stars in this case were five veterans of the Iron Chef America TV show, who had gathered to welcome Sashi Restaurant’s Makoto Okuwa to their ranks. Okuwa had been on the show before as assistant to revered chef Masaharu Morimoto, and had just debuted as a competitor in his own right. Those who were at the restaurant on July 8 had a chance for a sneak peek at that episode – but first, they enjoyed a dinner made by those same celebrity chefs. Chef Okuwa and his colleagues Morimoto, Noriyuki Sugie, Sonny Sweetman, Troy Thompson, and Michael Voltaggio each made one appetizer and one main course, assisted by over twenty sous-chefs and a huge support staff.
The lucky 210 guests enjoyed unusual items like Sweetman’s French macaroons with roasted beets and goat cheese, Okuwa’s sushi rolls with Parma prosciutto, and Voltaggio’s sweetbread “McNuggets” as tray-passed starters, then were seated for the main courses. These were as inventive as any of the wild dishes you would see on Iron Chef, starting with a “bagel and cream cheese” with crisp crumbles of bagel and smoked copper river salmon instead of the usual lox, followed by a Caesar salad reimagined as a soup. An ornately presented and tasty lobster salad followed, with delicious steamed snapper and Thai style grilled beef as main courses, then it was time to enjoy a dark chocolate dessert by chef Wayne Lucas of Patina while watching the episode of Iron Chef America featuring Chef Makoto.
Interviewed after the event, Makoto said that despite the fact that chefs are usually kings in their own kitchens, there was remarkably little friction between the headline chefs and their various staff members.
“Here they instinctively became a big team, because professionals understand what works well. How people work with their staff depends on the chef, but in this situation each chef shows their staff how to construct the dish, and they are followed exactly. I believe each person was served exactly what the chef intended, even if an assistant made it under their direction.”
Asked whether the event was as much a theatrical event as it was a dinner, Makoto hesitated a moment. “It is about equal,” he finally said. “The food is what was important. There was a little Hollywood here, everybody shooting pictures and watching every move. It is wonderful to interest people in chefs who they may not know about; it is good to be in the center of so much excitement.”
It was noteworthy that not only were the diners star-struck, the staff at the event were too – sous-chefs were taking pictures of the preparation details and even getting posed shots with the featured chefs. Some noteworthy South Bay restaurateurs were present, and all the ones I interviewed agreed that it had been a very successful event. Mike Zislis, who owns RocknFish and the nearby Shade Hotel, was enthusiastic but said that the samples of each chef’s work weren’t necessarily typical of what you’d have when they were working in their own kitchen.
“I think the spirit was great and everybody had a wonderful time, but if you sat at Chef Morimoto’s restaurant while he was there, the food would be a little bit more controlled. There’s a little bit that gets lost in translation. People go into it understanding that. For as many people as were in that room, the staff pulled off a miracle.”
Zislis also made a point of mentioning how remarkable it was that this much star power was assembled in Manhattan Beach.
“I’m glad that Sashi brought such an event to the South Bay – It was quite nice to see all those chefs in one place. I’m used to seeing that at the Napa Valley wine auction, charity events in New York, but not Manhattan Beach.”
Michael Franks of Chez Melange was also conscious of the uniqueness of the event being held locally.
“The media have created these celebrity chefs, and for them to be in a kitchen right here is something that the public really gets excited about. It builds excitement about cooking, and it’s good for the industry as a whole, so everybody wins. When you have someone like Moriomoto, who is such a big deal in our industry, and he turns out to be so accessible and charming in person, it’s a big deal for the restaurant that hosts him.”
Franks also noted that the chefs who participated in this event couldn’t coast on their reputation.
“The consumer is looking for the same quality and food experience that they’d expect at the chef’s restaurant, whether or not that’s reasonable. This is their first chance to judge for themselves whether that person deserves their notoriety. It is actually a risk on the part of the chef, because people who try their food for the first time may not agree that it’s that special. What starts as a love fest may end as a divorce.”
Franks said that despite hosting guest chefs like Emeril Lagasse at his own restaurant, he isn’t immune to the excitement of this type of event. He also put the collaboration between chefs who are also celebrities into a different perspective.
“These events are both a collaboration and a competition; the chefs have worked together to create the menu, but at some level they’re all trying to present the most striking idea or presentation. What I like is the unknown, the adventure, the one off-ness of it, wondering if it’s going to work or not. When someone pulls it off, as the staff at Sashi did at this event, I really have respect for them.” B
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