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Leeds
Wasabi Teppan-Yaki Japanese Restaurant

Dining at the Wasabi Teppan-Yaki is almost as much about the experience as it is the food.Here, chefs embrace the pure theatre of this style of Japanese cuisine, commanding huge teppan-yaki tables surrounded by captivated diners who can only watch and admire as they wield their tools like magicians. Chopping here, slicing there and eliciting gasps of amazement and spontaneous applause as they use fire and heat from the skillet to create fabulous, memorable dishes.

As they are escorted to the cooking range, diners don a white cotton bib and sit elbow to elbow, up to 20 at a time, to watch these masters practise their art. Over a crisp house salad and some fantastically light tempura vegetables, we watched in awe as our chef drew a huge flame on the hot plate before putting together our rice course. With silver tools flashing in his swift hands, eggs were fried, vegetables chopped and cooked and rice duly delivered into small, hot bowls in the twinkling of an eye.

Then it was time for the main event. First up was my vegetarian speciality yasai. Juicy mushrooms, asparagus and mange tout were cooked side by side then served with an earthy soy sauce, after which the chef prepared an aubergine and tomato concasse - little towers of melt-in-the-mouth aubergine with layers of ripe tomato - followed by mixed stir-fried vegetables with a choice of three dipping sauces. Happily the outstanding freshness and flavours ensured that the food itself was not eclipsed by the sheer drama of its creation.

Meanwhile my guest was revelling in his starter, chosen from the impressive sushi and sashimi section. Perfectly formed ikura - salmon roe rolls - were accompanied by a searing hot wasabi paste and rich soy sauce. Other options include tuna, octopus, clam, squid or turbot in both sushi and sashimi (raw fish) style. Then the chef set to work on his main course of tuna fillet. He watched, captivated, as this huge portion of fish was seared then sliced and cooked to perfection with tomato, garlic, onion and Japanese plum wine within a matter of minutes. It must have been good as he failed to notice our man start on our fellow diners' meals and dispatch enormous prawns, beef, chicken and salmon to an eager audience.

When the show was over we were offered dessert at a tranquil table in a different area of the restaurant and enjoyed a refreshing fruit salad while koi carp swam in a pool next to us. The team at Wasabi Teppan-Yaki are justifiably proud of their food and the theatre of its creation only serves to make a visit here doubly memorable.

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