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RESTAURANT REPORT
Kaiseki flair

The flavors and cooking techniques of Japan meet the seafood and produce of Hawaii in a Contemporary Kaiseki Dinner on Friday at Hiroshi Eurasion Tapas in Restaurant Row.

The kaiseki is a formal Japanese meal of many courses, designed around fresh, seasonal foods, each representing a style of preparation -- steamed, raw, grilled, braised, etc. Each dish might be served with tea or sake.

In chef Hiroshi Fukui's contemporary version, the 10 courses of the night are paired with wines, and each dish is a complex blend of Asian, European and local influences.

For example: Course No. 8, the nimono, or braised dish, is a short rib, topped with a shiitake mushroom cap. Beneath it is bed of shirataki noodles mixed with pesto; above it are shavings of Manchego cheese. Alongside are three sauces: ginger/carrot, roasted yellow bell pepper and cumin/beet.

Other dishes include Oyster & Pearls (with a wasabi-infused tapioca), Tako Carpaccio (that's octopus, with a salad that includes hearts of palm and kabocha, or pumpkin) and Okinawan Sweet Potato Mochi "Ooze," which just has to be seen to be appreciated.

Cost is $75, $100 with wines. Call 533-4476.

Talking turkey

You might not want to think about it yet, especially as you haven't yet dispensed with Halloween, but Thanksgiving is nearly here.

The Rotary Club of Honolulu Sunrise welcomes the thought, with its fifth annual Wine and Turkey Fundraiser, 6 p.m. Nov. 9, at 3660 on the Rise.

Not only is the club anticipating the holiday, it's anticipating the day after -- when you'll have leftover turkey and you'll need ideas for serving it up.

Chef Russell Siu will offer not the traditional roast turkey and fixings, but a selection of heavy pupus, all made from turkey, all paired with wines. Think turkey tacos or turkey enchiladas.

The event includes a silent auction to benefit the Roosevelt High School Senior's Scholarship Fund.

Tickets are $75. Call 847-0141.

Tuesday for Ruby's

Ruby Tuesday opens a fourth restaurant Tuesday in the Moanalua Center next to the Navy Exchange at Pearl Harbor.

The 280-seat restaurant will be open at 3 p.m. for dinner only, until Nov. 14, when full-service hours will begin at 10:30 a.m. daily.

Ruby Tuesday's first Hawaii restaurant opened in Mililani in 2004 and has grown to include locations in Ala Moana Center and Windward Mall. Co-owner Ted Davenport says the three restaurants are usually within the top three earners in the chain.