Weekly Eater Nadine Kam

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Next time, Kaiwa likely will be a first choice, not an alternate

There's nothing worse than having your heart set on one type of food, then having to switch gears because the restaurant you were headed to is closed. It happens to me a fair number of times because I'm so noncommittal, preferring spontaneity to the idea of sticking to a reservation. The proliferation of restaurants has made it fairly easy to just show up, and I'm always prepared to live with the consequences, though it's not always fun for my dates, who have had to put up with those closed signs, my tardiness, my lack of cash at cash-only restaurants and other such real-life, sitcom, none-of-this-will-matter-100 years-from-now scenarios.

Kaiwa Waikiki Beach Walk, second floor / 924-1555 Food: 1/2 Service: Ambience: Value: Hours: 11:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 5 to 10 p.m. daily; cocktails to 1:30 a.m. Prices: About $70 to $90 for two without drinks

Let's just say this is how I found myself at Kaiwa. It was jarring to have headed out for Italian cuisine and ended up with Japanese, but it didn't take Kaiwa long to wipe out any desire for pasta and marinara. They had me if not exactly at "hello," then with the first selections of decadent Kona kampachi sashimi ($17) and HokuHoku kabocha ($12), Japanese pumpkin and asparagus tossed on the teppan with garlic, olive oil, a touch of soy sauce and bits of bacon.

The name of the Tokyo-based restaurant can be understood as "conversation" but is also based on the principle of "kai wa," as I understand, the invisible, auspicious factors that communicate the harmony and artistry of a place.

Tokyo's Ken Numatani designed the interior, including fiber-optic curtains and similar waterfall, so subtle that some touched the strands and were surprised to find their fingers wet. Similarly, jazz music was so smooth, it took me a while to notice the guitarist-singer in a corner of the room near the teppan tables.

The space is divided into two rooms. In the main room, teppan chefs preside, preparing grilled meat, fish and vegetable specialties. Sushi is prepared at a bar facing the sleek zashiki room, available for an intimate table for two or a private party for up to 20, with floor-style seating.

THERE ARE FAMILIAR faces behind the teppan grill and sushi counter as chefs Isamu Kubota and Daisuke Miyakawa have taken their Okonomi Cuisine Kai concept a few notches up. Kaiwa provides a more upscale setting for his dishes, with prices to match. At the top of the scale, an order of wafu sirloin is $35, and teppan-grilled Pacific lobster is $45. In the new economy, a lot of lesser restaurants are charging high prices these days; the difference is that here you're not likely to regret paying what's asked.

On the lower end are vegetable selections; it was harder to pay $15 for oyster and enoki mushrooms or $12 for plain slices of grilled Japanese eggplant served with two sauces: one a chunky yuzu miso, and one of grated daikon in ponzu.

If you're starting with sushi, be aware that prices of $8 for uni, $4 for maguro and $9 for ebi, etc., are per piece, not per duo.

What is most interesting is that as Japanese food continues to fuse with that of the West, and as the chefs' comfort levels with Western ingredients and tastes increase, how decadent some of the selections are. Supersizing's just around the corner.

Butterfish (gindara shioyaki, $32) is broiled and topped with truffle slices as big as a slice of garlic.

And I had to see what the foie gras hamburger steak ($34) was about, described as a "ground beef patty with a foie gras center." Whoa!

Well, there's a translation problem. The foie gras was not inside the burger, but centered on top of the burger. A hint of herbs was folded into the hamburger, but otherwise it was as big, beefy and American as they come. Even so, I'd be more likely to order the sirloin next time around.

I left without a trace of longing for Italian cuisine.