Arizona Republic from Phoenix, Arizona • Page 40

FD2 WEDNESDAY, JULY 9, 200 THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC I i ft i 1 FOOD DRINK i iu its rA SJ-v iCyZZ- I i 1 PHOTOS BY MARK LIPCZYNSKITHE ARIZONA REPUBLIC The foot-long Madagascar! prawn might look startling but tastes sweet and tender. Europe's Japanese phenom ready to conquer New World The dessert platter overflows with chawan mushi; green-tea cake with a molten chocolate center; fresh fruit and fruit sorbet. 'I 1 i i 'ft 1 1. i 4W j. Roka Akor's black cod is marinated in miso and yuzu and is delicately presented.

5 1 Til SEFTEL Continued from FD1 spare interior that signals both energy and serenity. The airy room is a gleaming, earth-toned monochrome of polished light wood and mud walls built with straw. Nothing has been left to chance: It's no accident that Camelback Mountain is dramatically framed in the doorway when you leave. Meanwhile, the background world music and cocktail-fueled background clatter are just loud enough to make you feel like a young, cosmopolitan sophisticate without interfering with meaningful conversation. The heart of the room is the ro-bata grill, ringed by a counter with 25 seats and adorned with colorful arrangements of fresh vegetables.

If you come as a duo, this is where you want to sit. Robatayaki, for those who haven't eaten out since the Clinton administration, means meat, poultry, fish and vegetables cooked over an open-flame grill fueled by fragrant Japanese oak charcoal called binchotan. Unlike raw fish, which for most of us has been an acquired taste, these straightforward Japanese dishes take direct aim at the red-blooded, backyard-grilling American carnivore. No wonder robatayaki has become so popular. Roka Akor's grill masters do a superb job of showcasing both the quality of the ingredients and their own skills.

Although you have to sort out the hits and misses from other parts of the menu, there is no weak link in the robata lineup. For sheer drama bring a camera nothing surpasses the Mada-gascan prawn a head-on, foot-long creature that looks like it escaped from an Animal Planet documentary. Threaded on a skewer and cut into bite-size morsels (don't forget to dig into the head), the meat is exceptionally sweet and tender. Although pork, lamb and veal sound ho-hum in comparison, there's nothing ordinary about them, including their glazes, which are enormously flavorful yet never overpowering (or too salty). After we stripped the meat off the sweet-tart baby backs the butter-soft, Korean-spiced lamb chops ($32.30) and the handsome veal chop fragrantly rubbed with mustard miso the pile of bones looked as if they had been worked over by a pack of hyenas.

And though silky black cod marinated in miso and yuzu ($26.30) has become a cliche since Nobu Matsuhisa introduced it 20 years ago, there's no denying that Roka Akor's shimmeringly delicate version is scrumptious. You could spend $120 on robata Japanese wagyu, the world's best beef. But I can't believe it's $91.70 better than the beef filet 5 or 6 ounces of glorious tenderloin dynamically seasoned with chile, ginger and green onions. Although all dishes are meant for sharing, this one may test the limits of your relationship. Roka Akor's specialty dishes can go toe-to-toe with the robatayaki.

Diners might initially blanch at the $18.30 tag for wagyu sushi goosed up with caviar, no matter how exquisite. But the memory of it can inspire a smile weeks afterward. The same goes for soy-paper-wrapped foie gras teamed with Japanese plum Less opulent, but no less wonderful (and a great deal more filling) is the steaming rice hot pot bursting with the earthy scents of Japanese mushrooms. Make sure you scrape off every last bit of crusty rice along the sides and bottom. The rest of the menu, however, can seem like an afterthought, aimed at folks who insist that Japanese restaurants offer sushi, dumplings, tempura and salads.

Sushi is prepared in a separate kitchen, out of sight It's perfectly good, if somewhat pricey: hamachi unagi scallops But why anyone would come here for sushi Roka Akor has zero sushi-bar ambience is beyond my understanding. Tempura, too, doesn't come off as a high-priority item. Assorted vegetables ($8.90) and rock shrimp ($12.60) tasted like crunchy bar snacks. Same for the squid ($7.60) and nothing-special gyoza Why fill up on salads? Spinach salad ($6.60) makes no impression. And the overly complex burnt tomato salad with Japanese herbs a Roka signature, leaves a poor one.

All I could think about was how much more I would have enjoyed a thick slice of beefsteak tomato sprinkled with a little salt and pepper. I I ii'iwi iii iii urn .11111 ri--ii 'i mon8 "'a Akor's salads is butterfish tataki, teamed with white asparagus Sushi goosed up with caviar, the wagyu gunkan features the premium Japanese beef, dressed with a yuzu shallot vinaigrette. Nevertheless, there is a gem lurking in the salad section: the brilliant butterfish tataki, teamed with white asparagus dressed with a yuzu shallot vinaigrette Light, refreshing and unutterably tasty, it made me want to shake hands with the chef who thought it up. Being hungry for dessert at Japanese restaurants is usually a sign of poor belly-room management. But the over-the-top Roka dessert platter ($27) make sure your friends are still hungry, too delivers a boffo finish.

It's laden with chawan mushi, a custard laced with strawberries and honeycomb; green-tea cake with a molten chocolate center; fresh fruit and scoops of fruit sorbet. You'll be talking about this on the drive home. many dishes do we need? Some servers know the answers, some don't. Happily, there is a solution. Get one of the tasting menus (the value is in the 12-course, $89 menu, which has way better dishes than the 10-course, $59 menu).

Not only will you get a terrific sampling, you'll get it at a discount compared with a la carte prices. Will Roka Akor be a breakout hit across America? Who knows? Right now, it's enough that we have a classy antidote to Scottsdale's sake-bombing, cellphone-ringing Japanese-restaurant scene. I'm hoping for a long run. Reach Seftel at howard.seftelarizona republic.com or 602-444-8S33. However, you may also be talking about other, less enjoyable aspects of the Roka Akor experience.

Want rice? That will be $1.90 a bowl -and you'll need several to fill in the appetite cracks. Want a well-paced meal? Good luck. Dishes come out when they're ready. (On one visit, however, our server capably followed instructions when I asked her not to bring out the robatayaki before the sushi, salad and tempura.) It's also a trial putting together a meal, especially for first-timers, because the extensive menu gives no indication of portion size. Come here as a foursome and you'll have a million questions: How many lamb chops to an order? How much beef? Can we share the butterfish salad? Is one veal chop enough? How COOKING CLASSES ADVERTISEMENT This testimonial placed with Jeff Davis's complete permission and support.

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