Beyond the sizzle

New French-style teppanyaki grill focuses on quality ingredients, Liu Zhihua reports.

Most people know teppanyaki as a style of Japanese cuisine cooked on a teppan, or iron griddle. But in fact, so-called French-style teppanyaki eateries dominate the restaurant scene in big Chinese cities. Starting in Taiwan, it adds Chinese and French twists to the Japanese original.

When teppanyaki was invented in Japan in the 1940s as an upscale, intimate and interactive dining experience, what mattered most was the high quality of ingredients and direct communication between the chefs and the diners, according to Cheng Sheng, an established food critic in Beijing. However, it later evolved toward lower-end fare - edging closer to street food, using less-fresh ingredients and tending to showcase knifing and cooking techniques to entertain diners.