How Benihana's Founder Rocky Aoki Lived Life On the Edge
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- čas přidán 17. 06. 2023
- Weird History Food will flip a shrimp tail in your pocket as we discover the History of Benihana. The Benihana restaurant chain was founded by Hiroaki "Rocky" Aoki, part entrepreneur, and part daredevil. We'll follow this iconic hibachi chain's meteoric rise, and Behihana's path to the present day. Can you hear the clang of a spatula on the Hibachi grill? Mmm mmm
#benihana #restaurant #weirdhistoryfood - Zábava
Rocky being Steve Aoki's dad was a TWIST
Right?? I was like WAIT, WHAT
Thanks for the spoiler
Glad you enjoyed that. Personally I wasn't surprised, but I also watch a lot of CZcams that mentions Steve a fair bit, so I figured they had to be related somehow.
I'm unphased on that fact.
That’s wild to me
The HISTORY OF BUFFET restaurants, please! 🍕🍛🍩
I second this proposal
The successes and the failures! And what lead buffets to come into existence!
Great suggestion
Yes!
There will be a mandatory Vegas buffet section
I remember the night before my benihana job interview, I looked into the history the restaurant and the story of Rocky blew my mind. Mans a mad lad.
My first time at Benihana was at 6 years old in the 80s. Beverly Hills location that closed a few years ago
Knowing the founder was a wrestler in college, I commend you for not having to use the obvious joke “if you smell what the Rock is cooking.”
I love the fact that back in the day some japanese people thought "hey this space heater is cool and all but you know what be even cooler? if we could cook food off it."
i mean its the same concept as a wodstove used in like every american home up until the advent of electricity
How I never put together Devon and Steven Aoki were related, much less their father the creator of Bennihana's is sending me omg
the Aokis are truly a talented family
This channel has always been the best at what they do. God bless them..
Only when they have the right narrator
@@Jason-tz7ir Love the sarcastic tone of the male voice. Not so much for the female voice.
@@Jason-tz7ir The female voice isn't bad, but ngl I'm just too used to expecting the male voice from this channel as a part of their brand at this point. They could change the narrator to my favorite voice actor and it would still feel off.
Benihana. Beni-fucking-Hana?! Beni-fucking-Hana?!
I ate at Benihana's in the 70's. My mom got a Singapore Sling in a ceramic Budda she got to keep. I made it into a bong. It worked really well. :)
Another Weird History Sunday~! Awesome video as always. I would love to see a video on:
*Arcade Restaurants (ex. Dave & Busters, Main Event Entertainment, etc.)
*Birthday Cake/Birthday traditions
This is one of the best episodes you made yet. I didn't know they had such a colorful history with the CEO and all. I definitely will hit up a Benihana next time I see one in a major city!
I did go to Benihana’s when I was a teenager. I’m now 66, so it’s been a while.
One of my favorite restaurants, my family would always do celebration dinners (birthdays, etc.) at the one in Encino, CA. Watching the chefs cook as a child inspired me to want to learn to cook and I remember telling my parent's I wanted to grow up and be a Benihana chef haha
Better than a "CZcams/TikTok celebrity" every kid wants to be now!
This episode is a great example of the kind of content we want to see from weird history food! More of this please!! 🙏 🙏
Very informative and entertaining. Great job as usual!!
I'd love to see a video on the history of Bonanza/Ponderosa/Golden Corral, because for some reason America needed three different ranch-themed buffet style steak restaurants.
What about Cracker Barrel, Denny's, IHOP, Bob Evans and the most famous Harvey House?!
Right? I still don't get it!
IIRC, Bonanza was started by one of the actors on the TV show of the same name. Ponderosa was created as a knockoff by someone else, being the name of the ranch that was the setting of the TV show. They're both now owned by the same company and are practically the same restaurant.
I’ve honestly never eaten at a Benihana, but have eaten at any of the Teppanyaki/hibachi style Japanese restaurants. Food is freaking awesome.
Thank you for your honesty.
Are they good? I mean can you describe what the food taste like? is the fried rice good? the steak? and seafoods? never tried going to one because of the price.
@@WWE2KUNIVERSEELITE The food is alright, because they are focusing on making a show, the focus isn't really on the food. While I've never had bad food from a Hibachi restaurant, I say that you go there for the show moreso than for the food.
@@WWE2KUNIVERSEELITE your usual Japanese steakhouses are pretty reasonable. Typically somewhere around $20-$30 per person. You have different cuts of steak and different pieces of seafood that you can get. I typically go with scallops for the seafood and just a regular cuts of steak. All of it is very good you can add different sauces to the meal. There is one called “Yum Yum sauce” or you can use the ginger sauce. Both are very good along with soy sauce if you want to be traditional.
@@WWE2KUNIVERSEELITE They are good, I like their fried rice better than at Chinese restaurants. The price really isn't too bad, the portions are quite large so I always have enough left over for another meal. It's worth going to one on a special occasion. No need to go to a Benihana-brand Teppanyaki though.
SUGGESTION: If you want a weird food product spinoff, why not do an episode on Lawry's Steak House and their line of seasonings you find in most stores in the US. I had NO IDEA about the steak houses, having only seen the seasonings on the shelves as a kid in the 70's. I always thought it was an economy brand for some reason, and didn't find out about the upscale steak houses until my daughter went to one with her boyfriend's family in LA.
This is so random, but I'd like really like to see the history of Lipton tea. Or any instant tea brand for that matter. I love this channel so much! Such great research, and y'all keep it interesting 👌🏾
My late husband and I loved unique dining experiences. Teppan-yaki cooking being one, we also loved a good luau with food cooked in a charcoal-lined pit on a beach. One time on a cruise we dined in a Japanese restaurant where they brought a hot stone to our table and we cooked our food right on the stone using our chopsticks to turn over meats and veggies.
I soooo totally remember the frozen food varieties of Benihana! They came in plastic bags and had to be boiled in hot water if you didn't have a microwave (like me). I've finally decided to become a subscriber after watching your highly researched and entertaining videos. Keep up the good work!
Thankfully, those awesome frozen Benihana stuffs are around today, and are far easier to cook.
As Puroresu fans, i'm glad you add Aoki-san wrestling story
Would you please do a video like this for Red Lobster?
My family took me to Benihana every now & then when I was growing up. Eating there was a big event for us. Everyone would dress up, & I was the only kid at the table most of the time. I lived for watching the chef catch the shrimp in his shirt pocket.
honestly my favorite part about going as an adult is seeing kids reactions. I was there last night and this little girl had her eyes like DINNER PLATES every time the chef pulled a stunt. It was a lot of fun.
A+ video!
Fascinating history for such a unique restaurant!
If you replaced my Okonomiyaki with steak, I'd be upset and never come back to your establishment.
This channel is a channel that's is worth watching
Spider-Man: With great power comes great responsibility!
Officer Morales: With great ability comes great accountability!
Weird History: With great money comes great spending!
Man oh man. As a teen Genesis magazine was the golden ticket.
Paul McCartney, Muhammad Ali, and Sean Connery, those are some amazing guests!
Rocky was the original Richard Branson.
This video was GREAT! Never been, but definitely want to! I love this history! Japan itself is a place I want to experience in my life, I have so much respect and adoration for their culture.
You will enjoy Japan when you go. Make sure to check out the hot springs, visit the countryside and go to a tea ceremony, and visit the ido period castles / tour. Tokyo is cool but the countryside is more laid back.
Prepare yourself if you go to Shinjuku train station in Tokyo: it is the busiest train station in the world, especially on a Friday night after 7pm. If you can, visit as many prefectures as you can. Some are a couple hour boat ride.
Also recommend visiting Mount Fuji. I had a blast. Traveled from my in laws house in Taiwan to Japan, went back to Taiwan afterwards.
There’s nothing I enjoy more than a good olfactory fashioned rags-to-riches story! 💰
and he might have "thrown money away" on the night club, speed boat racing, hot air ballooning, and seafood place he still had enough to keep his main place open and keep a house
Love the videos ! Can you make one on brazilan churrascaria concept !?
Used to eat Benihana 6 times a week. That garlic butter had something in it that brought you back!
Benihana was the first place I ever caught food in my mouth. I’d previously tried grapes, popcorn, peanut m&ms and cheez its but always missed.
Benihana is still dope. Loved it since I was a kid in the 80s. Nothing has changed about it and thats perfect.
Havent been to a Benihana, but I have eaten at several other Teppan-yaki style restaurants. Speaking of "One Lap Around America" though, it was the basis for Cannonball Run, a movie that in addition to starting Burt Reynolds, also featured a then unknown in America actor named Jackie Chan. He spoke no English, and the guy in the car with him is there mainly as a translator.
Nice
That was a great video
Wonder how much a good "Benihana" chef makes? 5 weeks of training? Must be worth it in the long run.
Dude literally just used his restaurant franchise to fund his intrusive thoughts. He really was living the life
How have they not made a biopic of this guy?
Cool,I like their frozen meals 🥰
awesome, that boat race took place in my hometown! huge event every summer...
Thanks!
Edit: The boat is NOT a catamaran! (Not Tom's fault, he doesn't write the script, he only lends his dulcet tones.) Benihana is, and has been, very popular in Waikiki, being a destination restaurant for local families as well. The food is delicious, you know the chef or servers didn't spit in it, and you get a photo op at the end. I have some treasured pictures of myself with siblings that have passed on, taken in the 70s-80s. It has very dear and special meanings to me. Rocky Aoki is a hoot as well!
You should do a episode on the instant ramen and cup noodles.
In the beginning of the video they showed the front of the Benihana in Hacienda Heights, California, which is the only one I've been to. Great food and a lot of fun.
I only know of this restaurant because of The Office.
I’ve been to 2-3 Benihana (my first experience was in San Francisco’s Japantown) restaurants, along with a few other teppanyaki-style places. I enjoy the grilled steak and shrimp, with the tasty dipping sauces. The spectacle is exciting the first couple times, but eventually, you just really want to eat…
My last time at a Benihana was a couple years ago for my birthday. There’s actually one about 10 minutes’ drive from where I currently live. 🤷♀️
I'm definitely am going to make me some after this video
If I got a good report card we would go to Benihana
Great Genesis reference at 8:47 hahaha!
"A bass guitar would make a great wrestling gimmick."
Allow me to introduce you to Jeff Jarrett, then.
Here in San Diego, California we have our own culinary legend. Charlie Boghosian, AKA, Chicken Charlie, The King of Deep Fried Food.
Chicken Charlie's claim to fame is coming up with new deep fried treats every year for the San Diego County Fair. This year's offering? Deep fried S'mores.🍫
Yeah, they should do a video about the craziest desserts at fairs!
There's a Benihana in Anchorage, Alaska, where I've lived since 2012. I'd seen it -- it's on the southwestern edge of downtown -- a bunch of times, but didn't know what it was. Some friends took me out there, and I was like "Oh I've heard of these kindsa places!" That was 2014. Had no idea it was a chain until last year.
"WHY WHY WHY GOD!! You would be so cruel to use a chain of hibachi restaurants to take me down"
Mr. Satan from Dragonball Z must have been inspired by Hiroaki Aoki-san.
I heard a lot about Benhiana back in the 90s. There’s never been one near me, but an independently owned Japanese steakhouse near me does much the same thing.
Having now finally sampled okonomiyaki, I now want more.
I love Hibachi style food , i can eat it every other week fr
The dude is back.
Yes!!!
Colonel Sanders is a "Kentucky Colonel", its a civilian award KY gives to popular people from the state.
My favorite food in the world is from teppanyaki restaurants. Thank you Mr. Aoki for popularizing the style in the US!
I've never heard of that restaurant before in my life. But good thing I'm learning about the history of Benihana.😮
"It had nothing to fucking do with me! Some stuff about running drugs with Rocky Aoki, you know, the founder of Benihana? Benihana... Beni-fucking-hana? BENI-FUCKING-HANA? WHY? WHY, GOD? Why would You be so cruel as to use the king of Japanese restaurants to take me down?"
You've never seen The Office?
Oh snap steeve aoki had music in Xenoverse 2 at least for a while
Rocky was such a BA man living the life
Stephen Colbert always makes entertaining food history videos....how about a history if Ponderosa Steak houses??
Are those even around?
I ate at Jinbeh hibachi grill in Lewisville Texas years ago and it was my first time in a Japanese kitchen it was a cheaper benihana and i actually liked it the steak and shrimp and my first time with chopsticks and first time my ex took me to a dinner that didn't involve talking into a clown head we were with his family celebrating his brothers engagement..it was interesting
Guess showmanship is just in Steve's blood then.
I tried a frozen Benihana meal for the first time ever a couple of months ago. Rocky's choice. It was utterly delicious. I wish I knew how I could just make it myself at home. It has some type of odd spice to it.
probably a shitton of garlic butter
It's typical frozen crap that costs way too much for what it is.
@@ChadwickTheChad Yeah, it was delicious
Wow
I'M PRETTY SURE I ATE AT ONE IN SANTA ROSA, CABACK IN THE 80S OR 90S. I ENJOYED IT
Thanks for this! 🔥🥣 #WeirdHistoryFood #FoodHistory #Hibachi #Benihana
Not only have I never eaten at a Benihana, I'd never heard of it until I watched this video.
One of the best ways to cook steak
Very 😎
Speed boats, hot air balloons, submarines, cannonball runs....that guy is a thrill seeker!
TIL that Devon Aoki and Steve Aoki are siblings. I have no idea why I never made that connection before.
My best Benihana story.
Me: “where do you learn to cook and do all the show? Seems similar to other Benihanas I’ve been to.”
Chef: “CZcams!”
😂😂😂
Ironic that I've eaten at Benihanas many times, but only ever ordered the "slimy, fishy things" (sushi). Helps a lot that you can skip the waiting line and go straight to the sushi counter area to eat. Their habachi chicken rice is pretty fire too.
Waiting for someone to break their neck dodging a cake from Steve Aoki.
Yes I have, for many years I lived across the street from one’
Extra points for the Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins plugs 👍
The Bennihana episode of The Office.
The fact that the Benihana Christmas clip from The Office, or LT. Dangle’s reference from RENO 911 wasn’t used in this is a majorly weird misstep.
I have eaten at a at one in Georgia and it was an interesting experience
As a child of the 70's and 80s, I ate at several Benihana's. As a child it was lots of fun, and I would take date's there on a regular basis. But as an adult, the experience was less than exciting.
Rocky lived a life
Now that’s the voice
I feel like the biggest revelation from this video is that he's Steve Aoki's dad 😮
Am I the only one who thought of Police Academy and the boiling fish bowl while watching this video?
Ohhhhh that's what that restaurant is..
its so funny that simply being less racist than the other guys earned him $10,000 lmfao
I miss the Seattle location
Some people used to call me Benihana and I had no idea where they heard that name until years later!
Before: Beni Goodman
Now: Beni Hana
Feels like you can't eat at a Benihanas alone. I've never been.
Rocky also had a Sake import business...