
I looked around and say that the parking, surprisingly, isn’t terrible! Aren’t people just wanting to explore this new branch that was brought to Pendleton, the small town with little choices? Well, I could speak for myself, I was so excited! We had arrived at Momiji’s, the new Japanese and Hibachi restaurant located at Melanie Square.
We opened the door and the scent of the new restaurant stunned me. It smelled and looked new, we were seated and as soon as I sat down, I noticed the seats were very comfortable. People would describe Momiji’s as a new, clean and classy, but relaxed restaurant, and also one that gives off a fun or playful vibe. I noticed that music was playing when I first entered, and it was loud music, there was a time when they turned it down because of the excessive noise, but overall, it was pretty soft and relaxed music.
The theme to this restaurant is Japanese. They are a sushi and hibachi restaurant. A hibachi restaurant is one where your chef cooks in front of you on a grill. You can tell them what you want, and the chefs must have pretty good decorating skills to satisfy the customer’s experience. The cook that we had was quite the chef!
Our cook was polite and quiet, but also very helpful and excellent at his work. One of the members in my family ordered a type of meal that involved a lettuce wrapping. The cook used delicate and slow movements to draw detailed flower petals with sauce on the lettuce. His creations were so amazing that you felt like it’s a crime to eat the food. “He took great pride in his layout,” my father, Kevin Krol, said. Momiji chefs better get used to all the pictures, because that food is way too beautiful to eat!
There was another waiter walking about asking people if the food was good, how they liked the restaurant, like any good waiter does. He easily struck up conversations and laughed a lot. He was a happy man, and that played a big part in the playful vibe of the restaurant. He made sure that everyone would leave the sushi bar with a smile!
When my food came to me, it looked and smelled magnificent, but how was it going to taste? I got fried rice, an altered teriyaki chicken, and grilled vegetables. When I tried the food, it melted in my mouth. It was extremely well made and done with the right touch! I wondered why we didn’t have this before.
The menu is decent sized with a wide variety of options. The prices are also family friendly!
I remember driving past the restaurant and seeing that the old one was closed down. It was like this for such a long time! Time and time again, I would see this same depressing run down building every time we passed. One day, we drove by, and I see this big white sign, reading “SUSHI AND HIBACHI.” This excitement only escalated the closer and closer to the opening it got.
When it finally opened, I was so excited that I barely could wait anymore. I needed to go to this restaurant! After I left the new restaurant with a full stomach, I realized that the wait was worth it.
I give Momiji’s a total of 12.5 sushi rolls out of 10!