Page 2 - Dining Out - Sep 26 2021

Restaurant Insider with Anne Lee
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ANNE LEE
speaks with Shokudo Japanese Restaurant & Bar general manager
RYAN KO
Photos by
LAWRENCE TABUDLO
T his week, Shokudo Japanese Restau- rant & Bar general manager Ryan Ko shares with Dining Out readers
what’s good on the menu, including every- thing from traditional Japanese to modern fusion and dessert. In addition to his GM role, Ko is also director of operations with Diamond Dining, which owns and operates Shokudo and Búho Cocina y Cantina.
AL: When did Shokudo open its doors and how did you come up with name?
RK: March 2005. Shokudo in Japanese translates to “dining room.” What our own- ers wanted to accomplish is to have a large space where people could gather, spend time with their families, celebrate mile- stones and get together to have fun.
The level of options and quality of the dishes is top-notch and priced affordably, which really brings us regular customers that come in multiple times a week for dine- in and bar seating.
The pandemic has changed the way we operate, making everyone a bit more cau- tious, but this also increased the demand for our takeout.
AL: With the “Safe Access Oahu” mandate in place, can you walk me through what
guests can expect when coming to the restaurant?
RK: When guests first come in, our host will greet you and ask to show proof of full vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test result taken within the previous 48 hours in order to dine-in with us. Children under 12 years old are exempt. We will then check your temperature and ask for contact infor- mation, to comply with the contact tracing mandate. All our tables are spaced 6 feet apart, and we provide QR codes to view the menus. We are taking all measures to comply with the guidelines that are set in place to ensure safety for our employees and our guests.
AL: Does the restaurant have a specific motto or mission it runs by?
RK: We recently revised our mission state- ment. We are going to make sure our em- ployees are growing. If they are not growing, we as a company will not grow. That goes for the entire team; from the management, to the front of the house and back of the house. We want to make sure everyone is constantly growing in some shape or form toward their future goal. Investing in your employees will naturally make the company flourish.
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Dining Out is a weekly advertising supplement published by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.
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@DININGOUT_HAWAII DININGOUTHAWAII
SPECIAL SECTIONS MANAGER
Nicole Monton
Phone: 808-529-4857 diningout@staradvertiser.com
SALES MANAGER
Anne Lee
Phone: 808-347-1093 alee@staradvertiser.com
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Dining Out
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