Shiro of Japan - Restaurant Review

Shiro of Japan is a great family restaurant at Glendale's Atlas Park mall. There are two separate dining rooms -- the larger one with tables surrounding hibachi grills (Benihana style), the other with a sushi bar. Service and quality of food are consistently high at Shiro's, though foodies might be disappointed to find only familiar Japanese dishes.

I highly recommend Shiro for families. The theatrics at the hibachi will entertain your youngsters. The hibachi menu -- chicken, shrimp, steak, noodles, and rice -- is also kid friendly. It's not an inexpensive restaurant, but Shiro's is definitely a treat.

Step inside Shiro's -- on the second floor of Atlas Park mall -- and you'll need to choose between the bigger, louder, smokier hibachi dining room and the smaller, more intimate dining room for sushi and other meals.

Shiro's sushi is fresh and well-done. They have the usual sushi menu of rolls of many fishes and sauces, but the fish is usually so fresh and good that there's no need to hide its taste.. Try the nigiri. They're in proportion and flavored the right way. Expect to pay $20+ depending on what you order.

The same menu offers a range of favorite Japanese dishes: edamame (a tasty, salty soybean snack), gyoza (fried dumplings), soba and udon noodles, tempura, and broiled fish.

If you opt for hibachi, you'll sit in one of the most entertaining dining rooms in Queens at a table surrounded by a grill where your chef will prepare your meal in front of you. Each table seats up to eight diners, and usually, you'll be sharing the table with other diners.

The hibachi menu is straight forward with a number of meat, fish, and seafood options ($18-$30+) -- like chicken, steak, shrimp, scallops, salmon, sea bass, lamb, and lobster -- all prepared in the same style with soup, noodles or bean sprouts, and rice included in the price. There are Kobe beef meals, but at much higher prices ($50+).

The chefs at Shiro's each start the meal preparation with a little schtick that involves a flaming onion "volcano" and a few jokes. There's a little fire that might make you gasp in surprise, but there's no danger. If you're concerned, ask the chef to tone it down before he starts. I always remind my kids never to touch the grill.

In either dining room, the staff at Shiro's is very attentive. Shiro's is more than worth the price for an evening out in Glendale.