Photograph by George Sakkestad
Lara Matsumura and owner Jay Jinguji enjoy soup and sushi at Kikusushi in Cupertino.
By LESTER CHANG
Kikusushi, voted one of the best Japanese restaurants in Santa Clara Valley in reader surveys conducted by Metro, the Sun's sister paper, has banked its success on tradition and enterprise.
Its environment captures the look of a traditional Japanese restaurant--shoji screens, a sushi bar, piped-in Oriental music and an ambiance that evokes images of Japan.
But owners Jay Jinguji, his father, Joe, and Masayoshi Fujioka broke with that same tradition and used enterprise by lining the walls with framed, autographed pictures and drawings of the San Francisco 49ers, Oakland Raiders and other celebrities.
The restaurant also offers dishes not likely to be found at many Japanese restaurants--teriyaki burgers and teriyaki fried sushi.
"We stay way ahead of the competition by being different," said Jay Jinguji. The restaurant, located off Highway 85 by the De Anza Boulevard exit, has had its ups and downs since it opened 13 years ago, but customers return because the restaurant gives them the best it has to offer, Jinguji said.
Fresh fish is the prerequisite for good sushi, and Jinguji and his partners observe that tradition. Fish is flown in fresh from Japan, Hawaii and Alaska.
The restaurant business was something Jinguji and Fujioka fell into.
Both were students at San Jose State University when they met some 20 years ago. Fujioka moved from Kobe to the United States to study English. Jinguji studied engineering and later changed his major to hotel and restaurant management.
Both learned the business through experience.
"Mas didn't know how to cook rice before he took a job as a cook at a restaurant in Japantown [in San Jose]," Jinguji said jokingly. "But it was sink or swim for him."
Jinguji worked as a part-time waiter at a separate restaurant in Japantown. Over the years he polished his skills as a host and learned how to keep the books and run a restaurant.
In 1983, Jinguji, his father and Fujioka bought the old Kikyo Restaurant and transformed it in a way that suited their taste--painting the interior from orange to shades of black and white, and installing a liquor bar and television monitors.
Most businesses, it is said, make it or break it in their first year of operation. After taking over the restaurant, Jinguji and his partners had to build up a new clientele, and waited patiently for people to find out about their restaurant.
"The first year was blood, sweat and tears, but when we got past it, we knew we were on the road," Jinguji said.
Average price for lunch is $6.95, including tax, while the average price of a dinner is around $9.95, plus tax.
1187-B South De Anza Blvd., Cupertino. Hours: Lunch is served from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dinner is served from 5 to 9:30 p.m. Sunday to Thursday, and from 5 to 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. (725-1749)
This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, October 30, 1996.
©1996 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.