The Man Behind ‘Dinner With a Show’

From selling ice cream in Harlem to building the Benihana empire, Rocky Aoki helped introduce Americans to Japanese cuisine in the most exciting way possible. When Japanese food was becoming more common in the United States, Rocky Aoki managed to find a unique way to introduce more Americans to it, while also giving them a show. Hiroaki “Rocky” Aoki was born in Tokyo, Japan in 1938 into a family connected to the restaurant industry. Growing up, he kept himself busy by starting a rock band with his friends and competing in track and field, wrestling and karate. He was offered many wrestling scholarships, which eventually led him to move from Tokyo to New York City where he attended Springfield College, then transferred to CW Post College on Long Island. Here he became a three-time U.S. national wrestling champion. Aoki later moved back to New York City and worked seven days a week out of an ice cream truck, while also studying restaurant management. He decorated his truck with Japanese umbrellas and began creating a name for himself throughout Harlem. Eventually, Aoki took his savings, combined it with a borrowed loan from his father and opened the very first Benihana, which was named after his father’s coffee shop in Tokyo. Benihana sat on West 56th Street in Manhattan and initially struggled to attract business since Japanese food was still unfamiliar to diners. In order to compete with American restaurants, Aoki knew he had to develop a concept that would stand out and so he made the food preparation part of the dining experience and used ingredients like steak and chicken which were more familiar to Americans. Chefs cooked directly in front of guests, sliced vegetables, and performed tricks with their utensils, completely transforming dinner into entertainment. Aoki’s idea worked and Benihana went from a small Manhattan restaurant to an international success that made him one of the most recognizable Japanese entrepreneurs in the U.S. Before stepping away from day-to-day operations of Benihana, he had built a restaurant legacy that is still worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Aoki died from pneumonia in 2008 at the age of 69, but his influence is still seen across the country. In 2024 Benihana was purchased by The ONE Group Hospitality for $365 million in cash, proving the lasting value of the concept Aoki created. There are currently 80 Benihana locations operating in the U.S., Central and South America, and in the Caribbean. Rocky Aoki played a role in changing the way Japanese cuisine was presented in America and by combining cooking and entertainment, he turned teppanyaki-style dinners and flaming onion volcanos into a cultural phenomenon.