Benihana Announces "Be the Chef" Culinary Experience Now Available Year-Round

By: Benihana | 1 Shares 94 Reads

"Be the Chef" Program Provides One-on-One Training in the Style of a Benihana Chef

MIAMI, June 9, 2011 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Benihana Inc. (NASDAQ: BNHNA; BNHN), the nation's leading operator of Japanese theme and sushi restaurants, today announced that it has made its popular "Be the Chef" experiential cooking package available to consumers year round. Perfect for Father's Day or a graduation gift, the Benihana "Be the Chef" program provides consumers with the opportunity to train alongside a Benihana chef and then prepare an authentic Japanese teppanyaki meal for their guests.

The "Be the Chef" package begins with a private, one-on-one training session with a Benihana chef to learn the essential skills needed to cook behind a teppan grill. On a separate weekday after training, the gift recipient prepares a full Benihana meal for their friends and family. In addition to the private training lesson and cooking performance, the package also includes a Benihana hat, Benihana apron, complimentary souvenir photo of the performance and a Master Chef Diploma from Benihana.

"Benihana is renowned not only for its delicious food, but for the entertaining dining experience. We are delighted to provide our guests with the unique opportunity to actually cook behind the teppan grill, and learn directly from our talented chefs," said Richard C. Stockinger, president and chief executive officer of Benihana.

Included in the package is the Benihana Splash 'n Meadow dinner, which features hibachi steak and shrimp, vegetable fried rice, Benihana onion soup, Benihana salad, hibachi vegetables, homemade dipping sauces, Haagen-Dazs ice cream and Japanese hot green tea. Now available year round, the basic "Be the Chef" package costs $140* for four people. Additional guests can be added for only $35 per person, and Benihana is offering a special price of $250 for eight guests.

For more information about "Be the Chef" or to find a Benihana location, visit www.benihana.com

*pricing is subject to change.

About Benihana

Headquartered in Miami, Benihana Inc. (NASDAQ GS: BNHN, BNHNA) is the nation's leading operator of Japanese theme and sushi restaurants with 96 restaurants nationwide, including 63 Benihana restaurants, eight Haru sushi restaurants, and 25 RA Sushi restaurants. In addition, 20 franchised Benihana restaurants are operating in the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean. To learn more about Benihana Inc. and its three restaurant concepts, please view the corporate video at www.benihana.com/about/video.

SOURCE Benihana Inc.

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