Here is my first attempt to review a restaurant. Being a self-admitted non-gourmet, I would take it with a grain of salt (my critique, not the food).
- Restaurant: SCHOOL
- Location: 162 Todds Rd, Lexington, KY 40509 (in Chippen Dale Square) (859) 269-0677
- Web: http://web.me.com/schoolschoolschool/Site/HOME.html
- Genre: Japanese-French Fusion (I think..)
- Setting: Business casual
- Price: $18 – 25 per entree
This oddly named restaurant sits quietly in a small row of shops in Chippen Dale Square. School is no Benihana: no “Hibachi” grill or the chaotically busy atmosphere. The restaurant has more of a lounge-like feel. The sushi bar sits at the center of the restaurant surrounded by a “Kaiten Zushi” conveyor on which a parade of small plates of sushi circulates.
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| Sushi Bar with Kaiten Zushi Conveyor |
The way it works is that the chefs prepare plates of sushi randomly (seemingly, anyway) and place them on the conveyor. Patrons can grab any plate that is on the conveyor at any time. You are charged per plate which is color-coded.
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| Price per Plate Color Codes |
2 Japanese brothers are the executive chefs of the restaurant, Nobu-san for Japanese food and Hide-san for French. Dawn knows Nobu-san and the owner, Tomoko-san (who was not available during our visit), from her previous work experience at Japanese Food Store in Lexington.
We met with the brothers before we placed the orders. Dawn and my parents went with Hide-san’s recommendation of a fish plate. I, feeling obligated to order something different, asked for “Wafu Steak (Japanese Steak)”.
We asked Nobu-san to prepare a sushi platter as an appetizer, which was simply delicious. We did not sample the sushi plates on the conveyor, so I’m not sure if they are equally good as the platter. The platter consisted of squid, salmon, tuna and yellow tail. Even the squid which is usually rather bland (in my opinion) was presented in such an appetizing manner and was the BEST-ever tasting squid sushi, according to Dawn.
We also had a big plate of shrimp spinach salad shared between Dawn and myself. Perfectly seasoned with vinaigrette dressing, this was a hit among us once again. Please note that the salad plate is so big that you can share between 2 people easily.
My entree of Wafu Steak was PHENOMENAL. It was done just right (although I don’t remember our waitress asking me how I would like it cooked… hmm…) and the meat was so tender. It was seasoned with a somewhat sweet sauce, and I think this made it one of the best steaks, if not THE best, that I have had (I think Dawn agrees). I wouldn’t think a Japanese restaurant would be the first place that you would think of to get a good steak, but I HIGHLY recommend that you give it a try.
The fish that Dawn and my parents got was flounder, we think. This was a French dish, and again, they enjoyed it very much. While this is definitely a French dish, it still had some Japanese-ness to it, according to Dawn.
All in all, this has been a great dining experience. The price range is at the higher-end of MY scale, but it is a great occasional dine-out spot.
Verdict: WE LIKE IT! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! :)
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| Sorry about some bad pictures. My phone cam isn’t so good in low light condition. |
