Hiroaki Aoki (Rocky) came to US in 1959 as part of a wrestling team he realized that there
were more opportunities for him in America than in Japan, especially in the restaurant
business where he felt that he will never go hungry. After 3 years of systematic analysis of
US restaurant market, he discovered that although American enjoyed eating in exotic
surrounding, they were deeply mistrustful towards exotic foods. Additionally, Americans
enjoyed watching their food being prepared. Hence, he gave them Benihana, with a
Habachi table that allows preparation of exotic fresh food in front of the
customers,delivers it with skillful art and allows customer to participate in the cooking
process.
To addressed the shortage of skilled labor and keep cost low, Rocky introduced the
Hibachi table arrangement, which cuts labour costs while still providing exceptional level
of attentive service. Moreover, this arrangement also helped in increasing productive
dining space from the usual 70% to 78%. In addition to this, food storage and wastage
were reduced by having only three simple “Middle American” entrees on the menu, steak,
chicken and shrimp. This move cut food costs up to 35% of food sales, compared with
industry average of 38-48%. The bar space was also increased in new sites which brought
about increased in beverages sales, which was further enhanced by the low beverage cost
of 20% compared to the average industry cost of 25-30%.
Because lunchtime business accounted for 30-40% of total dollar volume, restaurants sites
selected were high-traffic, which were located predominantly in the business district, as
