Walk past our sushi bar, look toward the back of the kitchen, and you'll see a different kind of fire altogether. The robata grill — an open hearth burning with white-hot Japanese charcoal — is where some of our most memorable dishes are born. If you've only ever ordered sushi at Naked Fish's, you're missing half the story.
What Is Robata?
Robatayaki, often shortened to robata, is a Japanese cooking tradition with roots in the fishing villages of northern Japan. Fishermen would gather around a central hearth to cook their day's catch and warm themselves through long winters. The name literally means "fireside cooking," and the ritual of food being grilled in front of guests — often with the chef using a long wooden paddle to pass dishes across the grill — is part of the experience.
The technique is deceptively simple: high-quality ingredients, intense direct heat, and minimal seasoning. There's nowhere to hide on a robata grill. Either the ingredient is good, or it isn't.
The Magic of Binchotan
The fuel makes everything. We use binchotan — a white oak charcoal from Wakayama, Japan, prized by chefs for centuries. Unlike standard charcoal, binchotan burns extremely hot (over 1,000°F), produces almost no smoke, and gives off a pure, clean infrared heat. The result is food that sears beautifully on the outside while staying tender within, with just a subtle whisper of smokiness — never the heavy char of conventional grilling.
Binchotan is also nearly silent, which lets diners actually hear the gentle hiss of fat hitting the coals. It's a small detail, but it's the kind of thing that makes the experience feel deliberate.
What We Cook on It
Our grill menu changes seasonally, but a few staples never leave: a sea-salt-finished New York strip that we age in-house, A5 Wagyu skewers from Miyazaki prefecture, miso-glazed Chilean sea bass, and king salmon collar — a chef's-cut delicacy that most restaurants don't even offer. We also grill seasonal vegetables: shishito peppers blistered until just collapsing, eringi mushrooms, and asparagus brushed with yuzu-koshō.
An Essential Chapter
For first-time guests, we always recommend ordering at least one dish from the grill alongside your sushi. It's the best way to understand the full range of what Japanese cuisine can be. Our multi-course tasting menu includes both grilled and sushi courses, balanced the way they would be in a traditional kaiseki meal.
You can find the full grill section on our menu, or come in and let one of our chefs guide you through the night's selections. The grill is best experienced live.