On the occasion of my 28th, Jami, Corinn & Ray and I went out to Koto Japanese Steak House for dinner.  Just walking into the restaurant reminded me of being (and eating!) in Japan...it smelled like Japanese food.  And not many places in Vermont (much less the entire U.S!) can claim that!  

Anyway...

We had reservations to sit at one of the hibachi grills where "experienced chefs will cook your food right before your eyes, as well as provide fun and entertainment!"  And, boy, were they right!  Here are some pics from Koto's website of the hibachi grills:

     



The chef began by showing off his knife skills by chopping up some veggies...after slicing & dicing a zucchini, he flipped a bite-sized piece at each of us...happy to report that all 4 of us caught the zucchini in our mouths (while the party at our table were a bit mouth-catching challenged!)  

   


Then, he built the Onion Ring Volcano and lit it on fire...with some sake!  Everyone sitting at the table got a little taste of sake, too...via a squirt bottle shot across the table! (Not quite as neat & tidy as the zucchini catching, but still fun!)


He continued on by cooking the vegetables, noodles and all of our various meats.  He served each of us our meals and left us in peace to eat.  It was delicious!!  

  

Then, it was off (with our leftovers) to the McBe's for birthday cake....mmm...yummy!


(It was a Sonic Cake from Mirabelle's Cafe in Burlington)

It was a fantastic day!  :)  (And I'm pretty sure it's been decided that Koto will be the place for celebrating T's birthday from now on....mmm...sooooo good!)

And...a few days later in the mail, I received a completely unexpected surprise in the mail from Danny & Mary...



Very cool (& yummy, too!)  Thank you!!  :)