Stix
After our baby-doctor visit we grabbed some lunch at Stix. Stix is a hibachi grill and sushi place similar to Kyoto, Bonsai, and any number of other “Japanese steakhouse” places in town. Stix had to close down for a while a couple years ago, but they’re open again now. Not sure how long they’ve been open–this is the first time I’ve been back since my office moved downtown. Or, er, we moved to a new office downtown. The old office is still right where it was.
Enjoying the show
Honestly, the hibachi grill experience sometimes leaves a sour taste in my mouth. The stereotypically racist show is cringe-inducing to me–I’m equal parts embarrassed for the cooks having to perform tricks with fake Japanese accents in front of us as I am myself for being part of the experience. Sometimes I think I’m being overly sensitive, but other times I can’t help but think of black performers in minstrel shows degrading themselves by acting down to the ignorant stereotypes of the times just to “entertain” and make a living. But the food at Japanese steakhouses is good, and I can ignore a lot of nonsense for good food. Not sure what that says about me, but anyway. If I could have the food without the side show I’d be all for that.
On the grill
The menu and preparation thereof is straightforward–you pick a meat or two to go with fried rice and vegetables. All of it is prepared on the hibachi grill in front of you. The grill is basically a giant griddle with areas of high and low temperatures for cooking different items.
Scallops and rice
Here’s my plate before I got the vegetables (always served last) and before I devoured all of it. It’s a very healthy portion of scallops, although I suspect they might have given me and subsequently charged me for a double portion of it (you can order up to 2 meat selections). I’ll have to go back and try this again and see if their portions really are this generous and they mistakenly overcharged me, or if they served and charged for a double portion.
Throwing away money...
After enjoying our delicious meal, we let Sofia visit the fountain up front. Does money grow on trees? You’d think so the way we throw it away in this family!
... for a good cause.
Oh, well in that case it’s ok I guess.
Tag, you're it
This last photo isn’t particularly great, but I think it might be the only one I have with Sofia wearing all those address stickers stuck on her sweater. An uncle of Denise’s passed away recently, and her aunt (the wife of this uncle) gave Sofia these mailing address stickers with his name on them when we visited over Christmas. She had no more use for them, so she figured Sofia could have some fun with them. Kids love stickers. So yeah, the pic is here for sentimental value.
This uncle was the one I wrote about in my 2nd ever post on the blog. His condition had rapidly deteriorated following surgery, and the doctors thought he wouldn’t make it. To their astonishment he beat the odds and survived. What followed was months of difficult and tenuous recovery and eventually death. As humans most of us would probably say it would’ve been better if he had just passed away in those early days after surgery instead of enduring months of pain and suffering. But that’s human logic. We found out that shortly before he passed away he and his wife had a frank conversation about his spiritual standing and whether he was sure of his salvation. He was not. Right then he received Jesus into his heart and not long after that he passed away. Was that worth the suffering? Considering the alternative is an eternity of separation from God, I’d say so.
God is real, and he has a plan for everything. And his plans always work for the good of those who love him. To our feeble minds it’s often inconceivable that he could have a good plan for such incredible pain and suffering, but every once in a while we catch a glimpse of his plan brought to fruition and can only marvel at his grace and patience. If you haven’t yet heeded his call, I pray it doesn’t take a near-death experience or extreme suffering to do so. Don’t wait for him to hit you over the head with a hammer before you accept his outstretched hand of mercy.
Oops, back to Stix–almost forgot their contact info:
Stix Restaurant
109 Marketplace Ln
Flowood, MS 39232
601-420-4058
Hours: too complicated. Check with them.
I ate at Stix a few years back during one of my visits to Jackson early on my move to DC. It was brand new then and we ate from the regular menu, which was very good. I think we even said so to a manager or something.
I’ve never ordered from the regular menu, but I did sneak a peek at their sushi bar and the ingredients looked good. Might try some nigiri next time as a side dish to see if it’s up to snuff.
Stix used to be one of my favorite restaurant before the INS closed it for hiring illegal workers. The fried rice was addictive and the sushi was good. On return when reopen, I found that the service was not it used to be, the fried calimari with the sweet sauce was portion by at least a 1/3. There was no Sapporo on draft, after they took the order, a little unorganize. I have never sat at the hibachi table but order off the menu. I like to have my meal all served at once, not rice, meat and veg in slow order. I will give them a few more chances before I write them off. I am now fond of Nagora in Madison.
I assume you meant “Nagoya”? I’ve never been to the one in Madison, but I used to be a regular at the original location close to Target off of County Line long before they expanded and added on hibachi grills. I still really like Nagoya, but Haru/Edo is my favorite these days for sushi. They’re very comparable in quality and price (although Edo has the edge in portion size, which is most obvious with their nigiri), but Nagoya has gotten the recognition and resulting customer base that it deserves while Edo for whatever reason hasn’t. That combined with their food is why I choose Edo as my default sushi joint–they need and deserve to have some loyal customers.