Hibachi, sushi & onion volcanoes. See inside new Japanese steakhouse in Perry

Perry has a new Japanese steakhouse and sushi bar, and it’s not the first rodeo for owners Rivel “Jumbo” Malonda and the Liu brothers, Ricky, Steven and Hanson.

The business partners have four successful Japanese steakhouses elsewhere in Georgia, with their first opening in Locust Grove in 2004.

Koji, which opened quietly Monday at 100 Valley Drive in the former Applebee’s location in Perry, is their fifth restaurant.

What to expect at Koji

The new restaurant offers different seating areas, including eight booths for dining in and ordering Asian food prepared in the kitchen.

The larger dining area features five rectangular-shaped teppanyaki tables that seat up to 19 people. The tables have a flat griddle at each end where a chef prepares fresh meats, seafood and vegetables in front of guests.

Dining in this section includes interactive entertainment with a chef who performs culinary tricks like flipping cooking utensils and building erupting onion volcanoes.

“You watch the cook,” said Malonda, a native of Indonesia. “You watch the entertainment … that’s why it makes you happy.”

Roy “Toyota” Nooh has been making customers happy this way for about 15 years.

“Fire in the hole,” Nooh shouted playfully as he lit the onion volcano when The Telegraph checked out the new spot recently.

Nooh also showed off his utensil flipping skills. But his culinary expertise shined brightest in the preparation of filet mignon, steak, shrimp, salmon, vegetables, egg fried rice and noodles on the griddle.

The restaurant uses the best cuts of meats and the freshest seafood, Malonda noted.

A long sushi bar that doubles as a full-service bar is at the back of the restaurant with a dozen tall bar seats across the front. The bar area also features three tall tables for two.

Koji offers an extensive menu of hibachi and sushi options

Anything on the extensive menu can be ordered from any seating area. Diners enjoying the experience at a teppanyaki table may order from sushi options that will be brought to their table, for example.

Although there is a separate menu for dining in the booth section, the food offerings across the menus are essentially the same, Malonda said.

The restaurant offers a host of appetizers, soups and salads, bento boxes, special sushi rolls, sushi bar plates and a variety of hibachi dinners with multiple protein options, including shrimp, chicken, steak, filet mignon, vegetables, salmon, scallop, calamari and lobster.

Tofu is listed on the menu as a side dish, in the Agedashi Tofu appetizer, and as a bento box option. Guests may add tofu to the vegetable hibachi option on the grill with the side dish upcharge, Malonda said.

More than 50 sushi roll options are listed on the menu as well as more than 20 nigiri and sashimi choices.

For a sharable option, try the “Love Boat for 2” or “Love Boat for 3” that includes a variety of sushi presented in a wooden boat.

The restaurant offers a lunch menu from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on weekdays (except holidays) and from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. A kids menu for those 10 and under is available, too.

Drinks include tea, Pepsi products, lemonade, and Ramune, a popular Japanese carbonated soft drink.

Alcoholic beverages include white and red wines, domestic and imported beers, sake and cocktails.

Rounding out the menu are desserts of mochi ice cream featuring strawberry mango and green tea; tempura ice cream; vanilla, green tea and red bean ice cream; and cheesecake.

Why Perry for the new Koji location?

Malonda and the Liu brothers chose Perry for their restaurant because the city didn’t have a Japanese restaurant that offered the experience of a chef entertaining while cooking food in front of the guests, Malonda said.

Their other Koji restaurants in Locust Grove and Commerce offer this experience, while their Bonzu restaurants in Forsyth and McDonough offer only the dine-in, order-from-the kitchen option.

Additionally, the growth that Perry is experiencing was another factor in their decision, Malonda said.

“My restaurant, they have to see first, and then how they respond, you know, when they like it mostly,” Malonda said. “Only two days, they like it.

“They come in Monday, they come in Tuesday. I say, ‘Oh, are you coming only two days straight?’ Hahaha, and they say, ‘Oh, I like it. OK. I bring my friend to come here.’ “

Koji hours & hiring

Just off Interstate 75, Koji in Perry offers dine-in, takeout and third-party delivery. The phone number is 478-224-0235.

Hours are 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. for lunch and 4:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday; hours are the same for Friday except the restaurant is open until 10:30 p.m. Saturday hours are noon to 10:30 p.m. and Sunday hours are noon to 9:30 p.m.

The restaurant is currently hiring. Drop by and fill out an application, or email Kojiperry100@gmail.com, or call “Jumbo” at 678-763-5077.