BUSY SUZIE

Japanese Robata originated with the fishermen in Northeast Japan hundreds of years ago. The fishermen would slice, spice and grill their catch over an open flame at a kind of makeshift beach restaurant using no utensils other than their wooden oars. When orders were ready, the chefs would shout that it was done creating a lively, bustling atmosphere.

Busy Susie, a trendy robatayaki restaurant in the 1881 heritage complex in Tsim Sha Tsui, takes the traditional Robata concept and modernizes it with a chic interior designed by husband and wife team Patrick Gilles and Dorothee Boissier (previously lead designers under Phillipe Stark). The décor is slick and has the feel of a lounge bar instead of a restaurant. There are red hanging lanterns, white sculptured walls, stainless steel backdrops, black wooden tables and bamboo accents. To add to the atmosphere, Japanese modern art is scattered throughout the venue. It’s no surprise that the restaurant’s owner is Gilbert Yeung- the mastermind behind the infamous nightclub Dragon-I. He actually wanted Busy Suzie to be the kind of place that would be lively prelude to a night out on the town.

Busy Suzie has several zones. There’s an alfresco area with white leather seats overlooking the historical Heritage complex and the skyscrapers of TST. There are also private rooms decorated with bamboo walls and a mass of hanging paper lanterns.

The dining area has a circular layout. There are tables on the outer part, but the main attraction is the long dining counter that wraps around the inner periphery. Behind the dark wooden counter, robata chefs sit perched on stools, as if on stage, cermioniously preparing your meal. They use sticks to peel grilled eggplants and they impale live prawns on skewers right before your eyes. Each of them has a big wooden oar next to them and they pass finished items to patrons on the wooden paddles. This is how the name Busy Suzie came about- it’s a take on the term ‘Lazy Susan’ which is the name for those round tables at Chinese restaurants which rotate and you serve yourself. Here you are being served with wooden oars! The open plan layout doesn’t offer much privacy hence you probably shouldn’t take a mistress here, however if you want to see and be seen, this place is perfect.

Periodically the hostesses and chefs yell something in Japanese and the cacophony is musical and entertaining. They are saying things like- “Your food is ready” or “Enjoy your meal”. Also at certain times, there’s a clapping sequence where all the diners are encouraged to clap along with the chefs and the staff. We don’t really know why they do this, but it’s theatrical and the audience participation is really fun.

The specialty cocktails are very interesting. Many of them combine tequila and sake- a lethal combo. There’s also an extensive menu of bottled sake. There’s a section for ordinary sake and a section for ‘fine sake’ -in other words-if you have to ask how much it costs, you can’t afford it.

The best thing on the food menu that we tried was the Australian Wagyu beef skewers. They are a must-try if you eat meat. The Kagoshima pork skewers are also highly recommended. The shitake mushrooms tasted boiled instead of grilled and didn’t have enough seasonings. The prawns were also not salty enough and came with the skin. The chicken skewers, ginkgo nuts, grilled tomato and sushi rolls that we tried were good but not exceptional.

The food is decent but some say that this is a place where you come more for the atmosphere and drinks rather than the cuisine. Busy Suzie is definitely worth a try. It’s a unique dining experience and traveling to TST gives you a great excuse to leave Soho and explore something new!