Owner and partner of Innovative Dining Group (IDG), Michael Cardenas started his career as a teppan chef in San Diego after graduating from culinary school in 1981. He forged a partnership with IDG in 1997 to open the first Sushi Roku on Third St. With its success, he brought his brother Tom Cardenas onboard to help expand the restaurant dynasty.

The chopped toro presented tableside comes with condiments of caviar, chopped green onion, ponzu and soy sauce. (photo by Jill Weinlein)

Their latest endeavor is a new concept restaurant ROKU, in the beautiful space that was once RivaBella on Sunset Blvd.

I was recently invited to dinner at ROKU and was curious to see how they changed the decor of a spectacular Tuscan-inspired dining hotspot into a lively Japanese teppanyaki, sushi bar and fine dining destination.

ROKU offers hibachi dining with a personal chef preparing meals in an interactive environment for two to 28 guests. Teppan chefs cook Japanese wagyu, Matsuzaka beef, Santa Barbara spot prawns, and vegetables at grill tables.

At the nearby sushi bar, Chef Jiro Kobayashi rolls the freshest fish in both traditional and modern sushi preparations. Guests may choose the Omakase or Chef’s Choice option to be surprised throughout their meal.

I met my group on the patio to sample from the progressive menu in the indoor/outdoor space. Many of the dishes were similar to the iconic Sushi Roku brand. For beverages, there are selections of handpicked sakes, crafted cocktails and a large selection of Japanese whiskey.

We started with the spicy Sunomono smashed pickled cucumber that offered a nice crunch and kick. This is one of the most popular items on the Roku Red Sun Happy Hour menu.

For an elegant appetizer, try the salmon caviar of thinly sliced pink curls of fresh fish wrapped around daikon radish, shiso leaves and topped with a heaping spoonful of black osetra caviar.

Sushi continues to be a shining star at ROKU, which also serves teppanyaki. (photo by Jill Weinlein)

The tableside preparation at ROKU is interesting. A large bowl filled with crushed ice is placed in the center of the table and in it is a smaller bowl of raw chopped toro, the fatty underbelly of tuna. Seven smaller bowls surround the toro, and they are filled with chopped green onion, caviar, soy ponzu sauce and more. The delicacy is prepared before your eyes and the delicacy is spooned into an edible rice basket. This would have been perfect, yet the rice basket was too delicate and crumbled easily. I wished it were a little more dense to break into bigger pieces to use as a cracker.

The ethereal fluke sashimi is tiny bite size pieces of raw fish splashed with a burst of kumquat and yuzu vinaigrette. Minuscule flower petals and microgreens decorate the plate.

Another stunning dish is the blue crab tartare topped with uni and caviar. It was adorned with a lovely magenta and white tropical flower.

A plate of roasted shishito peppers dusted with aged parmesan, vinegar and toasted sesame seeds arrived at our table. These slender, finger-long peppers have a thin green skin that blisters when charred, trapping a smoky essence. We cautiously bit into each one before popping the entire pepper into our mouth, because one out of ten peppers is very spicy. Out of five I bit into, only one singed my tongue.

For another appealing earthy flavor, I enjoyed the wood fired Eryngi mushrooms marinated in a plum vinaigrette and bathed in almond butter. These are also called King Trumpet mushrooms because they resemble the instrument and have a thick and meaty stem and a small tan cap.

The wood fired pizza oven installed at RivaBella was kept intact, and ROKU utilizes it for several dishes. My favorite was the wood fired kabocha and butternut squash that glistened under a Japanese sesame chili paste. Kabocha, also known as Japanese pumpkin, has a pumpkin and sweet potato flavor and is a pleasing and popular vegetable in tempura.

For entrées, we enjoyed the sea bass and wild mushroom “Toban Yaki” resting on top of three different types of mushrooms in a creamy yuzu butter sauce.

The prime New York strip is dry-aged for 40-days and is the same quality beef served across the street at the restaurant BOA. The steak at ROKU is marinated in a yuzu kosho fermented paste made with green chili peppers, shaved yuzu peel and salt. It’s sliced and served on a platter with roasted tomatoes, squash and Brussels sprouts.

Before dessert we finished with four pieces of matsu sushi with sliced ginger. There was a salmon sushi with a slice of cucumber and spoonful of caviar, and pieces of sea bream, yellowtail, and albacore.

Executive Chef Tyson formally at Chi-Lin, the exquisite Chinese restaurant that shared a kitchen with RivaBella, now helms the kitchen at ROKU. He makes his signature XO fried rice with Lap Cheong sausage, egg and shrimp. Lap Cheong is a dried, hard sausage made from pork that is smoked, sweetened and seasoned with rose water, rice wine and soy sauce.

His baked crab hand rolls wrapped in rice paper are served warm with a slightly sweet soy sauce.

Fully satiated, I only had enough room left for one taste of three specialty desserts that included a green tea circular tiramisu with flowers, a caramel pot de crème, and a rich molten chocolate lava cake with berries.

ROKU has a unique vibe offering elevated Japanese cuisine with exciting flavor profiles that are artfully plated.

Valet parking and street parking are available. Be sure and get your valet ticket stamped at the end of your meal. $$$ Open for Lunch Monday through Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The Red Sun Happy Hour is Monday through Friday from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Dinner service begins at 5:30 p.m. 9201 Sunset Blvd. (310)278-2060.