It may not be an accessible memory for everyone who reads this, but about ten years ago, the Lehigh Valley did not have a fine-dining Japanese spot. The concept—sushi bar plus hibachi plus upscale restaurant—did not become a reality for the region until December 2008, when Komé opened.
Komé, which means rice in Japanese, was the first restaurant in the Lehigh Valley for the Ooka group, which owns several similarly styled restaurants in Bucks and Montgomery counties.
According to Ken Johnston, regional group manager for Ooka, there are several reasons the company expanded up here. “The vision of the Promenade itself, the fact there was a sophisticated population, the fact that the area seemed primed for further growth, along with its good accessibility/infrastructure and the fact that it was somewhat of an untapped market in that no one was doing what Komé offers—all of this contributed,” he says.
Fast-forward ten years. As with many restaurants with some degree of longevity, Komé's success is a carefully orchestrated balancing act. Like good service, it's something that is mostly invisible to diners but whose efforts produce tangibly consistent experiences.
One place diners find that consistency is in the menu: Komé is one of those places where the core menu doesn't change too often. Manager Justin Rupert refers to it as the “foundation, the base menu—it's pretty constant. We have items that people know and love, and regulars come in specifically for those things,” he says. However, there's always room for experimentation and the inclusion of new items, and that's where the extensive kitchen staff, led by 36-year-old Executive Chef Tom Boehlke, gets to stretch.
“We have special menus throughout the seasons—we sort of break it into quarters,” he explains. “Seasonality is a big part of Japanese dining,” adds Rupert, whether it has to do with the seasonality of certain seafood or fish, or vegetables and fruits.
“A fish that's feeding in the winter in cold waters is going to taste better than a fish that has already spawned in the spring in warmer waters,” says Boehlke. He's referring most specifically to uni, or sea urchin, whose season is October through March. “When it's colder, it eats more and it tastes better.”
“It's very important to use the finest ingredients in the peak of their season—this is how things are done in Japanese cuisine,” he says. Komé will use strawberries in the spring, squashes in the fall and all kinds of vegetables in the summer, for example. The restaurant's salmon, which is cooked to tender perfection sous vide (i.e., in a bath of hot water circulating at a consistent temperature), is a menu mainstay, but its vegetable accompaniment rotates with the seasons.
“The menu is a balance between change and stability,” says Rupert.
Boehlke grew up in upstate New York, in Albany, and moved to the Lehigh Valley when his dad got a job at Air Products in the 1990s. He wasn't sure what he wanted to do, but kept getting drawn into kitchens. “I fell into this business, did a bunch of random jobs—I worked at Applebee's on Cedar Crest, and Mangos for a little while,” he says.
Ultimately, the energy drew him in. “I love the kitchen atmosphere. There is no more satisfying feeling at the end of the night, after you've gone crazy and it's been nuts, but when it's all said and done, it's such a sense of accomplishment.” Another aspect that appeals is the changing nature of culinary work—every day is different because every day different people come in to eat, and there are new challenges. “I have a tendency to get bored easily,” he says, a refrain often heard from chefs.
Along with the seasonality, the plating and precision at Komé are appealing. When Boehlke arrived as a line cook, he worked under Shuji Hiyakawa, the chef who opened the restaurant and had trained right under Philadelphia's Masaharu Morimoto—you may know the name from the Food Network show Iron Chef. He describes him as very talented, someone he “learned a lot from both directly and indirectly. His attention to detail was something I have never experienced before. He was always trying to learn and push himself to be better in all facets of food, which is probably the greatest lesson I learned from him,” he says.
That attention to detail is especially important when composing dishes with multiple elements. “I just fell in love with the style and the mind-set. I love the flavors, the aspect of cooking with different ingredients depending on the seasons. The cuisine is based on the food—it's not about the flair. It's very crisp, clean and simple, but elegant,” he says. The restaurant's Surf and Turf represents this most clearly: the veggies (Asian sweet potato, grilled asparagus) and proteins (giant shrimp and scallops and grilled New York strip steak) are separated into quadrants with a refined presentation, kind of like a fine-dining Bento box. “What we try to accomplish at Komé is to pay attention to the roots of the Japanese cuisine principles but put a modern twist on it,” he explains.
Through the years, as people became more educated about food (see also: Food Network), expectations and behaviors changed. People still ask lots of questions about menu items, and the role of the servers is key in conveying the mission of the place. Over time, trust develops between server and diner. “It's not uncommon for people to turn the menu over to the server, and then just ask for dinner recommendations that way,” says Rupert.
Boehlke says eating raw fish was unexplored territory for many diners in the early days. “Years ago, when we would do events at the Sands for food and wine festivals, people would think sushi and sashimi [were] gross. All of that is not so much a niche item anymore,” he says. People weren't aware of items such as the aforementioned uni and saké. To be fair, familiarity and interest in saké, a Japanese rice wine that's made by fermenting rice that has been polished to remove the bran, has really only begun to grow in the last few years, too, and the restaurant has fully embraced the various types of saké, determined by the process and polishing of the rice bran. “All of our sakés can be consumed universally with anything on the menu. We are still discovering our palate with saké, and what people like,” says Rupert. And yes, they offer flights—an easy way to sample many different types.
Another thing that's changed since the restaurant opened ten years ago pertains to the extensive, ever-growing competition. Within the first few minutes of our meeting, Rupert mentions that there are something like “1,500 places to choose from for dining” in the Lehigh
Valley right now. It seemed outrageous, but somewhat plausible. The Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation verified this fact and shared that in 2012, the U.S. Census last counted about 1,339 restaurants/eating establishments in the Lehigh Valley. “We don't have the 2017 data yet, but I think it's very safe to say that there are much more than 1,500 places to eat,” says Michael Keller, director of marketing for the LVEDC. (Remember: It's not just a matter of being indecisive—there are a lot of places to eat around here!)
Once you get to Komé, you have to decide whether you want to sit at the sushi bar, in the main dining room or the hibachi area—you can order from the main menu at the hibachi grill, which is popular with families and large groups, but not vice versa. There are plenty of traditional items, plenty of those with a more modern flair and vegetarian and vegan items; Komé will easily cater to those with celiac or gluten intolerances. Komé offers a bit of everything as it pertains to Japanese fare. When the staff presents the Wagyu beef as an appetizer, it's pure theater: a hot square of granite, beef fat to melt on top so the strips of A5 (high-grade) beef don't stick and chopsticks to quickly cook and flip the beef to your liking. It's popular, and for good reason—the beef melts in your mouth.
“We want to find a way to over deliver—and yet still not go out of business,” says Rupert, with a laugh.
Komé Fine Japanese Cusine
The Promenade Shops at Saucon Valley | Center Valley | 610.798.9888 | komerestaurant.com
Hours
Mon.–Thurs.: 11:30 a.m.–10 p.m., Fri.: 11:30 a.m.–11 p.m., Sat.: noon–11 p.m., Sun.: noon–10 p.m. Lunch and dinner served.
Parking
An entire shopping center's worth
Reservations
Recommended, especially for weekends
Payment
Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover
What to Order
Wagyu Ishi Yaki, with a ponzu dipping sauce and wasabi salt, is a crowd pleaser and fun to eat. The sushi-sashimi combo is easy to share, and the Saucon Valley Roll, with spicy tuna, scallion, avocado with tempura flake, eel sauce and spicy mayo, is the best-selling roll. “We've added a dozen rolls, due to demand—many of them start as specials,” says Rupert. Surf and Turf makes a beautiful presentation. Save room for dessert: There's a rotating selection of mochi—a Japanese delicacy of ice cream wrapped in sweetened rice flour—along with house-made sorbets and ice creams. The array of saké will keep you curious for hours, and the Saké Cucumber Martini, with house-made cucumber simple syrup, is crisp and refreshing.
Specials
Happy Hour runs during the week, from 4–6 p.m., Monday through Friday, with discounted beers, wine, rolls and appetizers.
