Manny King John
Benihana, the nation’s leading operator of Japanese-inspired Teppanyaki and Sushi Restaurants, is celebrating the first-annual National Fried Rice Day in a very big way—by grilling its unique signature dish, Benihana Fried Rice, for 42 consecutive hours.
Benihana worked with the National Day Calendar to officially designate September 20 as National Fried Rice Day. To commemorate the new holiday, Benihana master chefs, Andrey Shek (New York 56th Street) and Raymundo Mendez (Chicago Hancock Tower), will attempt to break the Guinness World Records title for Longest cooking marathon. These highly-trained chefs will try their hand at cooking Benihana Fried Rice over a 500-degree grill at two of Benihana’s flagship restaurants, its Midtown location in New York City and its Michigan Avenue location in Chicago. Guinness World Records rules permit chefs to take short, 5-minute rest breaks every hour.
The three-day marathon event kicks off on Tuesday, September 18 at 4 PM CST/5 PM EST and concludes at 10 a.m. CST/11 AM EST on September 20. Benihana will partner with Feeding America and donate all fried rice cooked during the marathon to their partners, City Harvest in New York City and Cornerstone Community Outreach in Chicago. City Harvest is New York City’s largest food rescue organization, helping to feed the more than 1.2 million New Yorkers who are struggling to put meals on their tables. Cornerstone Community Outreach serves nearly 500 low-income men, women and children, daily in the city of Chicago, helping to raise the quality of life.
“National Fried Rice Day is our way of bringing our signature dish to the forefront while giving back to our community and also giving guests a special opportunity to enjoy our iconic Benihana guest experience,” said Benihana Chief Executive Officer and President Tom Baldwin.
On National Fried Rice Day, September 20, customers at select Benihana restaurants will receive a complimentary serving of the famous fried rice with the purchase of an entrée.
