- The owners have final say regarding all uniform arbitrations
- Waiters should arrive to work, dressed and ready for work, as per the following rules. Any items relating to the uniform are not to be left at work to be changed into later, your next shift etc.
- Waiters on duty should also remain fully in uniform until the last guest has left the restaurant.
- Be well groomed
- Dress/ skirt/shorts must be visible behind apron in terms of length
- Only pitch black or red clothing items, plain clothing – no patterns, prints or logos
- Pants, shorts, skirts must be black (ie not red), should not be excessively baggy or billowy
- No low cut or backless clothing
- No sleeveless tops/dresses. Shoulders must be covered.
- Closed black shoes, plain black or white socks
- Hair must be clean, neat, tied back behind the head and out of the way. Long hair should not touch or come over the shoulders
- Hair and uniform infringements will result in being sent home and a written warning will be issued
- Clean, ironed and undamaged apron and clothing
- Minimum of 2, working, black or blue pens
- Neat, plain notebook
- Waiters friend bottle opener
- One meal from the staff menu may be ordered per shift. Other meals may be ordered at own cost. Stock availability may affect the ordering of certain items
- Meals should be ordered as quickly as possible, to allow the kitchen enough time to prepare the meal, and in turn for it to be eaten in time
- Staff meals are to be eaten at work, no take aways are allowed
- Staff meals are not transferable to other members of staff, partners, friends, pets etc
- No eating is allowed at all while there are any guests in the restaurant, regardless of whether their bill is paid
- Kimchi is not allowed to be eaten at any point before or during customers being in the restaurant
- Cellphones are not to be used for the duration of your shift without the permission from an owner or manager on duty
- Personal belongings of any kind are not to be stored in the restaurant outside of the times of your shift without prior permission from the owners
- All duties should be complete 15 minutes before the restaurant is due to open for guests
- A service briefing should be attended 15 minutes before service is due to begin
- The waitering staff on duty should be ready to welcome guests 10 minutes before the restaurant is due to open for guests
- No smoking is allowed during service time, until the last guests have left the restaurant
- No smoking is allowed at any point in front of the restaurant.
- No smoking is allowed at any point while wearing any Obi branded clothing or uniform item.
- No alcohol is to be consumed at any point on duty, without the permission of a manager or owner
- No drugs to be consumed at any point on duty or in the restaurant
- If at any point during service, a front of house staff member needs to leave the floor for any reason, the other floor staff must be informed and one specific staff member must be allocated to take care of the other staff members section and tables
- Customers walking into the restaurant take preference over bookings or orders being taken over the phone. The customer on the phone line should be asked if they mind being on hold for a moment – and then the customers walking in should be attended to.
- If the front door of the restaurant is closed for any reason, the waiters on duty should try to open the door for the customers arriving. Ie, if at all possible, customers should not be opening the door for themselves.
- Trays must be used to carry all items, to or from tables
- Take away orders should preferably be written down on a notepad first, before being rung up, to not hold up other orders from being placed.
- Take away orders over R1000 that are being taken during service should be checked with the kitchen before being confirmed with the customer.
- Waiters are to remain standing and on duty until the last guests have left the restaurant.
- The restaurant laptop and iPad are not to be used for for anything of a personal nature without prior permission
- The restaurant telephone is not to be used for personal calls without prior permission
- No illegal activities of any kind are permitted at any point in the restaurant
- After lunch service, the bar fridges should be appropriately stocked to allow the beverages to chill for the evening service
- Soy sauce bottles to be refilled after every shift
- Clean the wasabi gun with hot water and ensure that all components are accounted for after every shift
- Lights to be switched on, big bar light to be switched off at least 10 minutes before service is due to begin
- Restaurant music to be switched on at the correct volume at least 10 minutes before service is due to begin
- Bookings must be checked, any deposits paid noted and where applicable telephonically confirmed
- All tables and chairs/benches clean and set up, with all current reservations being accounted for, with the reserved tables being set up with the correct amount of settings for the respective reservation
- A setting consists of a side plate, a folded serviette pointing to the right, a soy sauce bowl and a sealed pair of chopsticks
- All tables must have a bottle of soy sauce, tables of six or more should have two bottles of soy sauce
- Menus and bill folders should be wiped, all pages, with a clean, damp disposable towel
- All surfaces and trays should be cleaned and dried
- Soy Sauce bottles should be cleaned and dried
- Any shortages must be reported to the manager or owner on duty. Eg, glasses, serviettes, chopsticks, soy sauce, paper bags etc.
- Serviettes should be folded and packed away
- The waiter station and passage cupboard should be neat, clean and organised
- After dinner service, all surfaces should be cleaned and dried before the chairs are flipped onto the tables to allow the floor to be cleaned
- Please note that duties are not limited to the above, from time to time you may be asked to perform additional duties if the need arises, for example due to staff shortages etc.
- only for sit down bills
- bill amount before tip mustbe above R300 to qualify for a stamp
- use of vouchers and or other discounts will not qualify for a stamp
- only one stamp per table
- card has to be physically present for stamps and redemption
- no backdating of stamps
- final discount of R300 may only be redeemed at one time (may not split over multiple visits)
- any unused balance of final R300 discount does not count toward a tip
- Matcha – finely ground powder of specially grown and processed green tea leaves
- Kanpyo – dried shavings of calabash (a type of gourd), cooked in sweet soy sauce
- Konbu – edible kelp (seaweed), usually dried
- Wakame – edible seaweed, it has a subtly sweet, but distinctive and strong flavour and soft texture. It is most often served in soups and salads.
- Bonito flakes – smoked, dried fillets of bonito fish (relative of tuna/mackerel) thinly shaved
- Dashi – traditional Japanese fish stock made from bonito flakes and konbu
- Daikon – large, white mild-flavoured radish
- Toro – belly cut of tuna, very fatty, melt in the mouth delicacy
- Tentsuyu – tempura dip made from dashi, soy sauce and mirin, we serve with grated ginger and daikon
- Dashijiru – broth for noodles made from a base of dashi, soy sauce, sugar
- Hiyashi – ‘chilled’
- Mirin – is a type of rice wine and a common ingredient in Japanese cooking. It is similar to sake but with a lower alcohol content and higher sugar content
- sichimi spice – also called togarashi, ‘seven spice’: red chilli, ‘Sancho’ (Japanese pepper), orange peel, sesame, hemp seed, ground ginger, nori
- sesame dip – miso paste, toasted white sesame seeds, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, sesame oil, sesame paste
- Udon – thick noodles made from wheat flour
- Soba – thin Japanese noodle made from buckwheat
- Edamame – young soy beans in the pod
- Miso – fermented soy bean paste
- Kimchi – spicy fermented cabbage
- Tamago – Japanese grilled omelette, cooked and rolled in a square pan
- Teriyaki – sweet, salty sticky sauce made of sake, mirin, soy sauce and sugar
- Gunkan – ball of sushi rice wrapped in nori, variety of toppings (means ship/boat)
- Line fish – fish caught with a line, at Obi we refer to line fish as a fish other than tuna or salmon, but is locally and seasonally caught.
- Shoyu Ramen –
- Tonkotsu Ramen – broth made from simmered pork marrow or pork bone. What makes this broth so special is the amount of time put into it. This broth is specially prepared by boiling the bones for about 12 to 18 hours or more.
- Miso Ramen –
- Chashu – pork is a popular ramen topping. It’s made by slowly braising pork belly to make it melt-in-your-mouth tender.
- Suntory 5,5% – Pilsener, quite bitter, malty, floury aroma 5,5%
- Sapporo 5% – Pale lager, medium-low bitterness 5%
- Asahi – Aroma of corn, malt, biscuit. Taste of malt, corn
- Kirin – slight crisp, dry citrus flavour
- Orion 5% – different as it is from Okinawa, island separate from mainland Japan, barley and wheat aroma, light sweet, malty flavour
- Sake 14% –
- Plum Sake 13% –
- Soju Grapefruit 13% –
- Tuna Sandwich
- Shogun – exceptions: Andrew and Georgina Rothschild order no mayo, no caviar
- Bento Box – exceptions: no prawn, will exchange for tuna
- Gomae & Roll can’t be no sesame
- Inside Out rolls can’t be no rice, can’t be no seaweed
- Noodle dishes – can’t interchange noodles
- Sashimi Mixed – when line fish is not available, this dish falls away, customers are not able to order it. We cannot substitute other fish (tuna, salmon etc) for the line fish.
Customers also cannot pick and choose how the 9 slices are distributed, they cannot ask for any fish to be swopped out for any other fish. - Chili Popper – the actual popper that is used in the roll may not be changed, ie: no cream cheese, replace cream cheese with avocado, etc.
The roll may be changed, ie: extra avocado, no cucumber etc.
- No leftovers are to be collected and kept in the bar area or anywhere visible to customers
- Our water bottles are returnable, customers are to be charged for water bottles removed from the restaurant
- no items, of any kind are to be placed in front of the cash drawer at any point, to avoid breakages
- some customers may ask for some inside out rolls to be turned into a ‘tempura roll’ – this can be done for most inside out rolls, but must be charged extra.
- when guests are seated at a table, the unused settings must be removed immediately
- when a food order is taken from a table, menus must be removed as far as possible
- Edamame
- Nasu Miso
- Kimchi
- Gomae
- Nasu Roll
- Gomae Roll
- Healthy Roll
- Vegetable Roll
- Cucumber maki
- Avocado maki / hand roll / nigiri
- Pickled Daikon maki
- Kanpyo maki
- Mushroom maki
- Plum maki
Can be made vegan with an ommision:
- Tempura Vegetable (without sauce)
- Vegetable Roll (without mayo)
sauvignon blanc
franschhoek cellar UW 2022 3* western cape 65 / 180
Cooler climate grapes offer a wine with racy acidity and a bouquet of gooseberry and passion fruit.
neil ellis groenekloof UW 2022 4,5* darling 290
SA stalwart with distinctive nettle, greenpepper & dust nuances. 2021 (90 pts) has lemon & ruby grapefruit extras. Revisited as bottled wine, promised seamless elegance now a reality, its well-judged acid-mineral tension also a feature of 2022 preview, as are emphatic dryness & fine-boned structure.
diemersdal winter ferment UW 2022 4,5* durbanville 395
locally unique style: grape must kept cold till onset of winter, ±4 months, to increase flavour intensity, 4 months on lees for mouthfeel. Unfiltered. expected intense gooseberry aromas & tropical flavours around a mineral core
chardonnay
backsberg W 2020 3,5* paarl 80 / 245
Subtle toasted nut & ripe pear on 2020, part oaked, 50% new, 8 months. Lime-fresh, succulent & balanced
springfield wild yeast UW 2021 4,5* robertson 355
Slow natural ferment & 13 months on lees (no oak) both freshen & add creamy, rich nuance to honey-toned
jordan barrel fermented W 2021 4* stellenbosch 430
Broad creamy mandarin on 2021 countered by freshness. 100% oaked, quarter new. Matured on the lees 9 months with occasional barrel rolling.
chenin blanc
aa badenhorst secateurs UW 2022 3,5* swartland 75 / 220
firm , fresh mineral element to its light richness
raats original UW 2021 4,5* stellenbosch 290
granite brings the bright freshness, sandstone adds to the structure & brings a tropical fruit note to the typical chenin peach. Clean, pure & expressive, fairly rich & with a lovely sweet core, finishes dry
bellingham old vine W 2021 4,5* durbanville 360
grapes from45+ year old certified heritage vineyards offer a concentrated wine with distinct flavours of honey suckle, ripe melon and apricots, creamy texture
white blends & other varietals
de meye grenache rosé UW 2022 3,5* swartland 70 / 190
balanced wine with a crisp dry palate. Clean charm of citrus and strawberry with a subtle hint of fresh spice, and a light rounded mouth feel
boschendal brut, non vintage UW 4* western cape 110 / 330
51% chardonnay 49% pinot noir few grams sugar to please the crowds in latest NV dry sparkler. Retains its wide appeal, but more about structure than flavour, apple & berry fruit subservient to signature creamy texture; ever dependable.
cabernet sauvignon
glenelly glass collection W 2022 4,5* stellenbosch 285
crushed berries, wild ferment in tank, post-ferment extended skin contact, then to barrel for a year, small portion new. 2020 doesn’t disappoint, classic cassis perfume & flavours, a well-judged savoury element, polished tannin holding it in perfect condition for current enjoyment
shiraz
saronsberg provenance W 2022 4* tulbagh 95 / 280
conspicuously over-delivering & offering solid black cherries laced with rich tobacco. 2020’s ripe, smooth tannins add texture to supple, well-rounded body. 18 months in mostly French barrels
red blends & other varietals
fairview extraño W 2019 4,5* paarl 265
Similar bold & savoury Rioja styling, more structured in 2019 blend of 86% tempranillo with carignan, grenache noir & drop cinsaut. Stems from bunch-fermented portion add freshness, ferment/24 months in French & American foudre & barrel, 20% new, add some sweet spice & hone the firm tannins
organic wine by Sophie Germanier UW 2020 2,5* voor-paardeberg 75 / 220
A lighter blend with a fruit driven aroma of plum and raspberry with notes of nutmeg. It has a high acidity but with a smooth mouth feel that pairs well with most dishes. The grapes are sourced from a variety of organic certified producers in the Western Cape, making it pesticide and chemical fertiliser free. Low sulphites and vegan.
fryer’s cove grenache cinsault UW 2021 4* doring baai 330
A lighter styled red wine that can be served chilled. The wine offers a beautiful nose of Red berries and fynbos. Acidity and soft tannins present on the pallet
old road wine co pinot noir UW 2018 3,5* elgin 360
Smoky & peppery edge to red-berried fruit, 2018 styled for early access with soft tannins & sappy acidity. Tasty everyday drink.
