Team behind Vida fires up the hibachi for Enso

MEREDITH — The same family that brought a Mexican restaurant to The Weirs in 2021, then opened another one in Meredith the following year, is now preparing to open a third store next month. The new restaurant, though, will honor a different culinary tradition.

Enso Japanese Steakhouse, which is expected to open in mid-May, is a partnership between the family members who operate Vida, which opened in The Weirs in April, 2021, as well as Vida at the Lake, which has been serving Mexican food in Meredith since May of 2022.

Their newest venture will be offering flavors from the other side of the globe, under the guidance of one family member who has decades of experience with Japanese cuisine.

Arpeet Shah said he and his family members and business partners saw a possibility to add to their portfolio when the space at 2 Pleasant Street, located just across the street from Meredith Bay, became available.

“We saw a restaurant [opportunity] opened up, but we wanted to do something besides Mexican,” said Shah. Meanwhile, his brother-in-law, Alan Romani, held the skills necessary to do just that, having worked for 23 years as a chef in Japanese restaurants in the Carolinas.

Enso – the name refers to a zen concept – will serve a Japanese steakhouse menu, as well as sushi, and there will be two stations for hibachi chefs, who cook food to order for guests seated around the grill, and put on a show in the process.

“I love it, I love being a chef,” said Romani. “The hibachi is different, you get to know people from everywhere.”

Enso will be able to seat about 50 guests indoors, split between tables, a bar, a sushi bar, and the hibachi stations. Another 30 or so will be able to be seated outside, either on the porch or on a planned patio.

Though the style of cuisine is unlike anything else in the region, Shah said many of their customers are already fans.

“When we were opening, people were saying they have to drive all the way to Concord for hibachi,” Shah said.

Gabriele Hernandez, Shah’s spouse, said Enso will offer high-quality steaks and seafood, which will be as much of a draw as the nearby lake. “Good meal, good view,” she said.

Special care was taken in designing the beverage menu. The draft system for beer fills the cups via a valve in the bottom of the glass, rather than pouring from the top. Specialty cocktails, including several non-alcoholic options, are intended to complement the food and the views.

“We have a lot of tourists in the summer and we only have a few restaurants,” Hernandez said. “It’s going to be a good option for people who know they can park their boat in front,” and walk from the town docks.

Enso will be open seven days a week this summer, and will stay open year-round.