Tona and friends from Ogden

May 11, 2013 was a day of great honor and adventure. On this day, Tona Sushi Bar and Grill was given the award of BEST SUSHI in UTAH from the Best of State Awards! Owner and General Manager Tina Yu represented Tona at the black tie gala, sharing the evening with some friends of Tona – Rusty Sessions of Sidewinder Media, Kim & Nick Bowsher of the Family Practice, The Indie Ogden girls: Mikki,

Kristin & Jenny, and Aimee Edwards of Public Relations for many Ogden Community event with the recent Ogden Restaurant Week as a great success.  It was a lovely evening spent recognizing some of the best things in Utah. From performing arts, to sports, to community services (Tina also accepted the award on behalf of the Historic 25th Street Association AGAIN), to Best Association/Chamber.

The room was packed, with over 1500 people in attendance and dozens of presenters, performers and the people “to know” in Utah (Governor Herbert, Mark Eaton, TV Personalities and more!). There were performances from the Hale Center Theater’s cast of “Ragtime”; Odyssey Dance Theater wowed the audience with a piece called “Solimbula”; live, swinging music from the Voodoo Orchestra… This evening was glorious.

All in all, over 300 businesses and people important to the Utah community in 10 different categories were honored and recognized for the great things they bring to this great state. It’s a bit of a process, with judges looking at ways the nominees support the community, excel in their particular specialty and are creative in their methods of doing what they do. The fact that Tona won Best Sushi in all of Utah is a great honor.  Tona is committed to provide the best food and service to the Ogden community.

So, many thanks to the Tona team and Tona valued customers for making this award possible for Tona.  Tona will wear it with pride.

Tina and Tona friends.

LUNCH:

Special thanks to the Community Sponsors for helping to put on this event:

US Foods
Historic 25th Street Association
Downtown Ogden, Inc.
Ogden/Weber Chamber of Commerce
Visit Ogden
Coca-Cola
Corporate Alliance
Bank of Utah
Wasatch Distributing

For more details and information, visit http://www.ogdenrestaurantweek.com or https://www.facebook.com/OgdenRestaurantWeek

Hope to see you there!

Celebrate with us!  We are giving away Gift Certificates through out the week and a Chef Taster Dinner for Two ($100+ value) to our Tona fans!  Please check our facebook page for daily challenge.  We will be announcing the winner here at our blog.

Tona Employees in 2004

3/26/13 Our Tuesday Challenge winners  to the question “Which one of the staff (exclude Tina) in this photo still works for Tona today?” are Steven N Mika Dickerson and Kristin Guthrie Brandt!  The answer is Haley!  Please come to Tona to pick up your $20 gift certificate with a valid ID.

2005 Tona Halloween (cowboy theme).

3/27/13 Our Wednesday Challenge winners to the question “When we first opened nine years ago, our business hours were
a)Seven days a week
b)Monday thru Saturday
c)Tuesday thru Saturday
d)Tuesday thru Sunday”

are Rich N Corrie Carver, Rich Dressen, Melanee Moore-Smyrl, Kari Moreno! The answer is B.  We used to open on Monday nights.  Please come to Tona to pick up your $20 gift certificate with a valid ID.

3/28/13 Our Thursday Challenge winners to the question “What date is our anniversary and what awards did we recently receive?” are Topher Williams, Jill Wilcox Hyer, Ben Stratford and Vikkie Noble!  The answer is March 29th and we recently received Indie Ogden Best Sushi and Best Date Night Awards.  Please come to Tona to pick up your $20 gift certificate with a valid ID.

3/29/13 Our winner for the Chef Taster Dinner for Two is Cammie Stuart Burlison.  Cammie, please call us to schedule your next date night!

Our sincere thank you to all our valued customers for making Tona possible.  Cheers!

It was time to become a kid again, with adventures at Toad’s Funzone in North Ogden. Staff enjoyed a raucous game of laser tag, battling it out in a futuristic setting. When the game was over, everyone headed into the arcade for some good, old fashioned fun: winning tickets, whacking moles & challenging one another to races.

Employees’ children are having a blast.

After the fun was over, the staff headed over to Bistro 258 for some delicious food and merrymaking. It was quite crowded in the restaurant, but that just added to the fun atmosphere. The night was filled with laughter and staff recognition, including a trivia game to see what the guests knew about Tona. With prizes to be won –a few for staff and one for their families – the ensuing battles were fierce! In the end, the prizes for most knowledgeable Tona Sushi employees went to Kaytee, Poli, and Luis! The winner for the side of the families was Brent, Chantelle’s other half.

For the recognition portion of the evening, Tina & Tony wanted to thank certain members of their staff who have done great things in the past year. Bianca & Austin did an amazing job planning such a fun night out for everyone & were recognized by the group.

There were also thanks given to Bianca (again!), Hailey & Jessica for the fantastic job they did putting on the Tona Halloween Party earlier in the fall (You can read about it here! And check out the pictures too! It was so much fun!).

One thing is for certain, Tona knows how to say “Thank you!” and how to have a great time. Can’t wait to see what 2013 brings!

Tina and staff Haley holding the Best Sushi and Best Date Night Restaurant Awards.

The event was emceed by Ben Winslow from Fox 13 News, with music provided by local DJ and resident of 25th Street, Linus Stubbs, with the awards given out to the recipients by Ogden’s own roller derby team, the Junction City Roller Dolls. Around 300 guests were in attendance, not including all of the businesses who came to provide food and had booths to promote their businesses. Tona’s booth was one of the most visited of the evening, naturally. Who can resist sushi? Not many people at the Indie Ogden Awards, that’s for sure!

Tona booth at the Indie Ogden Award. Staff busy serving food and attendees at the event.

Guests mingled around the Browning Theater in the Union Station, visiting various booths from Ogden organizations and businesses, such as the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center of Northern Utah (complete with a couple of birds!) The Front Climbing Club, Nurture the Creative Mind and many more. Tona was among many sponsors there to feed the many hungry, such as Slackwater Pub and Pizzeria, Beehive Cheeses… so many great businesses came together to celebrate Ogden.

Indie Ogden Staff

Not only did Tona sponsor the event – providing delicious sushi, gyoza (pot stickers) and chicken teriyaki – but was also nominated for multiple awards, Best Sushi and Best Date Night. And walked away with BOTH! This was a great honor, to receive recognition from so many people of Ogden. If you come into the restaurant, you can see the plaques at the very front! With 31 categories and hundreds of nominations, it was really exciting to see how many people participated in this event.

Indie Ogden Awards held at the Union Station Browning Theater.

In addition to getting two awards for Tona, Tony & Tina were also recognized by the people of Ogden for being such a valuable part of the community at large, with their fun events, fundraisers for important causes like the tsunami relief in 2011, or their ongoing support of the Red Cross Gala each year.

All in all, the night was fantastic, full of happiness and laughter. We here at Tona can’t wait for next year!

I AM OGDEN on Pioneer Days Horse.

Getting ready for the party.

Tona invited customers to decorate and bring in pumpkins during the month of October for a chance to win gift certificates. Photos of the pumpkins were posted on Facebook so fans of Tona’s Facebook page and dine-in customers could vote for the winners. Prizes were handed out for first, second, and third place and Tona’s staff voted for the pumpkin that was the Best Representation of Tona.

Employees decorated the restaurant for the party and got into the spirit by dressing up. Tony and the sushi bar staff dressed as M&M’s, Tina was Melody Monster, Server Kamryn dressed as a cat burglar, Kaytee was Frida Kahlo, Jessica was Ebi Sushi, Bianca was Hello Kitty… There was a fire pit and seating on the patio so customers could enjoy the perfect Halloween weather. A costume contest was held with a random drawing of winners every hour and a backdrop was set up so guests could have their pictures taken.

Guests in costumes and having a good time.

Though the contest was random and not judged, Tony said he was particularly impressed by customer Paul Tippet’s costume. Paul was dressed as a skeletal grim reaper and stood on stilts to achieve a more frightening countenance. Tony found it particularly entertaining when Paul was forced to de-costume when he realized he couldn’t sit at any of the tables in his cumbersome get-up.

Sushi time! So many choices…

Tina said she presold ninety tickets and had a total of 155 guests. “It was a very nice turnout and everybody pulled together.  Thanks to our staff – Bianca, Jessica and Haley.  They stepped up and took lead to organize the event.  The sushi bar was well organized so we weren’t running out of food, and the kitchen was well organized and they were busting out food. So, it was a fun evening and a lot of customers stayed for more than two hours just to enjoy the company and the food.”

We had fun!

Tina also credited some of her 25th Street neighbors with her event’s success. She sends special thanks to Bistro 258 who lent the heat lamps for the patio, City Club who supplied the tables for the patio, Rovali’s who lent a microphone, and the Image Depot for lending her a camera and lighting for customer photos and also developed the pictures.

If the success of this year’s event and Tony’s newfound appreciation for Halloween are any indication, look forward to another spirited party next year.

Endless Sushi Party.

Chef Tony and KUTV Casey Scott talking about the Home Show.

“Are you ready to roll?” Tina asked as she started the show off by engaging the audience and asking them questions about their favorite rolls. Tony brought two volunteers onstage to try out the Garlic Edamame recipe and Tina handed out samples to the audience. Exclamations of “This is so good” and “Did you write down the recipe” were heard throughout the crowd.

Three volunteers were brought onstage for the sushi rolling part of the class. Jen Stamper, a volunteer from Anaheim, California, said, “I’m glad I got the opportunity to do it (the sushi class). I’ve lived in Okinawa, Japan, for six years and I’ve always wanted to learn how to make it. But I never did. So, it took me coming back to the States to make sushi.” James Lopez from Midvale, Utah, was also enthusiastic about what he learned at the Home Show. “I thought it was pretty good. It was fun learning how to roll sushi.”

Guests are having hands on experience on how to roll sushi.

Tony took the time to explain to the audience and volunteers that the tightest rolled sushi is not the best sushi. He said the rolls should fall apart in your mouth, and reminded everyone not to squish their sushi rice when rolling it. “You want the whole grain of the rice for better texture.”

Tony also said he is a big advocate of rice cookers because they take the worry and frustration out of cooking sushi rice. Lastly, he revealed a few tricks to cut your sushi without having all the ingredients squish out the ends, “Make sure you have a very sharp knife, wet the blade between each cut, and let the knife do the work.”

Tina said she enjoyed the Home Show demonstration. “I had fun helping out, being the assistant, and getting involved with the audience. It’s been a good experience.”

Chef Tony and Tina on stage.

Tony said he looks forward to more experiences like this one. “It’s a good learning experience. It’s fun. I had a great time. And I’m looking forward to doing more of this.”

So, there’s hope. If you missed the chance to learn the secrets of Garlic Edamame, keep a lookout on Tona’s Facebook page, because you’re sure to have another opportunity.

Left: At ABC News studio to talk about the event with news host Dan. Right: Red Cross Development Director Stephanie Christiansen, Chef Tony and Red Cross PR.

Tona has participated in the Autumn Gourmet Gala since it started three years ago, and Tony and Tina are delighted by the event’s success. Each of the participating restaurants donated a package for the live auction portion of the event. Tona’s package included a private dinner for six at Tona, two tickets on Southwest Airlines, and a three night stay for two at any Worldmark Wyndham Resort. The package was valued at $1,900 and sold for $1,550.

Left: Silent Auction. Right: Chef Tony with founder of Indie Ogden.

Tony says the private dinner for six he has given away will provide him with valuable information. He says the dinner will serve as a “beta version” for an event he and Tina are planning for this spring. The event will be a collaborative effort between Tona and the Red Cross and will be a larger version of the private dinner included in the auction package for the Autumn Gourmet Gala.

Tasting dish from Tona

Always on the lookout for new ways to give back to their community, Tony and Tina have found a mutually beneficial relationship with the Red Cross. They are happy to help an organization that recently spent $60,000 helping Utahns who were victims of recent wildfires across the state. Tina and Tony hope that their participation in events like the Autumn Gourmet Gala raises awareness to the needs of various charitable organizations in and around Ogden. They hope that by lending their time to good causes they will encourage others to participate for the benefit of our community.

Paint a pumpkin, bring it in to our restaurant between NOW and 10/27/12 for display.  Everyone who participates gets a FREE Tona T-shirt or Hat!

During Halloween week, we will pick a Tona Favorite base on creativity and best representation of Tona.  The Tona Favorite will receive a $100 Gift Certificate.  Your vote counts too!  Customers’ pick for 1st place will receive a $75 Gift Certificate, 2nd place will receive a $50 Gift Certificate, and 3rd place will receive a $30 Gift Certificate.

Winner will be announced on 11/6/2012. Get going with your creativity!