IDG has opened a restaurant—sometimes three—every year since 1997, when the first Sushi Roku debuted in Hollywood. Now, Maen has restaurant concepts in Northern and Southern California, and in Las Vegas, Austin, and Cabo San Lucas. (Projects in Napa Valley and Scottsdale are in the works.) We caught up with him in Newport Beach and asked him to share his recipe for success.
WHAT’S THE SECRET BEHIND IDG’S SUCCESS?
The restaurants are built around really good food, really good service, and a really good ambience. And then there’s a fourth element, which is a really good vibe—lighting, music, people. Hospitality is very important to us, and to a large degree, it’s the people who work here who make it an amazing experience. We have a philosophy—treat rock stars like regular people and regular people like rock stars. And we want you to leave here feeling better than when you got here.
DID YOU FACTOR IN A SENSE OF PLACE WHEN PLANNING O.C.’S SUSHI ROKU?
Before Newport, our restaurants—we only had Los Angeles and Las Vegas back then—were known for their dark and sexy vibe. But because of the Newport Beach setting and the daytime crowd, we knew we couldn’t have a dark and sexy ambience. We wanted to have something that would work great during the day—be light and airy—then at night turn it down for an evening crowd.
HAS THE MENU EVOLVED OVER TIME?
Whether it’s the baked crab roll or our popular Crispy Rice Hanabi, we want to make sure all of our guests’ favorite dishes are present. Since we opened, Wagyu has grown in popularity, so we have expanded our offerings there. And you can’t have a sushi restaurant without a great selection of creative rolls, so we are always looking to innovate in that area.
YOUR ADVICE TO SOMEONE WHO’S DINING HERE FOR THE FIRST TIME?
Let the server or the sushi chef take the menu out of your hands. Tell them what you like, and then let them take it from there. You’ll have an amazing experience.
WHAT DO YOU LOVE MOST ABOUT WHAT YOU DO?
I love walking into one of our restaurants and seeing people truly enjoying themselves. It means a lot that so many choose to celebrate date night or special milestones, or even an important business meeting. I’m also incredibly proud of our team. We’ve had people meet here, build their lives together, and now their families have become a part of our story too.
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