Having recently moved to Muskego, my family and I have found a lot to like about our new city.

The one glaring negative, however, has been a lack of dining options.

Given the limited number of restaurants within 10 miles from our house, we were excited about the long-awaited opening of Toshi last month.

Located in the Shoppes of Janesville Commons, the Japanese sushi and hibachi establishment gives a commendable effort to help fill the city’s dining-out void.

Making our first visit with an out-of-town guest on a snowy Friday night, we were immediately seated in a cozy booth adorned with decorative curtains. On the other side of the room, a group of 12 seemed to be having a good time seated around the hibachi station.

The expansive menu contains 10 appetizers from the sushi bar ($5.50-$12) and 21 appetizers from the kitchen ($4.95-$8.95).

The Yaki Tori – grilled chicken on skewers with sauce – and Ahiru – lightly sautéed shredded roast duck topped with scallions – turned out to be good starters.

A la carte orders are also available ($4.50-$8) with a sushi order coming in two pieces and a sashimi order coming in three pieces.

For our entrees, our table ordered the chicken and shrimp tepan yaki and the beef and chicken tepan yaki. The meat is sautéed with vegetables and noodles in Toshi’s signature teppanyaki light sauce.

The dishes were flavorful and the portion size was more than adequate.

We were only given chopsticks at the beginning of the meal, but don’t be shy and ask for a fork if you so desire.

Both meals were served with a side of white rice and a choice of soup or salad.

The miso-shiru (soybean) soup and house salad with ginger dressing were small, but transitioned well from the appetizers to the main course.

Our table, which included two sushi novices, also ordered the sushi deluxe – nine assorted pieces of raw fish sushi and roll tuna.

“For me, all sushi tastes good,” our out-of-town guest said.

I’ll have to take his word for it.

While we didn’t sample the limited dessert menu (various ice creams and fresh fruit), the palette cleansing plate of orange slices brought to our table at the end of the meal was a nice touch.

Welcome to the neighborhood, Toshi. We will be back.

Toshi

S74W16867 Janesville Rd.

Hours: Mon-Thu, 11am-10pm; Fri-Sat, 11am-11pm; Sun, noon-930pm

Prices: Entrees, $12-$20.95

Reservations: Not necessary

Of note: There are luncheon specials Mon-Sat, 11am-3pm.

Payment: Master Card, Visa, American Express