Restaurant Flipper — Restaurant in Nago

Maybe I had a bad day or the restaurant was not at its best, I dont know! My wife and I moved to Okinawa recently and we happen to drive past Flipper on a very regular basis with the thought of going at some point or another as the reviews are pretty good and our neighbor was shouting praises about it.

This week we had the chance to go for an early lunch. I ordered the Filet Mignon and my wife the same but with the addition of Lobster. My meal had a price at about 3,800 JPY or so and my wifes was 4,500 JPY from a vague memory.

The food arrived in good time and came with soup, salad, super mini pasta, toast or rice, some fries and a drink. A decent and fair layout and is typically Japanese. No real surprises.

Being a New Zealander I love steak and welcome the opportunity to enjoy a really good steak. My wife and I are always somewhat apprehensive about steak at Japanese restaurants as its hasnt quite reached western cooking style yet (we think) Some places do it well but you will pay for it.

We have eaten steak around the world in some of the best and the worst establishments you can consider and not forgetting I grew up on steak and lamb. OK to the Point.

My steak was surrounded by water and I was suspicious that it had been quickly defrosted from the get go. On the first cut in was tough and pale even though I ordered a medium, this never changed. The flavour was watery and lacked any real beef flavor. I gave a slice to my wife who said that hers was somewhat better. Not wanting my Flipper experience to fade I kept eating my tough grey watery steak. It never improved.

My wife stated that her steak was ok but the lobster was a little smelly but she ate it all anyway so it must have been ok lol. She offered me about half of here steak to keep me happy. It was again a bit watery (defrosted and cooked to close to other steaks) and somewhat pale in color in the center. However it was quite tender and easy to chew compared to the leather boot I was served.

My wifes steak was the only reason I gave two stars and not one.

Ambiance is fine, waiting time minimal, service friendly, portions very ok and the coffee and tea great. But if you people believe this is good steak your not alive.

Go to your butcher or Costco. Buy a nice Eye Fillet or Sirlion and leave it in the refridgerator for a few days to age. (do not freeze it. If you do freeze it defrost it in the refridgerator until thawed) When ready pull it out and let it sit at room temp for about an hour then cover with olive oil and season with salt and pepper before frying. Cook on a high heat on 1 side at a time to your desired tenderness (Costco Eye Fillet about 4 to 5 minutes each side) Once done remove from heat and cover in tin foil for an additional 5 minutes or so. Serve and eat.

Thats how to cook a basic steak in my opinion. Sorry Flipper it was a...

A charming restaurant along the coast in Nago. Beautifully decorated and very cozy. The menu is in Japanese and English and the staff spoke English well. I decided on having “the Special” consisting of lobster and filet mignon served with a delicious creamy chicken/corn chowder, rice, and small portions of broccoli and steak fries. It pains me to say that this was the absolute worst lobster I’ve ever had. First of all, it’s half a spiny lobster cut lengthwise with the upper half of the lobsters cooked in with the tail meat. I have seen this way of preparation as common practice in Okinawa and I personally think it’s awful. The filet was large, very tender, and prepared MedRare, as requested. The whole lunch set was 4300 yen. I would have rated the restaurant 5 stars if the lobster hadn’t...

Hello. I visited Okinawa in late May and went to Flipper Steakhouse with my friends, excited to try their famous steak. However, right in front of the restaurant, we were involved in an unexpected minor car accident.

We were completely shocked and didn’t know what to do, especially because we couldn’t speak Japanese well. To make things worse, the restaurant had already closed for the day. But despite all that, the owner and staff kindly came outside to help us move the car into their parking lot and even brought us cold water to calm our nerves.

They were incredibly warm and kind, and we were deeply touched by their hospitality. Anyone would have been upset to see an accident happen right in front of their business, but they showed us nothing but kindness and concern—even though we were just foreign travelers.

Later, I heard from one of my friends that while we were waiting for the tow truck to arrive (which took almost two hours), the owner invited us to wait inside the restaurant to stay cool and comfortable, offering more water and letting us use the restroom, even though the store was already closed.

I truly hope to return one day and enjoy a proper meal at Flipper. It was disappointing not to have the steak we were so looking forward to, but honestly, if nothing had happened, we might’ve just left thinking “the food was great.”

But now, what I remember most is the sincere kindness and generosity of the owner and staff. Thank you so much—we will definitely come back again...