The upscale Volcano restaurant in Centennial, Colorado, is not just another Asian restaurant. It’s really three fine restaurants all beautifully combined under one roof at 10440 E. Arapahoe Road and Havana Street. Its name comes from the restaurant’s signature Volcano drink, a powerful flaming libation containing several kinds of liquor and served in a large ceramic dish.
With its Hibachi table grills, sushi bar and quality full-serve Asian dining, this restaurant dishes out sizzling Asian cuisine in three delightful culinary styles.
At lunchtime, my friend and I dined at a Hibachi grill table with businessmen who were regulars at the restaurant. Our meal started with green salads topped with a tasty creamy sweet dressing. The chef blends applesauce, tomato sauce and orange juice with fresh ginger to create the unique dressing.
While we watched, our chef expertly cooked steak, scallops and chicken entrees, plus fried rice for us. The Volcano’s crunchy fried rice, served steaming hot from a Hibachi table grill, is much tastier than the fried rice usually served in most Asian restaurants. His secret, he told me, is he mixes shredded vegetables and seasonings into the fried rice and then adds sesame seeds just before serving it.
The businessmen at our table raved about the food, telling us it was so good that they come back regularly. They also cited the Volcano’s sushi bar as one of the best in Denver. In the sit-down dining area, we talked to a group of women who were dining on Chinese and Thai lunches. They, too, had high praise for the restaurant.
In addition to usual Asian fare, upscale specialties include shrimp and scallops in sizzling platter, roast crispy duck, Korean-style short ribs, Singapore-style noodles, steamed whole fish, Volcano grilled lobster/steak, Hong Kong steak, Sriracha beef, and Dragon Family grilled shrimp/lobster. Tasty appetizers include Vietnamese egg rolls, Mongolian hot wings, crab rangoons and a Pu Pu sampler platter.
China native Jie “Jay” Zheng and wife Xin own and manage the restaurant. The couple and their Chinese business partner direct the production of mouth-watering specialties prepared by expert Asian chefs. Zheng, who worked as an engineer in business development before opening Volcano Asian Cuisine several months ago, founded the National Association of Asian Business Professionals.
If You Go
Volcano
10440 E. Arapahoe Road
Centennial, Colorado 80112
303-662-8111
www.volcanoasiancuisine.com
Open for lunch and dinner seven days at week. Lunch express super specials are available Monday through Friday. Drinks and selected appetizers are half off during Happy Hour from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. each night. A live jazz night is held from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. every Saturday. Tuesday is family night when kids 12 and under eat free with the purchase of an adult entrée.
Margaret Malsam, a Colorado freelancer, has authored two books and written for restaurant and consumer food publications, including “Wine Enthusiast,” “Restaurant News of the Rockies” and “Wine News.”