Chef Larkland Green fancies himself an entertainer. Expertly handled live food preparation around the flat iron grill may have won him the title of supervisor of the Japanese-themed Kimonos Oriental Cuisine at Sandals Grande Riviera, but at his core, Green is keen on making the experience of dining memorable beyond just the food that goes between diners’ chopsticks, or fork.

He’s also big on showmanship — a mix of spontaneous singing and comedic repartee — that forms part of his nightly around-the-grill duties at Kimonos. Vacationing at the Ocho Rios-located Sandals property for the SPF series of parties for the Emancipation holiday weekend, we snag a lunchtime interview with the popular resort chef, who goes by the moniker ‘Tex’, hours ahead of dinner service at Kimonos which opens at 5:30 in the evening.

— Omar Tomlinson

Thursday Life (TL): How long have you worked at Kimonos?

Larkland Green (LG): Three years and three months. I actually opened the restaurant in April 2011.

TL: Is this the first Japanese restaurant in the Sandals chain?

LG: No, I actually used to be the supervisor at the older one that was at Sandals Dunn’s River back in the day, about 1998 or 1999.

TL: How long have you been employed to Sandals?

LG: Altogether about 10 years.

TL: Where did the interest in Japanese cuisine come from?

LG: I lean towards it because of the interactive experience I have with the guests and I’m coming from a line of entertainers in the family, so I like to entertain while I cook. My father Lloyd Green used to be a trumpeter with Byron Lee’s band back in the day. There was a trumpet in the family for many years and the first son of each generation would get to learn to play the trumpet. But I was number three, so I didn’t get the chance.

TL: What do you love most about the showmanship of preparing food in front of guests?

LG: I love when the guests go crazy about the food and entertainment. I perform songs while I’m cooking and engage them in conversation. They actually really love it, and it makes me feel like I’m doing something special for them.

TL: Where were you trained?

LG: I trained on the job at Sandals Dunn’s River.

TL: What do you love about Japanese food?

LG: Everything is fresh and it is prepared right in front of you. You can choose what you want from what is displayed on the flat iron grill.

TL: What keeps you at Sandals?

LG: Sandals gives you the freedom to be who you are. It’s not as rigid as other hotel properties tend to be. They allow your talent to come out naturally, and as a result Mr Stewart likes it and I’m now part of the Sandals television commercials that are shown all over the world. I’m also ripping up You Tube and TripAdvisor.

TL: How was the TripAdvisor review?

LG: It was very favourable. They loved Kimonos. As a result of their visit and review, it’s hard to keep up with the number of guests that patronise the restaurant during their stay here.