If you ask Arigato Bato what they’re known for, NY Steak Fried Rice is one of the first answers on the list — alongside Chicken Fried Rice and Shrimp Fried Rice. It’s a fixture on the Bellflower hibachi spot’s menu, priced at $11.95, and it’s worth understanding exactly what you’re ordering before you pull up to 10215 Rosecrans Ave for pickup.
The Short Answer
NY Steak Fried Rice is a hibachi-style fried rice dish built around fire-grilled New York steak, cooked teppanyaki-style on a flat-top grill, then folded into a stir-fried rice base with egg and vegetables. It’s a complete dish on its own — not a side — which is part of what makes it different from fried rice you might get as an add-on at other restaurants.
Breaking Down the Components
The steak. New York steak (also called a strip steak) is a cut taken from the short loin — it’s leaner than a ribeye but still well-marbled enough to hold up to high-heat grilling without drying out, provided it’s not overcooked. At Arigato Bato, the steak is grilled fresh to order on the teppanyaki flat-top rather than pre-cooked and reheated, which is the entire premise behind the restaurant’s “fresh fire, not frozen food” positioning.
The rice. Hibachi fried rice is traditionally made with day-old, slightly dried-out rice — fresh-cooked rice is too moist and clumps instead of frying properly. The rice gets tossed on the same flat-top, usually with butter or oil, scrambled egg, and diced vegetables (typically onion and carrot at minimum), then seasoned with soy sauce as it cooks. The result is rice with individual, separate grains that have picked up a light char and umami depth from the grill.
The assembly. Once the steak is grilled and sliced, it’s combined with the fried rice — either mixed through or served alongside, depending on the kitchen’s plating style — so every bite gets a mix of seared steak and seasoned rice rather than steak as a separate component you eat around.
Why It’s Priced Differently Than the Premium Plates
At $11.95, NY Steak Fried Rice is significantly more accessible than Arigato Bato’s Premium dinner plates, which start around $48.95 and pair two or three proteins like Filet Mignon, Lobster, or Scallops. The difference comes down to portion structure: the Premium plates are full dinner-tier orders with multiple fire-grilled proteins, steamed rice or fried rice as a side, and vegetables, while NY Steak Fried Rice is a single-protein, rice-forward dish sized more like a hearty lunch entrée. If you want to try Arigato Bato’s grill-to-order steak without committing to a $50 dinner plate, this is the dish that makes the most sense as a starting point.
How It Compares to the Other Fried Rice Options
Arigato Bato lists Chicken Fried Rice ($10.25) and Shrimp Fried Rice at similar price points, plus a Steak Fried Rice Promo and other promo-priced fried rice variants from time to time. The core preparation — grilled protein, day-old rice, egg, vegetables, soy seasoning on the flat-top — is the same across all of them. The differences are protein and price: NY Steak Fried Rice sits above the chicken version because steak is a pricier cut, but it’s still one of the more affordable ways to get a fire-grilled protein on this menu.
What to Expect When You Order
Because the dish is cooked to order rather than batch-prepared, expect a short wait at busy lunch periods — the same flat-top grills used for dinner Premium plates are used for the fried rice line, so timing can shift depending on how many orders are ahead of yours. If you have a steak temperature preference, it’s worth mentioning when you order; reviews of the restaurant note that some fire-grilled cuts have come out closer to well-done than requested, so being specific about how you want your steak cooked is a reasonable step to take.
Customization Options
If you want to adjust the dish, Arigato Bato’s menu includes several modifier options worth knowing about: Extra Meat if you want a bigger steak portion, No Egg Fried Rice if you prefer it without scrambled egg mixed in, No Veggies On Fried Rice for a plainer version, and Extra Green Onion On Fried Rice if you want more of that garnish. These modifiers apply across the fried rice menu, so they work the same way whether you’re ordering the steak, chicken, or shrimp version.
The Bottom Line
NY Steak Fried Rice is Arigato Bato’s answer to “I want real fire-grilled steak, but I don’t need a full dinner plate.” It’s one of the dishes the restaurant says it’s known for, it’s priced under $12, and it delivers the same teppanyaki cooking method used on the higher-priced Premium plates — just scaled to a single-protein, rice-forward portion that works for a lunch break near Kaiser Permanente or Cerritos College, or a quick weeknight dinner at home.
Q&A Pairs:
Q: Is NY Steak Fried Rice spicy?
A: No, it’s not inherently spicy — it’s seasoned with soy sauce and egg. If you want heat, you can add our Chili Garlic Sauce on the side.
Q: Can I get NY Steak Fried Rice without egg or vegetables?
A: Yes — we offer No Egg Fried Rice and No Veggies On Fried Rice as modifier options when you order.
Q: Is the steak in the fried rice the same cut used in the Premium plates?
A: Yes, it’s the same New York steak used across our menu, fire-grilled fresh to order on our teppanyaki grill.
