Let Kane Sanders take care of you at O-Ku

It's always the most creative dining experiences that we remember -- when bartenders mix up their own amazing concoctions and point out things on the menu that you likely won't get any place else.

O-Ku, the new sushi spot on King Street, is a place to find both creativity and hospitality. Kane Sanders, the beverage director, serves up inventive cocktails and plenty of laughs.

Q: What's your background in bartending?

A: I started off bartending in Hawaii (but I'm from Marietta, Ga.) and then went to San Francisco and Oakland before ending up in Charleston. I worked at the Charleston Grill before I came here.

Q: What's special about this place?

A: It is not your ordinary bar. Our cocktail list, for example, is really intense -- composed of handmade, carefully muddled recipes. I make eight different simple syrups fresh on a daily basis. And the talent we have behind the bar is great.

Q: How are they talented?

A: Well, we won the Mojito Challenge this year. Coast has gotten it for the past few, but we have it this time!

Q: What would you say your summer signature drink is?

A: The Ginger Basil Lemonade. Who doesn't want to experience fresh basil and lemonade in the summer?

Q: What beer and wine do you favor?

A: It depends, of course, on what you're eating. I do love the Merivale by the glass -- it's a nice Pinot Noir. My favorite beer here is the Bells Amber Ale. It's fantastic. And I'm a big beer drinker.

Q: What about saki choices?

A: We serve only premium saki. We have happy hour on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 5 until 7, where we select three Sakis to offer at half-price. We also do half-price rolls and $3 off specialty cocktails during that time. On Sundays, we run various specials for the food and beverage crowd.

Q: Tell me about your sushi menu.

A: One of the greatest things I've ever eaten is the Yellowtail Carpaccio. It's delicious. All our fish comes from either a market in Tokyo or Hawaii. We also get fish from Tasmania, which has some of the cleanest water in the world.

Q: What do you suggest for first-timers who want to try sushi?

A: The potato roll. It's tempura shrimp and avocado wrapped in potato. Sushi veterans love it, too, but it's a great entry-level roll.

Q: What's the grossest thing you've had to make?

A: A guy in Oakland, whose nickname was Binky, asked for something called the "Kinky Binky." It was Jagermeister, Jose Cuervo and Tabasco sauce.

Q: What celebrity, alive or dead, would you love to serve drinks to?

A: Winston Churchill. I'd serve him whatever he wanted in great excess, just to hear his quips.