Shota Nakajima trained at Tsuji Culinary Arts School in Osaka, then opened Adana on Capitol Hill in Seattle, then went to Top Chef: Portland as a finalist and Fan Favorite, and somewhere in the middle of all that he beat Bobby Flay at tempura, which is the most technically exacting deep-fry in Japanese cuisine and possibly the most technically exacting deep-fry in any cuisine.
Tempura batter is a study in controlled failure: too much gluten development and you've made a coating, not a shell. Nakajima's batter is mixed with ice water — 34°F — and stirred with chopsticks in five or six strokes, leaving visible dry flour. The oil holds at 340°F for shrimp, 320°F for vegetables, and he never overloads the fryer, which drops the oil temperature and ruins the crust. The batter goes on immediately before frying, never rested.
Adana on Capitol Hill is the place you go when you want to understand what Seattle cooking looks like when it has something to prove. Bobby Flay, whose approach to deep-frying tends toward confidence over precision, was the object lesson.