"He won't have a chance to hide in the kitchen," laughed Chaowasaree, who last worked with Sakai in July 2004 during a special taping of his "Two Skinny Chefs," which will re-air that same program this afternoon at 4:30 on KHON TV2.

"His kitchen will be outside in the center of the sautee bar," Chaowasaree said. "So, guests will have a chance to see him in action. And maybe even meet him."

Sakai, who has been rumored to be scouting for a Hawaii location, is a culinary giant known for his ingenuity in combining Japanese and French techniques.

"For a chef in his position, he's a very humble person," Chaowasaree said. "And it's extremely humbling to know that I will once again get a chance to work with such a famous international chef."

Chai's sixth anniversary party will have two seatings: the first at 5 in the evening and the second at 7:30 p.m. The event will also feature keiki hula from Hula Halau Olana.

"I love to come to Hawaii," Sakai said in a released statement. "People here are very welcoming and I get to play the best golf courses in the world."

First, though, he'll have to play at Chai's Island Bistro, where he and Chaowasaree will collaborate to prepare a lavish six-course — consistent with the number of years the bistro has been around — prix-fixe menu for $85 per person.

"It can take up to three to six months to get a reservation at his La Rochelle restaurant in Tokyo," Chaowasaree says. "So, this is a rare opportunity for Island residents to experience his cuisine."

The lavish menu will start with an amuse bouche, offering frog leg nigiri sushi (a Chaowasaree recipe) followed by a foie-gras croquette (Sakai's creation), which will be surrounded by a shiitake-mushroom-and-truffle demiglace and Kogyoku apple confit.

"He's going to do two dishes and I'm going to do two," Chaowasaree said. "And, for dessert, we'll work together."

For the second course, Chaowasaree will put a gourmet spin on the stuffed cabbage. Instead of ground beef and rice, each Napa cabbage leaf will be filled with Alaskan king crab meat and sake-braised abalone.

"This is a dish that I've done in the past and it's always a hit among guests," Chaowasaree shyly said, not wanting to sound like he was bragging . "It's always well received."

Sakai will prepare the next course, a demi-entree of fresh onaga enhanced with a lobster beurre-blanc sauce.

"He has already faxed the ingredients that he needs and it's going to be good," Chaowasaree said. "I think it will wow diners."

A humble chef himself, Chaowasaree said he's hoping that his main entree of braised squab will be able to follow and compete with Sakai's onaga.