Conveyor belt sushi; relatively large menu for a la carte hot dishes; good and friendly service…read more(though we had to ask for chopsticks); cozy decor. Choice available for table seating or for "bar" seating (at the conveyor belt). The wait staff spoke mainland Chinese. Menu is in English and Chinese (but not Japanese). There are reasons to think this place is owned by Chinese. Dishes are ok but not authentically Japanese.

I visited Sakura, a Japanese restaurant located in Botanic Avenue over the weekend. This was only…read moremy second visit and since starting a vegetarian lifestyle this year I wanted to find out how their food fared for vegetarians. Being a sushi bar the vegetarian options did initially appear a little limited and sadly Sakura do not have a separate, dedicated vegetarian menu which is unfortunate. However, our waiter did advise us that the Chefs could do any dish on the menu as vegetarian, so that was a huge bonus. Nonetheless, clearer 'suitable for vegetarian' labelling on the menu would help. We opted for deep fried avocado and tofu tempura roll starters and mains of stir fried ramen noodles with mixed vegetables. The food as absolutely delicious and fresh tasting, wine (pinot grigio) lovely and service impeccable. I did notice a 'Chinese Kitchen' section towards the back of the main menu which included options of mixed vegetables with black bean, Szechuan, satay and salt and chilli sauces. I'm looking forward to a return visit and to trying out Sakura's lunch and take away menus as the food was scrumptious. Plus the restaurant itself is beautiful with Japanese décor, relaxed atmosphere and reasonable prices.

Came by myself on a Wednesday night without a reservation. I had to wait a little bit but was able…read moreto get seated. It is very loud, both from people talking and then with music once that started. This is more of a vibe place than a good food place. Misoshiru has too much miso. The mackerel was a bit disappointing, the vinegar flavoring is light and it has that thawed from frozen texture. The rice is good, much better than I typically see stateside. The tuna was oddly sweet and didn't have firmness. The hamachi was spot on though, not sure why the other two were misses. The signature dish is fried monkfish in something similar to sweet and sour sauce, honestly not that impressed. Cheesecake is not as dense as American cheesecake and not fluffy like a soufflé, I think it was a good middle ground. Not too sweet.

Very different (in a good way) dining experience. Dimmed lights, extravagant Japanese-style design…read moreand glorious decor on your way to the toilet upstairs are definitely memorable! The food was simply amazing and arranged like a work of art! We were quite a big group and the food arrived at the same time. The menu is quite varied - from more traditional Japanese style dishes to quite modern cuisine - I for one had a meal called 'Mad crab' which was a selection of seafood with a delicious cheese sauce and poached oak Choi with oyster sauce. The service was very attentive.

We were craving some Asian food after a week of eating a mix of European meals and found this cute…read morerestaurant while walking around. We went in on a Saturday afternoon for lunch and glad it wasn't crowded at all. We ordered 2 of their bento meal sets, a steak yakisoba and one of the sushi boat (the celebrate one) for the 3 of us. Everything came out in a timely manner and the service was very friendly! We enjoyed everything that we ordered including their delicious fruit smoothies! Highly recommend for anyone in the area! They also have other stir fry dishes and ramen for those that aren't a fan of sushi.

great sushi and ramen. friendly and helpful staff…read more lovely design. Been few times with friends and family and definitely coming back soon again.

You know your onto a good thing when you walk in the rain to get there. I have been told so many…read moregood things about this delightful little restaurant that I simply had to give my new-found Japanese craving a bit of a go. The ambience is excellent. The place is chilled out. The menu has everything and anything. The sushi is quality. Everything was going exactly how I wanted until I was asked a question that changed the night... "Would you like to adopt?"... Nah I'm only messing. I was actually asked "Is this as good as Zen?" and then everything came into focus. The place simply isn't as good as Zen. Zen is arguably the finest eatery in Belfast, if not certainly one of the finest. Ginger Tree has a similar atmosphere, similar menu, similar style. And from reading John M's review, Zen may have come after, but it still is better. I'm all for breaking into the unknown and Ginger Tree is great for that. But we went to Zen a few weeks before, and I raved about it to everyone. The Ginger Tree, if you have never eaten Japanese, is stunning. But it can and has been beaten by a restaurant a mile down the road. Really very good and great prices. But not the best in Belfast.

The Ginger Tree Japanese Restaurant on Donegall place is amazing! Their sushi really is awesome and…read moreon par with that of Zen. They do a special offer on a thurseday evening where you can eat all the sushi you want for £20!! This is an absolute bargain considering the quality of food and then the sheer amount of different sushi on offer on the night! We went there as a group of 8 and the staff were great and more than able to cope. The sishi was fab as always and we were there for quite some time trying out everything! It's agreat idea for thoses new to sushi who want to find out what they like! And you can be really adventerous because there'e plenty more there if you select wrong! Amust go to for sushi fans!

MMMM, lovely Japanese food. One of the healthier options for a meal out. I actually didn't notice…read morethis restaurant for a long time, and I am in the area around the Omniplex quite often. Before the cinema one night, we fancied trying something a bit different, so gave Ginza a go, and we were glad we did. I got the Teryaki Salmon Fillet, which was absolutely to die for! The food, as is typical in a Teppanyaki restaurant, is all cooked in front of you, which is very interesting, as you can see exactly how it is done. The staff were fantastic, as I needed a lot of advice as to what to choose, they were more than happy to oblige, and have even given me some hints for dishes to try of future visits. Drinks were brought quickly and before we finished someone always came to ask if we wanted more without having to be called over. I can't wait to go back!

My one experience of eating in Ginza was a surprisingly good one, and I would have no hesitation in…read moregoing back soon! Teppanyaki is a modern Japanese style of cooking that involves cooking food on a hot plate in front of the customer, which is really interesting to watch and adds something special to your experience. The staff where very professional,remaining attentive at all times . The food was beautifully presented and was totally scrumptious Everything was reasonably priced too with my girlfriend and me enjoying starters for £4 and mains for £7.My sweet and sour chicken was excellent, with the blend of flavours being just right, whilst my girlfriend's duck was tender and well cooked, with a lovely Oak flavour. The menu will contain something for everyone, but the only real complaint I would have about this place would be that the portions are a little bit small, especially for an appetite that is as fervent as mine!

YuGo was a breath of fresh air in Belfast! We were surprised to find contemporary Asian inspired…read morecuisine in the area and were so excited to have dinner at YuGo. The dining area is very chic with lots of sleek lines. Very elegant but modern style. Loved all the tableware as well - everything seemed earthy and hand thrown. Our favorites of the night were hands down the duck and truffle fried rice - we all fought for this dish toward the end. It was one of the most unctuous bites of food that I've ever had. The fried rice was PERFECT - each grain of rice was coated in beautiful fat and was the homiest and warmest kind of dish. Would come back for this alone. I highly recommend coming to YuGo, especially if you have a large group and want to try a variety of dishes. All the flavors and cook were spot on, and we really enjoyed our time. Thank you YuGo!

This place was so great!! We arrived at around 8 on Wednesday and it was fairly busy but they…read moreluckily had a table for us. Once seated they immediately came with water and we gave our drink order. We decided what to eat fairly quickly so when they came back they were ready to take our order! I feel like from sitting down to receiving our food it took maybe 10 minutes. Definitely the quickest service and exactly what we needed because we were so hungry! The food was incredible! They are very small portions so they recommend 2-3 per person. We also got the chef's sushi selection and it was so yummy, the fish was so fresh! I was afraid I wouldn't be full but after the meal I was perfectly full. The whole vibe of the restaurant was also great! Busy but not overwhelming and beautiful plates and presentation of the food! Would recommend!

I've been here a few times recently to take way. It has an upstairs sit in but I've not yet been…read more What I find really good about this place is that the food is always tasty, it is usually made to your order, as you wait, and this time for me it was 3 choices: goma ae, 6 maki rolls (tofu) and a temaki hand roll filled with spicy salmon and vegetables (£10.90). The maki and temaki come with kikkoman soy sauce sachets, pickled ginger and a generous splodge of wasabi. The goma ae is always superb tasting with white miso and sesame oil enhancing the taste. The tofu is a small piece served cold but has been pre fried so it looks like and has a texture like pieces of omelette. The salmon in the hand-held roll is chunky and it too is delicious. The fact is that here you can get really tasty food and just along the street you can go to grim take out only Yangtze, for very poor food that sits in Bain Maries for certainly over an hour, yet prices are fairly comparable. This place has a very small ground floor area with a few steps down to go in; you couldn't lie a phone box horizontal inside, length or width wise, so once you pay on order (cash only) the lady serving ushers you out to the street to wait with undue haste. The sort of shove of 'there's a fire' so what's keeping you. She seemed not to realise that having had to go to my bag for cash to suit their convenience I had to take some time to put my cash away again. Rally worth trying as long as you don't mind a gentle nudge on to the street, which I found funny on a summer day. I'd imagine winter I might have a different view.

I visited Obento Japanese Express today, Sunday 29 May 2016 for a quick lunch. It's a tiny spot…read morewith limited seating upstairs. I ordered the Tofu Bento Box and was not impressed. The tofu was jellylike and bland with a slimy batter. Mushy sticky rice, a couple of tasteless vegetable Spring rolls and a handful of bland salad topped with salad cream completed the box. Even lashings of soy and sweet chilli sauce didn't help much. Sadly it really wasn't good and I will not return. Extremely disappointing poor quality food and definitely not worth the £7.50 I paid.

We had reservations for our entire trip but tonight and we were struggling to find a spot to eat…read morequickly. We finally walked up to wagamama and were seated pretty quickly. I have a silly ginger allergy and they were very accommodating and double checked multiple times with their chefs to ensure what I got did not have ginger. I settled on the shrimp Thai pa and it was delicious with a little heat. We also got gyzo and edamame as a starter. The two other adults with me got various ramens that they also said were very good. The portions are fairly large and you could definitely share between two people. Lastly, price wise it was reasonable.

Fantastic food at a reasonable price. Chicken broth and ramen was good. Lettuce wraps were good…read moretoo. Great service especially if you have food allergies. I have too many of them.

Food delivered late by a Surly driver who was not very pleasant, Photo's below of cold inedible…read morefood, £23 wasted!

Visited here last night to try the new live Teppanyaki restaurant and was very impressed! First…read morerestaurant of its kind in Belfast - a great addition! The place is called 3 Levels as it has a cafe/bar on the ground floor, Chinese restaurant on the second floor and Japanese restaurant on the top level. The Japanese restaurant is set up with 2 separate Teppanyaki grills stations, surrounded by customer seating, so everyone is facing the chef who cooks & performs tricks right in front of you - perfect setting for a team night out/social event. You can choose to order from a set menu which has 4/5 courses, or you can order individual items such as starter and a main. They have a great selection of meat, fish and veg options, including sirloin steak; chicken; duck; salmon and sushi. They also have lobster which we seen cooked on the grill at the next table - looked impressive! I ordered the tempura prawns to start, amazing. Then I opted for the salmon in plum teriyaki sauce with egg fried rice, so good. I got to sample a little of the steak and tiger prawn mains too - all so flavoursome! The staff are all very friendly and attentive, couldn't do enough for you. And the chef provides great entertainment throughout the evening. The only reason I didn't give the full 5 stars was only because there was no background music to provide a perfect, relaxing atmosphere. However, that's me being picky, I wouldn't let this deter me from returning. Can't wait to go back to give this place another go

Ordered a collection online, so hadn't used this place before. Arrived and was slightly…read moreapprehensive from the look of outside it was a bit grubby looking, inside was the same. My order wasn't ready but there was a waiting area by the door. I ordered a bento box which came with Japanese curry, sticky rice, 2 mini Spring rolls, salad, sushi and a miso soup all for £11 which was nicely priced for what you got. My daughter also had the cucumber rolls which where delicious. The only downside was by the time me got it home (around 15 minutes away) it was quite cold especially the curry. Oh the the wasabi could be a bit better. All in all not a bad experience but don't know if I'll be back.

Tonight I took one of my friends for their first sushi adventure. The service at Sushi House is…read morephenomenal. The quality of the freshly made sushi is quite good. The sushi chef is incredibly skilled and if given the freshest ingredients they would easily be one of the best sushi restaurants in Belfast. We ordered Takoyaki from the kitchen which was cold on the inside, and the octopus inside was still somewhat icy but that is my only complaint and even still the taste was very good. The Chef was so incredibly polite and offered to tailor make sushi for our next visit to get rid of the flavour (nori/seaweed) that my friend did not like. I will definitely eat at this restaurant again.