FOOD & DRINKS
I don't even know where to start. Let's start with me first. I have traveled to Japan several times and I have eaten in many Asian restaurants around the world. That said I am open to new interpretations when done well.
I already knew that the owner and chef are not Japanese before my visit which isn't an issue. I don't judge the food based on the origin of the chef.
We ordered several items from the menu. There was no main dish on the menu that came with rice. You get a plate with the protein and veggies.
Great if you want to eat less carbs, bad if you don't order enough to get full.
From this point on I just list all my issues.
The boneless ribs lacked seasoning and were dry. The veggies were swimming in oil. The coleslaw tasted neutral.
The soba noodle soup lacked seasoning, tasted bland and used the same boneless ribs as in the rib dish.
The iberico pork pieces came with the exact same oily veggies as the ribs but it was probably the best item from the ones we ordered. The meat had some flavor and were lightly seasoned. Unfortunately one piece was very tough to chew and one was partly raw.
The pan fried pork belly had the same veggies as the previous dishes plus some bell pepper and bitter melon and egg. Lacked seasoning again.
The marinated pork belly pieces had no glaze on it.
Comparing the pictures in the menu and the served food, there was a noticeable difference.
The overall plating has neither heart nor finesse.
SERVICE
We had a very nice and warm welcome. That was a great start. On the table there was an electronic bell that you were supposed to use to call a staff member. I tried to use it to get some menus. Didn't work or was ignored. Second time we used it to order worked. After that it didn't work or we were ignored because even after several pushes no one came.
This is not how service should work. I know that in some Japanese restaurants they use those bells but if it fails it will just make the service look terrible. Everyone understands when its busy but when you are confident enough to use an electronic bell, customers are expecting it to work and get a fast reaction.
ATMOSPHERE
It is a modern restaurant. Very elegant and clean. A few decoration items gave it an Asian touch but it has not much of an Asian vibe.
RATING
I am sad. I like the owner. We had a nice chat in the beginning and it breaks my heart to give this restaurant such a bad review. Honestly if it weren't for the atmosphere, I might have gone even lower. The execution was bad and the service should be reworked on. Let's say it was a technical issue for now. I went in and didn't expect authentic Japanese food. I was excited to see some nice interpretation but at the end skipped the dessert because I was afraid that even the dessert looked nothing like on the menu pictures. read more