What once was a pretty divey art supply store is now an Asian food eatery. Speaks to Japanese sushi primarily, you will also find a few Chinese items on the menu like dumplings, bao buns, fried rice and noodles. The owners are Chinese and these add ons make sense, as does the Chinese inspired modern decor.
Walking in we were dazzled by the sheer size of the place, and were quickly ushered to our reserved banquette. Very comfortable seating with ample space for 2 or 4.
The order system is pure genius, if a bit quirky. For starters this an AYCE restaurant at €24,99 p.p. on weekends and less on weekdays. Beverages and desserts are extra at a modest up charge.
Ordering involves signing onto the restaurant WiFi and accessing the menu - both with your smartphone camera. Once you are signed into their menu on Google, you are assigned a customer order number and presented with a dizzying array of meal choices (well north of 100) described in detail and pictured faithfully. BE WARNED: As this is an AYCE joint, it is very easy to over order (as we did). Take it slow and order just a couple 2 or 3 things to start and place another order when done. You can order a max of 20 pieces every 5 minutes. Service is attentive and the kitchen pumps out food like a turbo charged Ferrari.
THE FOOD: The menu has wagyu beef, foie gras and other specialty items not ordinarily found in Portuguese sushi joints. This menu is definitely elevated. You will find soup dumplings, gyoza and incredibly tender Peking duck here, in the AYCE category. Investigate carefully.
Overall the bites were excellent and nicely presented. The beverage choices are amazing - so this place reads as a gin mill too, if that's your thing.
We ordered 72 pieces overall and were overwhelmed at 40 - and the plates kept coming. It was awkward to call off the procession of servers who must have thought we were professional competitive eaters or something. The food was so good I hated sending it back.
Deserts are simple cheesecakes and mochi with a crème brûlée too. We had the blueberry and strawberry mochi - both excellent.
I found no flaws in Samuraya's offerings. Great place to get your sushi fix for a very reasonable price. We were €72,00 all in, including beverages and dessert.
TOP TIP: Spend a good 10 minutes perusing the menu first and resist ordering multiple quantities of any one dish to start. You can always circle back 5 minutes later to order more. Our first dishes were served within 10 minutes. read more