I would give this one star, but I am acutely aware that when I was young I liked restaurants like this simply because I knew no better. I attended this jewel of a place with my two daughters under 8 years. We stood in the door while the staff attempted to seat us in a half-empty restaurant with great commotion and gnashing of teeth. Youthful drama...always a turn-off for the over 40s by the way.
When we were seated I was 1 foot away from the lady beside me. Luckily they have cleverly designed this restaurant with pointy, shiny, hard surfaces so that I couldn't actually hear their conversation. In fact I couldn't hear very much, because all the sound bounced all over the room to provide a cozy, loud blanket of chatter. I couldn't hear her because I could hear everyone simultaneously, well, except my children. Well done!
I ordered edamame [you will get lots for 6.50 approx I was assured. I didn't]. It arrived with a mound, yes, mound of what looked like saxa salt on the top. I sent it back, pointing out that a sprinkle was adequate, as it would be served in Japan or indeed in any so-called Japanese fusion restaurant. Back it came looking the same. I asked them to take off all the salt please. And they did that.
My daughters had some of the children's overpriced menu [6.20 for 2 small pieces of salmon noodles in dry salad]. The salmon was less-than fresh. I know my fresh fish. This tasted of fish and it shouldn't have. She didn't eat it. It was also overcooked. My other daughter's chicken was overcooked too. How can one do this? Simple - employ a chef of can't cook or doesn't care. Either way it wasn't worth it and she ate one piece of it. In contrast the Chicken yakatori was hard and dry. If this was freshly cooked and not heated in a microwave lots of effort had been put into the dish to make it seem, well, old.
No one was laughing in the now full restaurant. The other diner's meals were heavy on the starch [rice, noodles] - lots of sauces to hide uninteresting meat. Lots of middle aged people who were coming in here for the first time. I hope they weren't as irritated by it all as I was.
If you want a loud, uninteresting meal then this is for you. Best to attend if you don't know much about food, and think mediocre fusion [bit like Maos] is good food and are with lots of friends who like large bowls of starch and bring their own atmosphere with them. this place is like a big cafeteria in a factory.
Very expensive by the way for what you get. This place is surrounded by other restaurants of varying quality, and this is one I will never return to.
Actually, on mature reflection I am giving this place a one. read more