Yamato is my favorite restaurant in Marysville and we probably go at least once a week. I often crave certain things on their menu. I look at Yamato as a few different restaurants in one that serve a few different moods that I might have. First, it's a great hibachi restaurant where the food is excellent and the chefs are fun and engaging. Second, the sushi is superb and fresh. Third, it's a nice bar with a great drink menu, solid wine and sake selection and consistently pleasant service.
Service is always excellent and I think it comes from the leadership of local residents Donny and Tommy that own the place. Donny is the sweet lady that often greets me when I enter. I've never had a bad experience with the staff whether it's gifted Sushi Chef Lee, the always smiling Gabby, Mackenzie or anyone else in the restaurant. They have clearly made service a priority and it works for my family because we're there all the time.
Regarding the food, everyone loves hibachi and my guess is that is what draws the most people in. Even the pickiest eaters in my family that might say "I don't like Japanese food", I'd ask "Do you like grilled chicken, steak or shrimp? What if it's juicier and more tender than you can do at your patio grill at home?"
Let me tell you about the sushi. I used to hate sushi and thought the idea of raw fish was gross. Some good friends of mine got me started with it in DC 20 years ago and it grew on me. I started with the California roll - just American veggies. Yamato has a Philly roll too - Smoked Salmon and Cream Cheese. If you've never tried sushi and are afraid to, pick one of the above two rolls.
Next, I moved on to the cooked, not raw, rolls like Shrimp Tempura rolls (which is now a staple in my family). Who doesn't like fried shrimp? Not many people. If you like fried shrimp, try a Shrimp Tempura roll. Then I moved on to the rolls with the raw fish, which for a picky American sounded crazy, but I really love them. Yamato has such a great mix of rolls, creative selections and they'll customize anything for you. If you like Tuna Salad sandwiches as I do, then start with a Tuna roll. They have Spicy Tuna too which I really enjoy. Taste in sushi is really a personal thing. I love Eel too (sounds gross but it's amazing).
Finally, I moved on to Nigiri (with rice) and Sashimi (just the fish). Once you grow to appreciate quality seafood and sushi, you'll ask yourself why you cook it, dry it out, and remove a lot of the flavor. My favorites now are sashimi - Tuna, Salmon and Yellowtail. I love sushi and can't get enough of it, plus it's really healthy. Yamato also does awesome arrangements if you order enough to get a sushi boat. It's like delicious food and art at the same time. Usually I get to see Lee painting my plate with his creations. It tastes as good as it looks.
If you worry about eating raw fish and food safety as I do, you should know a few things. Google it yourself. First, fish used for sushi is among the highest quality fish that you can buy (think USDA Prime in the Beef world). Second, it's immediately flash frozen to crazy subzero temperatures then shipped all over the world overnight. I have found that unless you are catching seafood yourself or buying off of a dock or locally caught seafood store, Sushi restaurants have some of the freshest and highest quality fish that you can get. In fact I'd trust them more than the grocery store which often hits many stops (and worse many temperatures) before we get to buy it. I've eaten a lot of raw sushi at Yamato in their 3 years of business and it's never made me sick. Grocery store beef and fish - not so much.
That brings me to my last dimension of Yamato - their prices. Yamato is not a fast food place. It's a quality restaurant. Menu prices are a direct reflection of the prices of the food that the restaurant buys and puts on our plates. Looking at their menu, lunch hibachi starts at 8 bucks, dinner hibachi at $13.95 with the trimmings. The combos go higher. Personally I love the shrimp and filet mignon combo. Add fried rice and egg yolk sauce, it's a bit more. I'm always bringing home leftovers. The bottom line is that this food is excellent. You are getting your money's worth and it's cheaper than going to Dublin for a similar meal. Good quality food costs more. Maybe we can't afford an all out family hibachi dinner every week, but when we do it's awesome.
Just a few other favorites that we love: Gyoza (dumplings). They even created a Sweet Potato Roll. Spring Rolls are outstanding. I love the clear soup too. I've even tried to make it at home too. It's beef broth and mushrooms. How hard is it? I can't do it, but they can. Soo good. Lobster Rangoon. Shrimp Tataki - excellent.
Wow this is the longest review that I've ever written. I was just there again yesterday so it's fresh in my mind. If you haven't tried Yamato, give it a shot. You won't be disappointed. read more