Katie Laskowska
Google
Well, dang. I wanted to like this place so much. And perhaps it will improve in time, but I was so disappointed.
Let me start with the pros. The decor and ambiance is great. The building and entrance are cool, albeit a little hard to find. The toilet- super awesome. A must try while here. The concept of the restaurant is fantastic- an authentic Japanese eatery, complete with the Japanese style tables. There are even heated rugs beneath each booth. I was so impressed upon first sitting down. The waiters are all really nice too, even if they don't know the names of their dishes yet, or what alcohol was in my drink. The prices seem alright too, though if you order a variety of things like I did, the total adds up quickly. I really loved the drink I ordered though- banana milk. I'm not sure what it's made with (as the waiter had no idea and didn't bother to check for me), but I'd come back here just to grab the drink again.
Now the cons, which are sadly all food related- the most important part of a restaurant. I had the tuna salad, fish liver, cheese stuffed chicken, some deep fried other chicken, chicken gizzard skewer, chicken heart skewer, pork belly skewer, and the fried mackarel. The tuna salad had to be one of the most boring dishes I've eaten in forever, and I'm pretty sure the tiny bits of tuna it actually had were from a can. The cheese stuffed chicken tasted like one of those frozen breasts you get from Meijer. The gizzard was just straight up disgusting, though to be fair, I've never ordered gizzard anywhere before so maybe it's just not for me. The heart wasn't much better, but was so overly seasoned with pepper you could barely tell what it tasted like otherwise anyway. The pork belly was actually alright, but the skewers (portions) are so tiny. The mackarel was okay but not worth $15, and be prepared to remove bones left and right. The other fried chicken I got wasn't good, and the salad it came with was so vinegary I actually choked a little after my first bite.
The restaurant was out of about of a third of the dishes from the menu. Half of what I wanted to order wasn't available, and this was on a Thursday. I've read other reviews here stating the same thing.
I also ordered the shiitake skewer but never received it. The waiter took it off the bill but made it sound like he was doing me a favor by removing it. Thank you for not charging me for food I didn't receive?
I'd come back here again in 6 months in hopes of some big changes being made, but I find it hard to believe that they would essentially change or improve the entire menu. I ordered enough items to give it a thorough try, but every dish was disappointing if not straight up unpleasant. I still suggest giving this place a try, but maybe stick to a ramen dish or just grab some drinks here instead.