Rajiv K.
Yelp
Tough review to write, as I'd like to think of myself as this place's number one fan. I'll narrow the scope to lunch time staffing issues (which the manager seemed to say they were taking actions to address) that resulted in incredibly long lunch service for half crowded place (second lunch I had like this here, with a friend having to take their order to go due to a time crunch). Multiple tables waited over an hour to get their food, with the one next to me (who ordered two omakases, appetizers and drinks) saying they wouldn't return to this location (despite commenting that the food was good). That's really too bad, because this newish food hall does have some special sauce about it. Luckily, I was working holiday hours today, but if they want to catch downtowns office daytime crowd, they severely need to tighten up turnover speed. It did t help that we got here hungry.
What was good this trip: coffee quality, sushi flavor and freshness, plating, upgraded casual ambiance and friendly staff
What was a miss: long wait times for food; nice service, but lagged to refill water and update on order; slimmed down menu for Mondays (apparently Cotoa is closed for lunch that day).
My tuna sandwich was nice, but by the time it got to me not so warm. I thought I read it came on a multigrain bread but the outcome seemed to be a buttery white bread. The salad was very salty. I wouldn't order it again, probably stick to the sushi or Cotoa's stuff if they were open for lunch. I enjoyed the spicy scallop hand roll a lot. Nothing too special about the fries.
Yes, I'd come back and recommend this place to friends solely on the heart and quality of food here (top chefs here and flavors), plating, ambiance, and friendliness of the staff. It really is a gem in Miami. However, probably not for lunch until they can fix their known challenge.