Decided to try this place out after hearing raving reviews about the food. We went on a Saturday night, and it was packed. Good thing we made a reservation or else we would have been stuck in a long line with our empty stomachs.
The ambience at Pacific East is nice. The restaurant is dimly lit with fish/sea shell decor on the walls that complements the name of the restaurant.
Upon glancing at the two extensive menus (one for Japanese food, the other for Malaysian), I was a bit overwhelmed. One of the entrees we ordered was a maki combo, with one of the sushi rolls being crab. I'm a huge sushi fan, but I was not impressed with the sushi here at Pacific East.
Maybe we were expecting too much, but it was a bit misleading when we tasted imitation crab in the crab rolls. I think they could have at least been a little more specific in their menu that they're using imitation crab instead of actual crab. Regardless, the sushi was just okay. Nothing special and nothing worth raving about.
Can't say much about the Malaysian food at the restaurant, but I didn't think that Pacific East served authentic Japanese food/sushi. My theory is that if a restaurant is serving two very different types of Asian cuisine, chances are the restaurant is only doing one of them justice at best.
Maybe I'll go back to try some of the Malaysian food some time, but probably not going back for sushi. Still on the look for a go-to place for sushi in Cleveland...