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| - I've been meaning to try this place for quite some time with friends, and we were finally able to make it out last night. Disappointment is a good way to describe the mood of the evening.
I should note that we didn't actually order anything other than water, so this review does not contain anything about the food. The experience was so unsatisfactory that we decided to leave for another restaurant. I'm not against trying Yasu again, but I would prefer to go on a different night when perhaps the service would be better.
Upon entering, the strong and distinct smell of bleach attacked our noses. That was off-putting enough; a restaurant should smell clean, but it should also not smell of cleaning solution, especially one rated as highly as Yasu.
It took a few minutes for the server to notice and seat us, which wasn't bothersome even as slow as the restaurant seemed. The restaurant itself is incredibly small, with only a few tables and bar seats available. The kitchen is readily visible from just about any seat in the house, which I find kind of fascinating.
The menu was the first of a few pitfalls. It is simply a vague list of items, most of which are denoted by their Japanese names. No descriptions. I'm used to going to sushi restaurants and needing to ask for descriptions of their rolls, but I've never been to a restaurant that did not at least attempt to describe their main menu items. When we told our server that we were still attempting to "decipher" the menu when she came over to take our order (which seemed to take a really long time), she simply said "okay" and walked back to the kitchen.
I wish she had offered to help us decide what to get, but perhaps she was giving us our space. At any rate, when she returned (after a lengthy chat with the other server working that evening), we had some questions for her.
Now, this is where the evening really started to go downhill. Whereas both of my friends were able to obtain satisfactory answers as to what was in the menu items that piqued their interest (save the menu of sushi rolls, for which we were only provided descriptions for their five most expensive rolls), I was less than satisfied.
I kindly informed our server that I am a vegetarian, and asked if she could give an overview of what I could order. She immediately looked to the grill portion of the menu, initially suggesting something with scallops but musing to herself that the bacon probably wouldn't work. Thank goodness one of my friends piped in and informed her that being vegetarian meant that bacon was not an option, and this is where the server finally seemed to grasp what we were saying. "As in, just vegetables?" She sounded surprised that someone would choose to eat "just vegetables" on a daily basis.
At no restaurant have I ever been asked that question before when clearly stating my dietary needs, whether it's a McDonalds or a Fox Concepts Restaurant. I expected something better from Yasu, which positions itself as a high end sushi restaurant in decor, ambiance, price, and menu selection. A server should be aware of various dietary needs (not all, but the most popular certainly) and be able to recommend dishes that suit them without missing a beat. That she could not was off-putting to begin with, but it managed to get worse.
She began hesitantly recommending dishes, but she was totally unsure as to what was actually in them. A disclaimer on the menu disclosed that many sauces are made with fish oils, nuts, and soy, asking customers to disclose any allergies or dietary needs so the chef can accommodate them. When pressed about the sauces for this very reason, the server was unable to tell me what was in any of them. She thought the Japanese eggplant skewer had a flavored soy sauce with it, but had no idea what it was flavored with.
I further disclosed to her that I was allergic to shellfish (I've found that sometimes servers are more serious when dealing with allergies versus dietary "choices" such as vegetarianism or veganism), but that didn't help. We ended up leaving to go to a restaurant that has a good selection of food for everyone, and we were happier for it.
To me, that level of service is unacceptable, and I haven't even detailed the time that we waited in between each server's visit to our table, but it was significant. I feel that I should be able to go to a moderately high-end restaurant like this and feel confident that I won't order something that will make me sick.
I'm sure the food is stellar. I just also happen to have minimum standards for service.
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