Yamato Japanese Restaurant
| Address: | 526 NW 60th St, Gainesville, FL 32607, USA |
| Phone: | +1 352-332-4466 |
| Site: | yamatogainesville.com |
| Rating: | 3.9 |
| Working: | 4:30–9:45PM 4:30–9:45PM 11:30AM–1:45PM 11:30AM–1:45PM 11:30AM–1:45PM 4:30–10:15PM 12–8:45PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 5
B
B Dob
Ive been a patron of Yamatos restaurants for years. The food is always great but its the performance and presentation of the chef that really sets the dining experience above all others. I recently visited this location for the first time and can honestly say that visit will be my last. For starters, a good portion of the restaurant appears to be in the midst of repairs. One of the first things I noticed upon entering the location was spackling splattered all over the walls- very appetizing. Regardless, I was geared up for a great dining experience. My boyfriend and I sat in our seats for a good 5 minutes before being greeted by our server who was clearly less than enthused to be there. She took our drink order, came back with the drinks to take orders for our entrees, and then came with soups and salads- this was the last time we saw her until it was time to bring the bill. Our chef also seemed less than enthused, unlike any of my previous experience with Yamatos where the chefs are fully of personality and entertainment. Our chef did pay great attention to detail- counting out the meat portions and even going back to the kitchen to cook one extra piece of shrimp for a patron at our table. At the conclusion of the meal, the server tossed to go boxes at everyone sitting at our table,putting the boxes in the direct path of everyones sauces. After my boyfriend and I left, we discussed how the food was good but the experience put a sour turn on our meal. As we drove away, the experience really didnt sit right with him and he made a call to the manager. Our complaint wasnt initiated to receive any compensation but just to let the manager know the experience was subpar to say the least. The manager was dismissive and made excuses for the lapse in customer service. To be frank, I would never visit this particular establishment again.
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Madison Abernathy
Its good, if youre lucky. I have been there plenty of times to see how good it can be and how downright awful it can be. One chronic problem is the overcooked chicken, dont order it! I had my order of chicken fixed 3 times with each time a total overcooked failure when I sat at a regular table one time -but its also overcooked usually at a hibachi table. Also, we used to get friendly hibachi chefs, but no longer is the case. My last one didnt even talk, rushed and looked unhappy to be working there. He also cross-contaminated everything by cooking our vegetables and steak onto where the chicken was cooking. Everyone sat in shocked silence. We were all thinking the same thing, and since our server was MIA the whole time (filled our drinks once and left) we didnt complain about it because we just wanted to leave, but I deeply regret not speaking to a manager (although something tells me nothing would have resulted from that after reading other reviews). It was my husbands birthday and everyone in our party was deeply dissatisfied with the whole experience and service. Also it was HOT AS HELL in there! Im even cold-natured, so that says a lot. They had no air running, our server sweat all over the place and so did we! And it was JULY! The only people who were having a great time were the 10 ladies behind us drunk out of their minds. Maybe they had the right idea. Dont have any good expectations about this place.
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Steve W
EXCELLENT FOOD (5 stars on food) but service is terrible. Restaurant manager is inconsiderate of his customers. You can hear the manager yell and talk down to his staff (he made a server cry after threatening her job because she wrote down the wrong order on her first week). My card was overcharged at the bar by $35 when I only bought two drinks which was more like $10 at the most (I wonder how many people they scam a night). Even though the show is excellent, the hibachi chef yelled at the server in front of customers. I know four worker there that informed me to NEVER receive your food from the kitchen, always have it cooked in front of you. The kitchen staff will serve you dirty food (falls on the floor and still put in on your plate) and takeout gets heated up leftovers. But why would you even want to sit down and eat in a dump like that? Really. Look around and see how everything is just wiped... Nothing is actually clean or sanitary. They dont even use chemicals to clean the dishes. They believe hot water is enough to sanitize. Walk by at night after close and look in the window and youll see many of the staff members SMOKING INSIDE THE RESTAURANT while "cleaning". Excellent food just wish it was under better management to have a better experience and cleaner environment. This place is filth.
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Sylvia Tsang
Food was good but service was terrible! We were seated at 6:30pm...and the chef didnt come to our table until 7:30pm. Two tables around us got seated after us, but their chefs came out before ours! There was a couple sitting next to us at the same table who got up and left because they were so frustrated. When the chef finally came, I couldnt believe how rude he was! There was a heavier set man also at our table, and the chef asked, "How much do you weigh man?", and the patron said, "I dont know", and the chef kept pressing, "Come on man, like you must be at least 250", and the patron took it really well and just chuckled and said, "I dont know man." But honestly after that I couldnt even enjoy the show because I was so disgusted by his face. The waitress was slow and took forever to clear away the drinks and plates of the couple that had got up and left. My boyfriend contemplated not leaving a tip at all, but when the check arrived, 18% gratuity was already included. No wonder service is terrible when theyre awarding themselves 18% tip all the time. They dont even have to work for it. We will never come back. There are other hibachi places in Gainesville and I recommend you try those instead.
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A Private User
I live 75 miles away and rarely make a trip to Gainesville without going there for dinner. If my husband were writing this review he would give it a thumbs down he prefers Texas Roadhouse "meat and taders". I also like Roadhouse, but I LOVE Yamatos. The starter soup is a nice broth and mushroom, Ive never felt it needed to be further seasoned. This is followed by a salad with a nice house dressing. No other dressings are available, but the house is good. The rice is wonderful. Usually I dont care for rice, but theirs is so good, I always order no noodles and double rice when I go there. The grilled vegetables are fresh (onion, zucchini, carrots and broccoli) and if you are a vegetable lover you may want to request extra. The live grill chefs do a good of cooking and entertaining. I always order the same steak and shrimp, which I prefer. Ive had the chicken and others in my party actually prefer it. In all Ive probably eaten there at least 20 times and never had a bad experience. I have noticed that the die hard "meat and tater" crowd tend to be the nay sayers, particularly men. So Id say load up the girlfriends for your first trip there.
