Otaru Has fantastic Sushi I don't know why it always seems to have so few customers!... The last time I went I was with a group of 6 altogether and our waiter while doing a great job, seemed a slight bit over eager and honestly nervous... There was only one other table there at the time. Prices are reasonable, and I highly recommend the eel rolls, Go and go quick! I dont want this place to close down!
Review Source:Went on a Monday night to use a <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Frestaurant.com&s=c5fe485af4df376130bee54f875814d79c4d7913e1258123b1206d2bdbf4873b" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://restaurant.com</a> coupon with my girlfriend. From start to finish 6:45-7:45 we were the only people in the place sitting at a table.
Service was good because we basically had the whole place to ourselves. Music was a little loud and they were playing uncensored Tupac, which I was fine with, but it definitely changes the atmosphere.
Since we had to spend $50 we ordered the most expensive rolls on the menu and the white tuna sashimi. The food was excellent, but the atmosphere and the fact nobody else was in there is why it loses stars in my opinion.
I like sushi but I am not picky and not overly educated on sushi, but I like that the special is practically every evening. The unlimited sake was taken off the list but I still get it unlimited. and it turns to a themes dance club on the weekends. great place over all and it is close to work.
Review Source:Review from someone who's gone a lot and has seen the ebb and flow of service. Â My wife and I have been to this restaurant on several occasions. Â Frankly, it's our favorite place in the Dallas area to get sushi now!
We originally went on a Groupon like a year ago, and after reading reviews, knew a few things ahead of time that had been said disparagingly about the service, especially to people with coupons. Â We knew we couldn't get the specials includign the "sushi boat" with it. Â Actually, we had two Groupons, and on one visit, we had the bad service described, taking 2 hours to get done, but the second we received MUCH better service. Â We decided to go and try their all you can eat $20 sushi not available on the Groupon after that for my wife's birthday with friends. Â Slowly but surely, not only have they been fixing up the restaurant, but they've really improved service every time we'd been back. Â (Which at first was probably every other month for like 8 months, though more like once a month for the next few.) Â I'd noticed a lot more people in there recently, and despite that seen a lot more people being constantly waited on dutifully. Â I still see an occassional off-night, but nothing like I saw before when I first got a Groupon.
Recently we've been more often and really come to love going here, especially for the $20 all-you-can-eat, which includes sake again. Â (It didn't for awhile, which was shortly after my wife's birthday, so we were worried we'd cleaned them out. Ha.) Â The club vibe has recently been lowered during normal business ours, but they still play a lot of contemporary fun music a lot of the time, even if its quiet in the background now. Â They used to play the music pretty loud even before late at night. Â Even when it's music I enjoy, I prefer a more subdued tone when I'm talking/eating.
The Restaurant
The building itself has been fixed up a lot, but they still haven't completely got rid of the disrepair it was in from whoever they took it over/bought it from. Â The bathrooms are noticeable. Â They're not dirty, but people feel they are that way when they look like they did a rush job repairing. Â Despite that, they keep it clean, even if it doesn't feel that way to some. Â I just hope they can eventually be able to fix that. Â Granted, I wish they had the room to expand the bathrooms. Â (as do they I think) Â Whoever built it left them very little space to work with with very little space to add to it.
Food
We've been to so many sushi restaurants in the Dallas area. Â From Naan, Ra, Fin, all the way down to some random small ones like the Asian Village Restaurant. Â The truth is, Otaru has some of the freshest fish! Â It's very comparable to other big name restaurants in the area, though their price is lower. (though the restaurant itself is not as nice to compensate) Â But someone told me the reason Otaru has such cheap fish is that they have a more direct line to the import of fish. Â If that's true, they get some of the first dibs. Â
Their Ahi Tower has spoiled us! Â Mouth-wateringly good, with a nice spicy underlying kick. Â Seriously, I've ordered it at Naan, etc and been disappointed when even when it tasted good, the tower was no where near the size it is Otaru. Â I can almost get full off the Ahi Tower at Otaru alone. Â Plus it's still cheaper here. Â Even staples of sushi like the Rainbow Roll ring in at under $10. Â The $20 all-you-can-eat is full of some nice choices. Â The rainbow roll is on it, as well as about 15 different rolls I believe. (no Ahi tower...I wish) Â Also they have a seaweed salad, bulgogi, gyouza, and several other varieties of amazing appetizers/cooked items on it.
Conclusion  (Tl;dr)
If you like a sushi restaurant that has good quality fish at low prices (seriously, I need another ahi tower from here), has some amazing specials like the $20 all-you-can-eat sushi and sake (currently includes sake), and you don't mind the fact that the building is more contemporary and isn't as fancy and upscale as Naan, or that you may run the risk of subpar service very much randomly (unless they have just let all of those people go), Otaru is an amazing find!
Bought a <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Frestaurant.com&s=c5fe485af4df376130bee54f875814d79c4d7913e1258123b1206d2bdbf4873b" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://restaurant.com</a> certificate for lunch. Had a nice lunch menu online. Only got there and they don't serve lunch.
Ridiculous given the location. Won't go back. Getting refund.
OK, I just got back from my second experience with Otaru. Â The first was smooth and pleasant; two friends and I sat at the sushi bar and ate. Â The sushi chef didn't interact with us much like in some other sushi bars I've been to, but I figured that it was a language barrier (it seemed to be, anyway) and I'm OK with that.
This time I took a friend so he could experience it and to make a long story short neither he nor I will be going back. Â I just spent $46 (two all-you-can eat meals) for 6 rolls. Â Four that came out promptly and were delicious, one more following that that was good, one more about TWENTY minutes later (not a break that we asked for, mind you...) and then one more about THIRTY minutes after that. Â Periodically our waiter would apologize and talk about these big orders other tables were ordering... that we watched them get... and then others get more orders... etc. Â After awhile apologies start ringing somewhat hollow.
So all that, waiting for FIFTY minutes, total, with half our order still not arrived, and we are told that they RAN OUT OF RICE and that we would have to wait another TWENTY minutes to get anything else out.
I'm sorry, but what?
Then they charged full price for it all. Â I'm still a little dismayed, embarrassed that I brought a friend, and upset that there was NO attempt to make it better.
Good food but without service, you may as well serve Alpo brand dog food.
Some girlfriends and I gathered here for the all-you-can-eat for $20 special last night (a Thursday). We weren't too sure how great the quality would be, but we were not disappointed! The sushi is amazing, and I've never been a huge sushi fan. They've removed the sake from the all-you-can-eat deal, but the amount of food you get for that price is still almost too good to be true. We were very happy with everything.
The place was pretty dead when we first arrived around 7:00, but by 10:00 it turned into a club atmosphere and we moved outside to the patio. Great people watching, too.
I will definitely be back!
Otaru is a nice sushi joint has a nice fusion of japanese and korean cuisine. Â Their rolls are always tasty and the sushi never tastes fishy. Â The staff is incredibly polite and will make sure you're enjoying your meal.
The bro got the $20 all you can eat special which honestly is a great deal. Â Unlimited sake, rolls, dumplings, chicken, beef, and etc, you will definately get a good meal for the price. Â I always usually opt for a bento box and some rolls with my boo and we always leave full. Â They have a variety of items on their menu so it's always good to try something new. Â
Otaru turns into a cool lounge after hours so be sure to stick around and grab a few drinks.
We used a groupon now coupon here last night. Â I was apprehensive after reading some of the reviews, but I'm really glad we tried it because it was great food and outstanding service. Â
Our waitress was very friendly and attentive. Â The sushi came out in a timely manner - sushi is NOT instantaneous. Â The sushi, while not "mind blowing" was very tasty and inventive. Â Overall good food, great service, good price w/ the groupon. Â Will definitely be back for their $20 sushi special.
I wasn't in a mood for sushi so I ordered one of their udon noodle bowls. Hot, steamy, nice soup base with just the right flavor and ingredients. It was early and uncrowded so the waiter was chatty.
When I left around 9 the "club" is coming alive with really loud music. Great for dancing but really too loud for eating. I feel like the bass is helping move the food inside me. Maybe it's their way to help you digest faster so you can get on the dance floor.
Here is a pretty place, for pretty people. The waitstaff are all young and pretty. The customers are pretty and want to be seen. So eat moderately, and drink and dance your heart out.
Prior to coming here, I was concerned over the reviews I had read on here so I brought a friend I didn't care as much about (jk he's a good bud) to use up my livingsocial and get it over with.
When I first walked in at 6:00pm on a Saturday night, my concerns were affirmed. We were the only two people in the entire restaurant. And I made reservations.....
Being the asian guy I am, I tried to keep it to as close as $40 as I could (incidentally the bill ended up being $1 something in the end) so to not waste anymore $ and just eat whatever I can get.
Not too long after we're seated, the waitress comes out and takes our order. We order 2 rolls and 2 entrees. Before our order comes out, she brings us a complimentary appetizer -- some small seafood dish made with Sriracha sauce along with Miso soup. Both very tasty!
I thought this was probably their way of offsetting the crappy food they'd be serving later on. When our food came out shortly after, everything turned out to be a surprise. The sushi was one of the best I've had in a while....large portion, good quality, tasty... The entrees were also large portion, not super great quality, but decent.
On top of that, the waitress was very very kind and helpful. We tipped her $20 after we left.
All-in-all, I'm wondering if the owners realized what kind of reviews they were getting or figured out something was wrong and changed everything. But as for that experience I had, I would have to give it four-stars.
Worst sushi place I've been too in Dallas. Went here for my friends 21st birthday but it was a weird experience. They had a unlimited roll and sake deal for $20 but DON'T BE FOOLED by the great price. The $20 is literally for the unlimited sake cause the sushi really stinks!
There is a list to choose from for the unlimited deal but they're all horrible -_-. Every roll I got sucked and tasted really bad! Â
I've had rolls @ different locations and this place is overall the worst. I hate it when the roll breaks when you're about to eat it. This happened so many times here. Disappointment! Sushi rolls are not meant to break they're supposed to stay in a roll shape. Plus their miso soup was nasty too watery and not enough miso. The worst part of my experience is the awkward smash up of restaurant/bar/mexican dance club. During our meal we would hear loud screams and yells. That's not all we almost jumped out of our chairs cause a loud blast of mexican music would pop out from nowhere. If you want to drink ok come here but if want to have some sushi go somewhere else like a couple of blocks east towards Preston.
OTARU NIGHT.
from 5pm to 930pm they have this ridiculous deal which is all you can eat sushi AND all you can drink Sake. Â This has become a staple location of bro-night, a weekly celebration of bro-dom, sushi, and drinking. Â
In all seriousness, I have no clue how they are making money on buffet style sushi. Â For the all you can eat sushi, you have to put in your orders for rolls and depending on the crowd they do take some time to come out. Â The all you can eat menu also has a very nice variety of appetizers that are delicious such as fried Gyoza, seaweed salad, and beef tataki (the best). Â The rolls that you can order do have a lot of that "california" filler stuff. We have found that the best bang for your buck is definitely the Rainbow Roll. Â The sushi is not the worlds best, but at 20$ All you can stuff your face with, the sushi is considered good quality. Â Need some quality bonding time with some friends ? Â Feel like chillin and muching on sushi for 3+ hours, and only paying 20$ ? Â I think I hear Otaru calling your name.
Did I mention, Sherlocks is next door ? Â Don't let the celebration stop at 9:30, keep that train rollin BRO.
My buddy had a hand in opening this place, but has since dissociated himself from Otaru. I think he saw some of the things I was seeing.
Otaru's got a strange vibe. It suffers from we're-trying-to-be-way-too-many-things-at-once, and is best described as unfocused. The music selection varies from hardcore rap to weird pseudo-Jazz to bad pop. The servers vary from I'm-a-very-traditional-polite-Asian to hey-look-I'm-the-cool-hip-modern-young-girl-with-Âthe-attitude. It's inconsistent and doesn't really work. The food, as well, suffers from trying to satisfy too many different tastes. Otaru takes pride in supposedly having some of the freshest fish around, yet they do it up in all these weird, overly-done rolls. I do like both fresh fish and creative rolls, but I'd prefer if the restaurant chose a specific specialty and stuck with it.
With a little vision, planning, and direction, Otaru's got okay potential. But potential alone doesn't make a good restaurant.
Otaru is good. Â Not outstanding--there is very stiff competition for sushi in North Dallas/Addison.
You really should go here for the $20 all you can eat sushi. Â It is only from around 5PM until 9:30PM but you get a fairly good sized sushi menu with plenty of sushi options and you can order as much as you want. Â The sushi is cut into 8 pieces. Â They start you off with a cup of miso soup and their popular appetizer which is a crab-stuffed-tempura-battered-jalapeno with sauce. Â Oh, and the all you can eat sushi includes unlimited HOT SAKE. Â Soup, appetizer, unlimited sushi rolls and unlimited hot sake for twenty bucks? Â Not a bad deal.
If sushi isn't your thing they have a big menu with lots of cooked food like noodle dishes. Â Be aware that during the week the sushi bar usually shuts down at 10PM. Â From 10PM until 2AM you can order the cooked stuff from the kitchen.
The vibe of the place is bar-ish. Â They have one flat screen TV that is good to check out games on like the Mavs NBA Finals game (GO MAVS!).
The quality of the sushi is okay. Â Like I said there are much better sushi options around but good enough. Â The service is good but not great. Â There are some nights where they try and turn the place into some music-thumping club. Â Just avoid those nights. Â :-)
I heard about the $20 all you can eat sushi and sake. Saw that there was groupon for this place so I thought I'd get it so me and my friend can go and unwind on a Friday night. It turns out we couldn't use the groupon with the all you can eat deal but it turned out ok because we got enough food for the both of us with the groupon.
We arrived at the restaurant on a Friday night. There were 3 hostesses/servers standing at the door and when I approached to ask whether we could get a seat or how long the wait would be no one knew the answer and I was told to wait for the manager. Once we were seated and had ordered our food it took 1 1/2 to 2 hours to come out. When our order came out we both agreed that the sushi and fish tasted somewhat funky, as if it wasn't fresh. By the time we finished our food we had been at the restaurant for 3 hours, with most of the time spent on waiting to get a seat and waiting for our food.
This place is definitely one of the worst experiences I've had. The wait staff don't really seem to know what they're doing and there are definitely other places where you can find better sushi.
I am sorry we went. We used Groupon to try something new and in addition to truly horrible service, they "misheard" our order and brought our small children adult bento box meals ($4 more each, brought our total up $8, I assume to recover some of the discount of the Groupon but this is conjecture-- they might just feed their small children adult-sized meals and disregard childrens' menus). We complained, and they corrected the price on one of the meals, and acted like they were doing us a favor.
We ordered a roll along with our meals and were not impressed with anything at the table. Everything was over-priced for the abysmal quality, and it took us 30 minutes to get our check when we were done. I will admit we have very high standards for meals and this place might be fine for most--but it could not possibly be considered "great" to anyone, foodie or otherwise
I was told about a $20 all you can eat sushi and sake between 5:30pm-9:30pm, so I decided to give this a try.
The ambiance gave me a cool vibe, but on a Thursday night I went, there was Latin music playing so it sometimes made me think of a Japanese/Latin fusion joint or something.
The sushi were just halfway decent for me to fill my stomach, the rolls were kind of loosely made that they easily fell apart when I picked them up with the chopsticks. Â On top of that, the service was horrible and a few toddlers crying in the background just threw things off the road.
Asking for the tab took me a good 20 minutes to get when the place got dead, which really is no room to make a lame excuse for that.
Quicksie Review:
Went for a meetup group outing and arrived at the door with my friend. Two people standing near the door at the bar didn't even come over to do their hosting job. I had to go to them and ask them to seat us. They didn't seem to respond and the host for the meetup group had then met us and was more friendly than the hosts.
We had the $20 all you can eat sushi. It was a good opportunity to try new items that I had never tried before without having to pay for a whole roll by myself. I enjoyed the lava roll (scallops with some heated sauce, two smoked mussels and california rolls-it looks weird but it was good), the goya dumplings and egg rolls were a hit with my friend who is not a fan of sushi, and the rest of the rolls were ok.
That said, and since there were a big group of us, the servers tried to keep up and they did a good job.
Not sure if I would go there again. I heard their were other better sushi places.
Tucked away in what is best described as a very easily missed corner resides Otaru. I went at night so it was bumping with the kind of music you wish you could experience as a teenager with had a bottle of rolls. They didn't card us, which was fine because I'm not under 21.
The dim blue neon lights are somewhat inviting, like bugs to the shocker-lights. Our waitress came by to take our order. I asked her what the drink specials were and she pointed to the $3 (cheaply made) sushi rolls. Then she decided to trounce away when I asked her again, "what drink specials do you have?" after a haughty, "I don't know." Another waitress came by after and she was fine in terms of service. Thanks.
I didn't expect much out of the rolls and when they arrived, they looked pretty all right. However, NONE of the rolls were well-made and they all fell apart on pick-up. Yes, I know how to use chopsticks. I can use chopsticks to eat a fucking steak, but I could barely eat these rolls that the sushi "chef" probably decided to roll with his ass. The spicy tuna, which I know is typically made with Sriracha, was way over Sriracha'd. I think it was either to cover up the stink of their fish or to make up for the lack of fish that was in any of the rolls. I can handle spicy food up the wazoo, so that wasn't what bothered me; it was the fact that it tasted only like Sriracha.
Around 11:00 PM, the tables in the middle were moved so that at midnight, you can rock out to the music... assuming you actually stay. It seems like this place tries to be way too many places at once: a lounge, a sushi restaurant, a club. Sure, maybe you can spin your place like that, but this place just gives me the spins.
Great service here.
Ordered something around 10:40pm, and they were so kind as to take my pickup order that late (they closed at around midnight). Â Props to Logan, you the man for helping out with the order. I ordered a 12 piece sashimi combo, and got to customize it from 5 different things. Great service.
We went last Friday for a happy hour meetup and I must say I was impressed for $20 all you can eat sushi the rolls I got were really good. I've been to a few all-you-can eat style sushi places and they are usually dressed up California Rolls but Otaru had several options on the AYCE menu.
I also love the ambiance with the blue lighting, it was a bit loud trying to hear the people we were sitting with but the music that was playing was pretty fun so I was ok with it.
Will definitely be back.
PS: say hi to the bartender Alex when you stop in, he might be the most chatty bartender I've encountered!
Was meeting up a group for a HH at 5:30. They open at 5, but when I got there, the place was filthy. The high top tables were sticky and you could see the rings and smudges on the table. Bathroom was in disarray with toilet paper strewn across the floor. On that note, why the hell is this a single bathroom, with 2 sinks?!
I don't know what was up with the waitress, but she was not trained to be a server, or possibly not even a contributing person to the human race. While I was waiting for my friends, the bartender handed her the phone and she just walked away until he said "did you answer it?" at which point she FINALLY put it up to her ear to say "hello?"...wtf.
The place is really empty early on, so we were able to situate a lot of tables together for our large group. When I ordered a vodka soda, I asked what their well was. Waitress response?, "uh, I dunno....do you want me to ask?" No, I guess not.
A few people took advantage of the all you can eat sushi deal, but I just ordered a specialty roll (mi amor roll) off their menu. It arrived in a HUGE bowl, with 5 pieces to the roll. womp, womp. Sadly, $12 dollars. And not special.
Service was painfully slow and not all drinks that were ordered together were brought together. The server completely forgot one of my friend's meals all together and hardly even attempted to sound accountable for it.
AYCE rolls looked sloppy and some stated the fish was served warm. ick. The Mrs. Ling esque potstickers that were jazzed up with some spicy mayo and eel sauce drizzled on top might have been the best offering they had, how sad.
10 or so, they pump up the jams and dim the lights but it just looks sad. With an empty place and the bass pumping, it's like no one showed up to the party. Plus they don't have their speakers set up right so there was a lot of squealing noises.
After a friend told me about this place (and the $20 all you can eat sushi/all you can drink sake special), I decided to check it out. Â Otaru is located where Cafe Miso used to be. Â Instead of a more traditional atmosphere, Otaru foregoes anything of that nature and tosses in a bunch of green and blue colored lights to give it a club/lounge atmosphere.
The first time I went, I ordered the Nabeyaki Udon. Â They spell it Nabe Yaki. Â This is not the same Nabeyaki Udon that is served in 99% of all other Japanese restaurants. Â Instead, think stirfry with udon noodles. Â I sent it back and ordered the Otaru Udon which was almost like a Nabeyaki Udon. Â Service was horrible that Tuesday night. Â I had to repeatedly ask for more water while the waitress kept hopping on a laptop computer at the bar and staying on it for long periods of time. Â I had also ordered a salad which, the dressing was very excellent. Â Instead of not coming back, I decided to give it another shot.
The second visit happened a week later and decided to do to the $20 all you can eat sushi and all you can drink sake. Â The seaweed that wraps their sushi is soft and very chewy. Â You have to gnaw at it a bit to break through it while many other authentic Japanese restaurants use a crunch "nori." Â My friend, who was with me also said the same thing except he used the word "rubbery." Â The waitress just gave us a blank stare, smiled and went along the night. Â The salmon sushi was nothing to go crazy over either. Â The rolls are put together haphazardly and really disgraces the art of making sushi. Â Service was slightly better but I still didn't feel like they appreciated our business.
In both occasions, Both my friend and I asked about specific rolls and the waitresses made the excuse that they were both new. Â If they said "I don't know but let's find out" would've been fantastic. Â Instead, we waited almost 10 minutes for our answer. Â Also, they have wi-fi but they told me to use Sherlocks' (next door) free wi-fi because they didn't have the router name or the password. Â Classy. Â Now keep in mind, this place has been opened for 3-4 months. Â The second waitress tried to be cutesy and smile, wiggly and bat her eyelashes and said she was tired.
I give this experience 2 whole stars: 1 for having the courage to setup another Japanese cuisine restaurant where another one used to be and 2 cause the salad was good. Â I will continue to come here because some of my friends really like it, but I will probably just get water and maybe salad if I'm feeling up to it. Â If you're looking for another Japanese restaurant that is much better in both food and service, many places surround the Addison/N. Dallas area. Â I'm sure Otaru is hoppin' on the weekends but during the weekday, even with only 3 tables, service is mighty slow. Â I recommend coming here to check out the atmosphere cause its not too shabby. Â If you do the $20 deal, you can get your money's worth with ordering one roll and drinking all the sake you want.
I read the other reviews of people complaining that their sushi is expensive. I dont think they're pricy at all. I think they're average actually...and their sashimi is cheap. $9 for a whole plate of sashimi? thats cheap!!! normally its three dollars a piece!!!
I went for their happy hour of $2 you call it and had sushi there too. I got the spicy california roll and spicy tuna. THey were GREAT! it wasnt dry and it was right. And it was cheaper than normal california rolls. one was 4.50 and the other was 5.50.
My girls and I went here for dinner Friday night and it was alright. Â My friends got the $20 all you can eat sushi and sake while I tried the panic roll (salmon, cream cheese, cucumbers), agedashi tofu, and beef tataki. Â I tried the girls' spicy salmon roll and it was pretty good, the roll I got though was meh but I'm no sushi connesuire; the fried tofu and beef tataki was deelish, both served on a bed of greens and delicious ponzu sauce. Â There were a few other tables but since we were the only girls we got shrimp tempura (which was really good) and some sort of fried jalapeno, cream cheese, and crab meat concoction. Â Who can argue with that kind of service =)
We decided on this place because there aren't many places with Friday evening drink specials. Â My only gripe is their ($3) sake comes in such a tiny serving! Â I had one to myself and could get 3 of those tiny cups out of it. Â Around 9 they turn the places into a club/lounge but we left. Â
I would definitely come back and try some of the other things on their menu though. Â Check their website for specials!
OKay I've been to this place so many times. Initially it was because we had a lot of friends working there and would always drop in to support the new business. I've really wanted this place to succeed, but every time we've gone we've either been gipped or had a bad experience.
Recently management changed and its definitely taken a turn for the worse. I took a friend from out of town here and when we arrived at 4:30 ( doors said they open at 4) the Manager said they don't open til 5 but we can sit at the sushi bar...Okay we did..and they kept the lights off! Â Then he proceeded to tell me I couldn't order what I usually ordered and it was impossible I ever requested that. Â I am the only patron in your restaurant.. whatever happened to hospitality.
Today we went again well because a friend had given us some gift certificates, and I live down the street. We were very excited cause maybe for once Otaru would redeem itself and we'd enjoy a good discounted meal. WRONG!!!! Soon as we got there we even asked if the gift certificates were valid, yes they were. We ordered about 3 entrees and when the bill came the waitress said we could only use one gift certificate ($15 dollar increments) per visit... wth??! It doesn't even say that on the card . The waitress didn't seem very concerned and just walked off. Needless to say we got screwed yet again.
The food is pretty good here, and I especially love the salmon sashimi..but their customer service is horrible and unprofessional. I really want to root for the place, but they don't really value their customers.
This is my first review so let me tell you all what to expect from me.
I don't know much about food exept what I like and don't like. Being in the hospitality industry for over 20
I've been working in the Addison area for almost 3 years and thought this place was closed. I loved the atmosphere. I was there on a Thursday night. They had a DJ and were playing hip hop the whole time I was there. For me, this was a nice laid back place to hang out. The sushi was average and pricey for me, but would definitely hang out more and have drinks.
I joined a friend on Sunday to use the <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Frestaurant.com&s=c5fe485af4df376130bee54f875814d79c4d7913e1258123b1206d2bdbf4873b" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://restaurant.com</a> gift certificate to Otaru. Last time I was here, the experience was a comedy of errors. I wish I could say the repeat visit was an improvement, but it proved to be the final chapter of my patronage to Otaru.
We arrived and the joint was empty except for one other table. The other table was a couple accompanied by their toddler. Peaceful family Sunday dinner? Not with the hellaciously loud rap music they were blaring. The restaurant was trying to present a 'dance club' atmosphere with the music and lights, but it was a big FAIL since the only diners (prior to our entrance) were the one family.
My friend and I must have looked unhappy because the music changed about 20 minutes into our visit. Not a big upgrade...it because muzaked versions of current hits by such favorites as Lady Gaga. Wretched. At least we no longer had to yell to converse. The lights kept swirling, and I felt like I was at a middle school dance.
My friend's drink order was a FIASCO. She ordered Chardonnay. A red wine was brought out. Our waitress seemed surprised that the red wine was not Chardonnay and was genuinely befuddled by the request. "I will have to check with the manager to see if we have it," she said. At this point, my frustrated friend replied that she'd stick with water.
The freebie for the evening was a green salad embellished with seafood with a fiery dressing. The dressing on it was extremely spicy. It was fine for me, but my friend (who can eat some pretty spicy stuff) was complaining that her lips were turning numb.
At this point, my friend remarked that she had really been looking forward to that glass of Chardonnay. I decided to go up to the bar and look in their beer/wine fridge to see if they had any. Our waitress WATCHED me do this, but avoided coming to see what I needed. I finally had to ask her to come over to the bar and pull out the open white wines. WALLA! I found the Chardonnay. I'm not impressed that I had to launch my own hunting party at Otaru for the wine, but my friend was happy to have it. (If this were my restaurant, I'd have comped it for the customer's inconvenience...not the mindset at Otaru.)
We ordered several kinds of sashimi and rolls. None of them were spectacular. All of the rolls were sloppily put together, so they ALL fell apart. Â I was dismayed that there was no scallop roll on the menu, so I wrote it in the special requests on the form. What we got was anything but a typical scallop roll (usually a simple roll of chopped scallops, masago, mayo and sometimes chives). It was a California roll topped with cooked scallops with a tangle of thinly sliced carrots and drown in chili sauce. It was HORRIBLE! The scallops were almost inedible they were so chewy. It was like gnawing on bits of a nylabone (which my dog highly recommends on puppy Yelp). Scallop rolls are also usually inexpensive, and I'm sure we were charged a premium for this monstrosity.
After the gift card was redeemed and the tip added in, our charge was $37 each. It was a total rip off. If you go to Otaru, prepare to advocate for yourself as you've never had to do at another restaurant. You will have to double check the accuracy of the bill (look at my 1st review with the happy hour clown show) and may even have to hunt for common requests (like Chardonnay). You will be charged mightily for pretty looking food served in a disco-tech. Don't expect quality or great service though...that is too much to ask.
The END.
I don't get to eat sushi very often. Â Maybe once every six months or so, however I've been to Otaru already twice this year, and I really dig it.
Each time we've gone in, we're greeted and seated quickly. Â Last time we were in, they sat us in the lounge area with these huge red couches, and we sunk down into those cushions and chatted about the menu. Â
Someone has already mentioned the pre-dinner salad in a martini glass, and all I'll say about that is that we all wolfed those salads down like we'd not eaten in months. Â Very tasty.
They have a nice selection of rolls to choose from. Â Â I do know that I had the samon and yellow tail sashimi, and they were very fresh. Â Once our rolls got there, they delivered them on a wooden boat, which was cool. Â The boat fit in with the atmosphere I thought and though we did take in our surroundings, I was all about the sushi. Â We tried the boyfriend roll, the cajun roll, the...uh, roll in the hay, rollin' with the homies, rock and roll (yeah I totally made up those last three cause I can't remember the names of what we had) Â However, despite my poor memory I do know that everything I ate was like a taste explosion in my mouth. Â
Our waitress was very cute and attentive and came around to check on us at just the right time, which was when we needed a refill on beer. Â She was either really good or had a super power on when we needed more beers. Â They had $2.00 domestics that Thursday night.
I'm no sushi expert, but I know what I like, and like Otaru!!
My rating is just based on drinks and service. I did not get a chance to eat here. We went here on Friday night for Andrew T's birthday. The service was alright and the drink specials were average. Just as my friend Andy P wrote in his review, we somehow manage to not order any drinks that were on the specials for that night. The waitress wasn't really helpful or attentive to our group even though it wasn't  particulary busy.
The restaurant it self didn't really look like a sushi place. It had stucco and the ambiance had more of a Tex/Mex feel. All in all I wouldn't really say anything negative or positive about this place. Its just middle of the road to me.
They've only been opened for a couple of months but their place is pretty cool. Â They actually keep live fish (flounder??) behind the sushi bar. Â They get their fish delivered incredibly fresh.
Their fish is AMAZING. Â We used to order sashimi directly from Dr. Fish Corporation on Harry Hines twice a month. Â I didn't even know Dr. Fish owned part of this restaurant until I went there with my family and got some bento boxes. Â Their salmon seriously melts in your mouth and I honestly didn't think the price was too high especially for the quality. Â Their dinner bento boxes are reasonably priced at around 12 dollars. Â Even their grilled salmon was so soft. Â
I even hired them to cater my wedding reception for 800 people. Â I will update that review after my wedding. Â I'm really excited!
This is my first 5 star review. Â Yummmm.
Call me cheap. Â Go ahead. Â I don't mind. Â Those that know me understand otherwise, but the bill is a large part of this review. Â So get the name calling out of your system now.
Tonight was a good night. Â We started out at a small-ish holiday party, ate some good food there, and felt the itch for some sake. Â Well, a buddy of mine wanted sake, I wanted shochu. Â Off to a sushi bar for a late(ish)-night snack.
We picked Otaru. Â My friends have already been and had nothing but great things to say about it. Â And I really wanted a good salmon skin roll. Â
We walked in and were carded at the door. Â Ok, I'm 35, my friend is 40, but at least it's vaguely flattering these days. Â We grab a spot at the bar and ordered a few drinks waiting on another friend to arrive. Â No shochu. Â They did have soju though (Ty-Ku's version of shochu, it's not bad, but I was hoping for something more traditional). Â Our drinks arrived and I was blown away by the lack of beverage in my beverage. Â Realistically, the bartender poured one ounce in a 10 ounce cup and topped it off with so much ice, cubes fell out when she set it on the bar in front of me. Â Keep in mind that this is not vodka. Â It is not whiskey. Â At most, this stuff is *maybe* 25% ABV. Â There is no reason that the pour should have been this skimpy. Â Â Then we took in the atmosphere.
This place has a lot of pretty people. Â The waitresses are all beautiful. Â The waiters are all handsome. Â The customers were a good looking group as well. Â The restaurant had a very cool, lounge feel to it. Â The music was fantastic.
Our friend joined us so we went to the sushi bar to eat and socialize with the sushi chefs.
After marking my salmon skin roll on my menu, Sean, our sushi chef came out and introduced himself to us. Â He has a very strong Vegas feel about him. Â Friendly, over-the-top-friendly in fact, and a damn good sushi chef. Â He told us that he would take care of us and that we had no need to order anything. Â I still just wanted my salmon skin roll.
Sean prepared three different platters, and each was better than the last. Â I only had a few bites from each since I really wasn't very hungry. The food was good, just not what I was in the mood for. Â Once done, we asked for the bill, and were told that we "would be well taken care of." Â Yeah.. taken advantage of more like. Â The bill was $150 for three plates. Â
So we asked what that was about, and a typo was discovered. Â The bill was actually only $88 for three items. Â Yeah.. I just wanted a salmon skin roll and expected to burn around $12. Â Splitting a $90 tab when none of us ordered a single thing made me feel a bit like the scene from Deliverance. Â You know the one where the guy is told that he has a purdy mouth and should then squeal like a pig before being bent over. Â Yeah, it kinda felt like that. Â When we walked out I had a limp. Â But at least when I squealed like a pig, it wasn't very convincing.
That said, I will go back. Â The food was good, the waitstaff was pretty, and the music was great. Â But if another employee orders for me under the guise of "hooking up people that have ever been here before," it's going to get ugly.
But hey, on a lighter note, they did comp us a $4 carafe of foul cheap hot futsu sake because they wanted to make sure we had a good time. Â Can you hear me rolling my eyes?
Pretty cool sushi restaurant. Â I would describe it as a lounge more than a restaurant, which is what they were going for. Â Ahi Tower here is VERY good. Â Def. give that a whirl. Â Also, if you get the day right, the valcano roll is pretty darned good, as well. Â I have gotten it twice, first time it was horrid, second time it was delicious...shrug.
Good drink specials and very conveniently located, definitely will be a hang out for me.
Amazing Atmosphere, Amazing Sushi and Amazing Service!
Why spend double or triple for fresh sushi when you can come here?
Compare it to Nobu? Tutaka?
Sushi yes, price no.
Seriously, try the good stuff, the Uni, the Toro and Tuna melt in your mouth.
I spent 3 hours last night here and will be back!
They  have buy one get one sushi during the week and soju is only $10!
Service was wonderful and the manager and owner are very humble and extremely knowledgable.
I am happy I found my new hang out!
Yes, the bartender and waitresses are cute!
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