Jimoto Omakase — Attraction in San Antonio

Me and 3 of my girlfriends booked the Casual Omakase ($78 with a 20% mandatory tip at time of booking) for the 4:30 PM timeslot today. We arrived a few minutes before 4:30 and headed upstairs because we didn’t want to be late. We’ve been to other omakases where they’ve generally been punctual and oftentimes will turn people away if they arrive late.

One of the owners, Chef Taylor, let us know that we could head downstairs to grab drinks at Kimura since they do not serve alcohol upstairs. He said he would grab us whenever they were ready to start. 5 minutes pass.. then 10… then 20. He finds us downstairs and lets us know we could come upstairs to hangout but we would not be starting yet. We asked him when it was supposed to start. He let us know that they have to wait for the other party to get there. He started getting sassy with us for giving him sass — when we got there on time, in fact early. Once the party of 2 finally arrived, they started the omakase.

It was 5 PM at this point. He also asked us more than once if we had somewhere we needed to be and where, to which we replied yes we do. We booked this knowing it was a 45 min commitment and came on time for it. He let us know that they’d try to be fast — we didn’t want the experience to feel rushed though, however, we would have liked to know upfront how long the wait would actually be and when they would actually start. We also felt like the people that got there late should have been penalized but it seems that there isn’t any sort of rule or fee in place for latecomers. But also why does he need to know where we need to be? That should not matter and is not his business.

We would have liked him to respect our time, just like we respected theirs by getting there on time. It is one of the “cheaper” omakases out there, but for an $80+ meal we expected the establishment to be more professional and more considerate of our time and money.

As for the food, it was good and the fish was fresh but the experience left a sour taste in my mouth and ruined...

I was super excited to splurge and try something unique. Unfortunately, chef Ruben had his brother fill in instead and was not present to fulfill the promise of providing an “Experience of a 15-course Omakase, crafted by Washoku-certified chef and owner Ruben Pantaleon”. This was never told to us. Imagine purchasing tickets to a concert to see a performer and the venue rolls out a cover band. Not what I paid for. All the accolades behind the bar mean little if the one who has them isn’t there to showcase them. Additionally, I did not feel that I got to “experience Omotenashi, the Japanese tradition of hospitality, where every detail is designed to make guests feel special and appreciated.” The meal started about 45 min late, we had to stand in the restaurant below with no instructions instead of waiting in the lounge area. Didnt feel like we were really greeted when we entered. The craftmanship of preparing and presenting the food was sloppy at times. It lacked the care that is synonymous with sushi and Japanese culture. Didnt feel particularly special when the brother chose to dump on the city that was providing its customers and them the opportunity to perform in it. One or two comments fine but seemed to have a real distain for the city and a I’m too good for this place attitude. Also left hungry still for the price of the meal I felt there should be a dish that decently fills the appetite. Overall wonderful flavors and such a cool premise just failed to live up to its promises and expectations. Hopefully they will tighten this up and inform customers if they won’t be getting the full experience and discount...

I was disappointed that Chef Rubén Pantaleon was not the chef for our Omakase experience. He had someone fill in for him but we weren’t notified prior to. The fill in was fine except that she was handling the food and scratching her face. Additionally, she mostly talked about how great chef Ruben is and how grateful she was for the opportunity to fill in. At one point she even apologized and said she only had a one hour training on a technique the day prior. Most of the sushi was good but I was not a fan of the raw shrimp. It messed up my palate for the rest of the dinner. Also note that on Sundays they do not have alcohol for sale but the email states you can purchase from the ramen restaurant downstairs; however, they are also closed on Sundays so you cannot. We got there early and had to wait in the car, also looks like trash day must be on Monday because the trash bin was full and it smelled so bad outside. That was a little off...