Okami — Restaurant in Melbourne

Dear Owner

I am writing to share my recent dining experience (12th August 7:45pm) at your esteemed restaurant, as I believe your commitment to excellence deserves honest feedback. I wish to express my profound dissatisfaction with the dining experience my family and I recently endured at your restaurant. While the prospect of spending quality time with loved ones held promise, the reality that unfolded left an indelible mark of disappointment.

Foremost, I must address an issue of utmost importance – the handling of customer service. It is with a deep sense of disbelief that I recount the events of our evening. Approximately an hour into our two-hour reservation, we were surprised to be informed that the kitchen was preparing to close, and we were requested to place our final order. Considering our remaining allocated time and the fact that we were still enjoying our meal, this situation felt untimely and somewhat inappropriate. When I requested a moment to peruse the menu and make an informed decision, the encounter with your manager proved to be less than favorable. The interaction was characterized by an unfortunate lack of courtesy and assistance, leaving me with a sense of unease and undue haste. I wish to take a moment to highlight the positive contributions of Alex, whose exceptional qualities as an employee could potentially make him a fitting candidate for managerial responsibilities.

Equally disheartening was the disappointing quality of the cuisine presented. It is with a heavy heart that I recount the lackluster flavors that permeated many of the dishes we ordered. The chicken karaage, once a source of culinary delight, was but a shadow of its former self, plagued by an absence of taste. The glaring omission of the chawanmushi, an eagerly anticipated delicacy, only further compounded the overall dissatisfaction we experienced.

This correspondence is not intended as an arbitrary complaint, but rather as an impassioned plea for immediate and earnest attention to the grievances outlined above. The gravity of the situation demands nothing less than a thorough and thoughtful investigation into the matters at hand. I implore you to reflect upon the implications of these incidents on the reputation of your establishment and the perception of your patrons.

In conclusion, I extend my gratitude for affording me the platform to voice my concerns. I await your decisive action in rectifying these regrettable circumstances and restoring the faith I once held in the excellence of your establishment.

Yours...

I'm very disappointed in the service that I was received when I walked in and asked for a table for two last night, I was asked to return in 45 minutes later the whole restaurant was empty excluding probably four tables I was appalled at the way they were looking to see where they could seat us with the x amount of tables that were obviously available. It's was evented there were being affected by the roads that have been closed off in the area due to road works because at that time which we have gone many times before the restaurant has been busy and alot of tables occupied but then to be asked to come back 45 minutes later then look around and see that there was only four tables occupied and I said so you're telling me these people eating here want to order more food you will not cook it for them when they are paying for all the can eat per person is that correct they were looking at me as to not knowing how to reply,. You would think that with the restaurant being empty and being affected clearly by the the road closures that they would not knock back customers and $$$ and make customers feel welcome regardless. I just turned away and walked out, they will never see me again I'll go to another okami as your service has never been exceptional it is being really appalling , you dont even get a smile when you work in reallyneed customer service training, I'm finally writing this review because of my experience last night I was left stunned because in previous times when I have come for dinner an ordered our meals most times don't come out and we keep reminding them and they still dont get brought out, most times when you are seated at the table your then pretty much forgotten. You need to always call for waitress or waiter for some type of service. Last night left me shaking my head in amazement seeing an empty restaurant and making us feel as welcome as possible. To be told to come back 45 minutes later when half the roads are closed off and to get into the venue due to the traffic was appalling there was no way I was coming back so I took my $$$ that they've lost to someone else where they provided us with excellent service and the food...

After my last stellar review of newly opened Okami, we thought we'd take a revisit after quite a few months. From the outset, it's important to note that this is an all-you-can eat style cuisine so any review must be fair and reasonable in that context. We ordered exactly the same as we had done prior. The miso soup tasted like flavoured water. The sushi - the tuna was very low grade and instead of the trademark red, it was pale pink, rough textured and a large 'V' shape piece was squashed down onto the rice. One or two pieces of dried ginger and was missing the egg and nori sushi piece. The gyoza were greasy which was a surprise considering how they're cooked - but possibly the sauce was oily and dribbled over? I've never had greasy gyoza. The carpaccio - two of the four pieces per plate didn't have a large discernible piece of fat right through the middle - marbling is ok but this was a five cent piece size that then spread in large lines of fat to the edges. What we did eat was delicious. We ordered one each, one came with the traditional mustard dribble, the other did not so was very vinegary. The fried rice was absolutely delicious, reminds me of hainanese chicken rice. The udon noodles with beef didn't rate high with my partner, but the chicken katsu he enjoyed albeit it was a mix of fillet/thigh (layered). Sake delicious, probably not as warm as you'd traditionally have it. Ice cream came in containers, black sesame quite tasty, vanilla was icy without the creamy texture. The staff work very hard, are very attentive. I wish I could've given it the same review as prior but sadly the food standard just didn't quite match up to our...