Gyo Japanese Tapas Bar Restaurant — Restaurant in Queensland

We attempted to order takeaway for 6 people on a Saturday night, so keep that in mind. We tried calling ahead but the phone was constantly on hold or just ringing out. We decided to go to the restaurant and order takeaway (we wanted to spend some time at the Strand that night anyways).

When we arrived, we placed our (admittedly rather lengthy) order, while the phone rang off the hook next to him. It was picked up maybe twice during the whole exchange, but ignored most of the time. Guess that's why we didn't get through on the phone.

What followed was a 1.5 hour wait for food, and we needed to ask them about our food multiple times, just to be sure we weren't forgotten. The restaurant was decently busy and there was a lot going on with takeaways. Fortunately our order wasn't forgotten - other waiting customers were forgotten.

The food was great, but not worth the wait, or the service. This restaurant seems to seriously struggle with managing customer demand on busy nights. I recommend not ordering takeaway - instead dine in. Those customers appeared to receive priority over waiting takeaway customers. Perhaps the experience would be better on a weeknight!

Probably not going back. The experience stole our whole night and we ended up taking our food home and...

GYO still going strong as Townsville's best casual & authentic Japanese food restaurant.

If you want to have a relaxed & fun night out in Townsville, go & visit GYO at it's great location adjacent to the Stand.

With a great selection of Japanese beers & cocktails at very reasonable prices, its best to sit back & take your time. Order a selection of small dishes & share everything you order. This is how best to enjoy GYO.

The pork gyoza is a must, perfect to start.

The tempura prawn sushi is stand out. You won't find better sushi in the city.

The tempura spider crab & broccoli with garlic mayo is very nice as well & perfect accompaniment with the crisp clean flavours of a premium Japanese lager.

There are so many other great dishes on offer as well that you will definitely need a second visit. Some interesting dessert options too if you still have room.

Great service & great hospitality. The location is second to none & really great value for money especially considering the premium location & quality of the food.

I really can't recommend GYO enough for a casual dinner in Townsville.

Pictured: iced matcha latte w/ red bean, Sapporo, pork gyoza, tempura prawn sushi 4pc, tempura spider crab & broccoli w/ garlic mayo,...

As much as this really deserves 2 or less stars for our experience, we thought to be more constructive and see it from an entertainment perspective.

First of all, simple management and process is all that is needed to correct what we experienced.

Like others, our entree was due to be last served and quite late. We never received it. We left before this was done.

We watched many people enter and leave as chaos ensued inside.

The service girls were replaced by the chef as they really let the team down.

The barman appeared like he could belong on a Bond movie as a hitman. His service was excellent. He was calm throughout the chaos.

A lot of guests also served themselves from the bar/service bell.

Overall, the basics of service were non existent from those employees who were required to serve and they were replaced by...