KOHARU Japanese Restaurant — Restaurant in King

⭐☆☆☆☆ 2/10 As a long-time customer of Koharu Japanese Restaurant in Schomberg, I have witnessed its journey from an exciting new addition to the local dining scene to, sadly, a shadow of what it once was. My visit on August 14 was a stark reminder of how far the experience has slipped.

The order — a chicken teriyaki bowl, kids meal, crab roll, and Alaskan roll — should have been straightforward. I requested only a light drizzle of spicy mayonnaise on the sushi and chicken, something that has been accommodated without issue in the past. Instead, I was charged \$3 for “extra sauce” and received only a minimal amount, hardly enough to justify the cost. To add to the disappointment, just one soy sauce packet was provided for two boxes of sushi — a small but telling detail that gives the impression of cutting corners.

The chicken teriyaki bowl was the most disappointing item of the night. The chicken tasted stale, the vegetables were undercooked, and the overall dish was so unappealing that I ended up throwing it away. This was a far cry from the fresh, balanced, and flavorful bowls I’ve enjoyed here before. Honestly, store-bought options taste better — which makes me wonder if some of the glowing five-star reviews are coming from people with very forgiving taste buds.

The sushi rolls also lacked the freshness, precision, and balance of flavor that initially set this restaurant apart. Presentation was uninspired, and the portion sizes, once generous, now feel modest while prices continue to rise.

What made Koharu special in its early days was a commitment to quality, value, and care in execution. That balance has been lost. The generosity and freshness that once justified the price point have been replaced by smaller portions, inconsistent quality, and cost-saving measures that diminish the dining experience.

I genuinely hope management takes note. With the right attention to portion sizes, pricing fairness, and quality control, Koharu could easily regain the loyal following it once had. Until then, based on this visit, my rating...

We eat at many Japanese and Korean restaurants, this was our first time at Koharu Schomberg. The service was great along with the venue itself. It was comfortable and very clean and the staff were very friendly. The lettuce side was not crisp and was served with way to much sauce. The miso soup was okay and served hot. I had BBQ beef Kalbi for starters, it was tender but not succulent. For mains I had beef Bimbimbap, I can’t say this dish was up to my standard. The vegetables were too coarsely cut, there was very little beef, perhaps a small spoonful and it appeared to be ground beef instead of thinly sliced beef pieces. It had almost no taste, we had to flood it with hot sauce for flavour. My wife had salmon sashimi for starters, this was very tender and fresh. We both had the same experience with the bimbimbop. Since I live locally i’ll try it again in 6 months to see if things have changed. We both really want this...

This was beyond expectations. Firstly, sushi is our thing. The meal tonight was phenomenal and unmatched in value, with the presentation and quality of the food being followed up with our gracious host and the chef really making this a full package. The cooked dishes are generous and delicious, but for us, the quality and serving size (not piece count which was good, but a proper meat to rice ratio) of the nigiri was nice to have. The meal was not well represented by the photos that could have been from any stock menu.. whereas our meal was amazing. Thank you so much for the meal and service you...