Sushi Kanata — Restaurant in Ottawa

We decided to go there for Valentine's Day dinner after having had a really good experience last summer. The ambience was really nice with great decor and music at the right volume. Despite not having as much selection as other sushi restaurants the food is decent and that is something I don't mind if I am looking for a different setting than the large spaces that the other sushi places are in.

Before I start I have to note that most sushi places do not have the best service. You don't go to one and expect amazing service - you expect a minimal service. However, this place really took the cake.

We made a reservation and felt that we were lucky that we actually got there about 15 minutes before we were supposed to be there - we weren't asked for our names. About five minutes before our reservation was scheduled a long line-up had formed and there didn't seem to be anyone greeting those that were waiting. We were asked about what we wanted to drink, so we ordered our drinks - that seemed to be fine. Then we ordered. I think that it took around 40 minutes to get our first couple of items (we were about ready to leave at this point and just pay for the drinks). Then the next items came about 15 minutes later. Then nothing (at this point we put in our second order - seeing that this was taking a long time and that other people were waiting). After about 15 more minutes had passed we got two items from the new list (they never brought the miso soup or dumplings from our first order). Then another 15 minutes rolled around before I was ready to just leave and throw on the table the amount including tax onto the table. I was ready to cry because I was so hungry. That's when they brought a couple more items and my boyfriend asked if the manager was around - apparently the manager had taken today off and there was absolutely no team work nor communication making the night run terribly for them. They lost out on a lot of money as people walked out before even being seated (no one talked to them when they came in). Management definitely does not know how to manage this place. The food is not worth the aggravation of waiting two hours for food - we will not be returning and will be taking our custom over to another sushi place that has better service.

I've never left an all-you-can eat hungry (and I don't eat huge amounts...

Food is decent at best. And that’s the best I can say.

Service is terrible. I’ve been here three times and each was worse than the last.

I went with three others for dinner. Noticed a lot of empty tables in the centre of the restaurant but customers were all seated in booths. Asked if I had a reservation, which we didn’t, and so we were jammed into a corner booth in the front of the place. 7:30pm

By 7:45, the one waitress came to our empty table with water, the soy sauce and minimal ginger and wasabi. We’d placed our orders on small papers. She took them without saying a word.

At 8:00 the first food arrived. We made quick work of that plate because we were starved and it stayed that way for 10 more minutes. We noticed at every table including our own, the robot brings one plate of food only, and the one waitress accompanied it. Talk about inefficient.

One group left and another arrived about the same time. More on that later.

Service remained slow the entire time until we finally left at 9:45. That’s 2 hours and 15 minutes total for all you can eat. We remained hungry and left unsatisfied.

We twice had to remind this waitress that we’d ordered certain dishes that never came, including a cooked teryaki salmon and a teryaki beef. They were only prepared once we prompted her!

We had a good view of the one itamae the entire meal. He spent more time out back in the kitchen than at the block prepping maki and sashimi etc. Doing what? I’ll never know.

Two parties left while we were there. Noticeably, those tables were never cleared. That can’t be good for business. Overheard at one point by a child at another table: “we’ve been here 5 hours and haven’t been served!”

This restaurant is poorly understaffed. Is it because they can’t afford new staff as a result of the poor service offered? Or is there not enough business to sustain staff to work there to improve service? Whatever it is, this place has struck out hard and nothing will change with the state it’s in....

The worst sushi place I have ever eaten! We went to have a nice dinner as a family, as soon as we showed up they looked uncomfortable, we didn't pay attention and decided to seat. Waitress was focused in the high price and asked many times if we wanted the all-you-can-eat service, we said yes. Then our nightmare started, for every order we had to wait 40min+ The worst was that the order arrived incomplete, we tried to have a lot of patience, but we were THE ONLY ONE THERE, no more customers dining in. Then we saw people coming in to dine in and the only waitress told them that they cannot service today, no food available. Around 6 couples in less than 30min, while we waited for the second order. Then the second order arrived incomplete, so I told the waitress, and I told her that we waited more than 40min for that, almost two hours seated there and still waiting for service, then she turned upset and told me that there is only one cooker in the kitchen doing everything, and that they don't have everything I asked for, so I told her that it's not my fault, and if they new they can't serve properly they should tell us at the beginning so we can go somewhere else instead of being there, she was upset and told me that the dinning time was 2hours and I already took the time. That was unbelievable!! She charged us full service and no food were available for us. We understood why that place was empty. I hope a nice restaurant replaces them, Kanata deserves a good place to eat, but the lack of good services and food in international restaurants are obvious. I have visited many restaurants, we love sushi, but this experience was awful. We are new in Kanata, I am surprise this restaurant still alive! The only one for sushi is Hockey sushi, is not the best but the best and...