Nobi Nobi Obanzai — Restaurant in Richmond

We called to reserve a table as it was our first time here. We worried there would be a lot of customers so it’s better to reserve a table in advance. We did the right thing. So many customers came in especially families with kids.

The space is not very big, so the restaurant needs to serve the food to customers quickly in order to do more businesses.

A server greeted us with smile when we stepped into the restaurant. I enjoyed when I saw servers or people with smiles. I love people with great manners and attitudes.

We seated right away and got some water to start with. We read the menus at home in advance so we knew what to order. We ordered tofu, unagi, and beef course meals. All of the course meals came with a bowl of miso soup, some veggies as side dishes, and the main dish (which was tofu, unagi, or beef) with rice. All of them had good quality but they were different from real authentic and sophisticated Japanese ones.

This is a family oriented restaurant so be expected that parents with little kids or older children would come here for meals. When we were dining here, a couple of kids cried very loudly and some ran around. As mentioned, the space was not big. A kid even bumped into my parent even though we were sitting and eating. If the restaurant runs well and a lot of customers love the food, maybe the business owner can consider having a bigger space and serve more...

The WORST customer service experience I've ever had. I found this restaurant on Google and placed my order on their website via ZOMI eats (the default method at that time). When I arrived to pick up my order, the receptionist told me that they did not "receive" my order because they "stopped" using ZOMI eats.

If your business "stopped" using that platform, remove it from your website, and don't charge my credit card. In addition, not only Nobi Nobi refuse to give me my order, which I have paid for. The staff also refused to issue me a refund, claiming that they didn't "receive" the payment. What a fat LIE. The receipt CLEARLY shows Nobi Nobi. And your account is active.

After wasting about 30min reasoning with them, they agreed to give what I paid for. Unbelievable! If your business made a mistake, fix it, and have the courtesy to apologize. Don't try to blame your customers.

The food, on the other hand, is ok. The rice is soggy, foie gras and unagi are towards the bland side. It's my first and last time visiting Nobi Nobi. Don't get fooled by the positive...

Ugh I love this place!!!! My favorite thing about Japanese set lunches is that it's so well balanced and you get a little of everything - meat, veggies, sour, sweetness, everything - and all the flavors were so clean and so on point.

We got the Beef Bowl and the Foie Gras Bowls - for sure I recommend the Foie Gras Bowl - where else can you find affordable foie gras in such a casual space??? It was cooked perfectly - so buttery and velvety and it went perfectly with the chicken teriyaki underneath. The side dishes were so on point - there was the refreshing cucumber, daikon, radishes, carrots, and more. Everything was so balanced.

The beef Bowl was great too and the egg was perfectly cooked on top. I recommend the Foie Gras bowl over everything else though.

My only critique is I also got the shrimp tempura but I did not think they were worth it. They were cooked well but they were very short and small (comparatively to what I've had before) so though they were yummy, it left me wanting more and the bowl sets were just so perfect themselves, the tempura...