Watami Sushi — Restaurant in Waterloo

Spent over $100 and very disappointed. I don’t usually leave any reviews but I have to today. I’ve visited this place multiple times before and had great experiences so decided to take my mom on mother’s day.

We ordered 1 appetizer and 2 mains, and one of the mains came first before the appetizer without any explanation in advance. I was expecting the appy first so asked several servers but no one was aware of when it’s gonna come out. One of the servers told me the appetizer I ordered usually takes time so the main came out first. I had that specific one before and got it first before the main? I told her I thought we were gonna be informed if that’s the case, then she said customers here usually have like this. ??? I’m not sure if I have to accept that like a store policy if other customers also do the same. The thing is I used to be a regular customer too but well this is my first time being treated like this here. It’s not because I got the main first. I don’t really mind whatever I get on my table first only if they gave me a signal before it happened. It’s because how they dealt with it, the customer service after it happened.

Food wise- The rolls were handled very bad, not firm enough to pick up with chapsticks, almost lost its shapes. And sushi had inconsistent amount of wasabi in it so we had to check each sushi on the plate. We were struggling with the wasabi during the dinner.

Servers were just too busy taking the dirty plates away right after we were done the dishes. We felt so rush and pressured.

Lastly, no one greeted after the payment and even when we were leaving. It was only me saying thank you.

I’ve always thought Watami is worth the 4.5 stars. But after today’s experience, I even feel sorry for my mom for bringing here for mother’s day dinner. I don’t think I will be...

Why 1 star?

TL;DR - Save your money, appetite, and Uptown Waterloo by not eating here. Came here expecting a nice hearty meal, ended up making instant ramen at home afterwards.

-2 Stars for value for money and quality of food: $14 for a bento with close to cold rice, refrigerated salad with cheap fake crab, terrible tasting yam tempura, and close to cold small pieces of beef. You get a lukewarm and watered-down miso soup with some strange chewy things in it. Also, a hint of dishwasher soap in the after-taste. The veggies are a bunch of stir-fried cabbage, white mushroom slices, and some crunchy garlic chips. It was also the warmest item in the bento. The beef stew was a complete rip-off. Four 1-inch cubes of room temp beef, potatoes, and carrots. Tastes more like Chinese or Taiwanese hot pot beef, but lacking any real flavour to it. I'm assuming they keep the beef somewhere and just pour the gravy over it to warm it up. Salad was standard with some added fake crab meat (maybe to make people think they're getting a fancy salad)?

-1 Star for being charged $2 when asking for HOT GREEN tea. Instead, they gave me a room temperature cup of some weird white tea which I asked what it was and was told it was green tea. I asked for hot tea and they gave me another cup (slightly warmer) of the same weird tea. They then just put a whole tea pot in front of me.

-1 Star for the cleanliness and disorganization of the restaurant; Cleaning products on or near food preparation surfaces, dirty dish cart with unfinished (not surprising) bentos stacked high in the eating space, cooks wiping their sweating foreheads with their hands as they prepare sushi and "hot" meals, and restaurant patrons chain smoking just outside the door which doesn't fully...

I used to recommend and bring friends to Watami. However, the experience we had tonight was terrible. I was surprised by the mandatory 18% service fee when I saw the bill. I asked the server why no one informed us about the mandatory fee when we had five people. The server said they never told customers when they came in because they didn't want customers to feel they couldn't afford it. I think it doesn't make sense because if customers know they can't afford it, they have a choice to leave before ordering. Then, the server pointed out that the mandatory policy is stated on the menu. I had never noticed it when I ordered because the policies are in tiny print at the bottom of the menu. I have been to Watami many times and never noticed they had this policy. I think charging the mandatory fee for customers without prior clearance is unfair. The server said it was not under her control. I asked to talk with the manager. The manager said there was no need to explain and that he would call the police. We waited for the police in the restaurant for 40 minutes, but no one showed up, and no further resolutions were made. I felt bad for making my friends continue to wait for me. I paid the bill and left. I understand tipping is a way to compensate for servers, and I would like to appreciate their service by good tipping. However, the unclear notice of a mandatory service fee is annoying and unfair to customers, which I cannot tolerate. Also, the manager's words and attitude when dealing with things are rude. I don't understand the actual benefits of threatening customers by calling policy. Of course, never...