Sonohen — Restaurant in Fukuoka

Honestly, it was a pretty disappointing experience. I didn’t even get to try the food.

We came one evening without a reservation and asked if walk-ins were okay. The staff said no, which was fair enough, so we went to queue at another restaurant nearby.

While waiting, we saw four white guys go upstairs and stand outside this place. I went back to ask if they were walk-ins, and they said yes — they were told to wait around 10 - 20 minutes.

So I asked the staff if I could do the same, since I didn’t mind waiting outside. But after checking with the chef, the staff just said “no.” I don’t think I was rude at all, so I really don’t understand why I was rejected. I try not to assume anything, but it definitely didn’t feel fair.

Sure, I should’ve booked ahead since this place is always full. But I didn’t see anything on Tabelog saying reservations were required. Either way, I don’t think I’ll be coming back next time...

As this is a popular restaurant, all the tables were booked up even at 11 am. Our reservation was at 11 am and the lunch trays were served super fast! we started eating at around 11:08. The food was good, but the staff were rather aloof. Felt like we were pushed to finish up the food ASAP and the staff took away the tray without asking if I was all done (it was only about 25 min after the food was served). FYI, they don’t accept credit cards, only mobile...

Was really looking forward to trying the set lunch at Sonohen, but it ended up being just okay. While they do serve a generous number of side dishes, most of them were overly salty and not particularly well-balanced.

The presentation was nice, but unfortunately I didn’t end up finishing everything—it just didn’t hit the mark in terms of flavor.

Appreciate the effort and variety, but probably wouldn’t return for...