SUSHIKATO SETSU NISEKO INORI — Restaurant in Kutchan

This was our third time in Japan, and we are well-accustomed to Japanese dining etiquette. We’ve dined at top sushi restaurants in Tokyo, Osaka, and Kanazawa, so we understand that high-end sushi can be expensive—but it usually delivers an extraordinary experience. Before coming to Niseko, I was aware that it is heavily influenced by tourism and fairly Westernized. However, I still expected to experience some local authenticity. We booked Setsu Niseko for our stay in February and received an email as early as September, warning that the hotel’s restaurants would fill up instantly. Panicking, and wanting to secure a high-quality sushi experience, I rushed to book Sushi Kato. The price of 60,500 yen per person was nearly the same as Sushi Arai in Tokyo, which is ranked among Japan’s top 10 sushi restaurants. Naturally, my expectations were high. As our trip approached, I came across some concerning reviews about Sushi Kato and wanted to cancel. However, their strict cancellation policy stated: “Please note that a cancellation fee will be charged for all cancellations due to reasons other than bad weather and natural disasters. • Cancellation 10 days before: 50% of the course fee” Even though we were still 45+ days away from our reservation, we were not allowed to cancel, which felt excessive given the price.

The Dining Experience From the moment we arrived, red flags started appearing. First, every guest was automatically charged 1,200 yen for water—even though the hotel promotes sustainability and boasts about its high-quality tap water. There was no option to decline, which felt shady. Then, we noticed an additional 10% service charge, something rarely seen in Japan, especially when the base price is already so high. Since this was not disclosed upfront, it felt misleading. During dinner, we were offered extra items at an additional cost, including truffle—yes, truffle in a sushi restaurant, which felt bizarre. One piece of sushi even had gold dust, making it clear that this place catered more to those looking for a flashy, overpriced experience rather than an authentic one. To make matters worse, despite having only four guests at a seven-seat counter, they were offering a 10-piece sushi set, miso soup, and fruit for 30,250 yen per person to walk-in guests—half the price of our pre-booked meal. This stark contrast in pricing left us feeling like we had simply paid extra for booking early rather than for an enhanced experience.

The Verdict Yes, the chef was incredibly skilled, and the sushi was good—but not even close to being worth 60,500 yen per person. The final course? A single strawberry for dessert, which honestly felt like a joke. Even though the food was enjoyable, we left feeling swindled and disappointed. This wasn’t about paying for premium sushi—it was about paying for an experience that felt like a money grab rather than an authentic Japanese omakase. I wouldn’t recommend it to those looking for a genuine high-end...

Brought the family to enjoy the various menus they had to offer, in particular; the crab menu, sukiyaki and a combination of pescatarian and vegan option.

The food for the main menu was average tasting, but fell far short of expectations given the menu price of 100,000yen per person. Price for the pescatarian and vegan options were also the same without any special (frozen king) crab or wagyu.

The quality of the food tailed off towards the end with a very disappointing tuna sushi still half frozen and full of tendons, not fit for a self respecting restaurant that serves sushi, especially in Japan.

The menu was also abruptly changed from abalone to scallop. Seeing as they were printing new menus in the front desk, this could have been changed before the guests' arrival.

I however cannot fault the good service and decor.

In conclusion, although average, for the price, the quality of the food was far far below expectations. I feel it would still be considered a pricey meal even if the prices were slashed in half. I will not...

The worst experience in Japan without any doubt. This is a FRAUD, it is a place ONLY to catch tourists and the food is TERRIBLE. We had amazing omakasse experience in many other restaurants in Japan, in Niseko we had an amazing dinner in Sushi Shin, that we can reccomend to everyone, but SUSHI KATO is the worst restaurant I’ve been in Japan. Since the beginning we noticed that it had something strange, the service, the menu, everything. They charge you saying the menu has for example white truffle, something they DO NOT serve. They mention in the menu they can change the dishes, however we expect at least they change for something as good as. Not only the white truffle, but also many other dishes. Even worse, not only they changed those dishes, but also ALL dishes disappointed us.YOU SHOULD NEVER GO TO THIS RESTAURANT,...