Okurama Asian Fusion — Restaurant in Saint John

Our experience with this "so-called" buffet was quite a mixed bag. Since we opted for the buffet, we got to sample a variety of dishes—some hits, but quite a few misses.

Starters The Steamed Shrimp Dumplings and Chicken Gyoza were well-made and enjoyable. The Prawn Tempura, while generously sized, was disappointingly oily.

Main Courses Another mixed experience here. The Sweet and Sour dishes—whether pork or chicken—were indistinguishable from each other, both in taste and texture. In fact, you’d struggle to tell whether it was even meat. On the brighter side, the Black Pepper Beef was a highlight, and the Prawn Fried Rice was flavorful. However, the Pad Thai Prawn Noodles were a complete letdown and best avoided.

The “Buffet” System This is where the experience really took a downturn. Unlike a traditional buffet, this one operates via a table-service system where you order from a set menu. You’re allowed two rounds of ordering—one for starters and one for mains. However, any food left uneaten on your plate is charged at à la carte prices, which adds unnecessary pressure to the dining experience.

The system feels like a strategic ploy to discourage guests from ordering too much, likely to maximize the restaurant’s profit from the €32 per person price tag. Instead of enjoying your meal, you end up stressing about over-ordering or being overcharged.

And here’s the kicker—if you don’t like what you ordered, tough luck. You have to finish it to avoid extra charges.

Service was another weak point. Food arrived at inconsistent intervals, with mains sometimes being served long before the sides, making the meal feel disjointed. Yes, the restaurant was busy, but for a buffet-style experience, the timing should be better coordinated.

Lastly, if you’re dining in a group and even one person opts for the buffet, the entire table is required to do the same, meaning à la carte ordering is off the table.

Final Verdict At €32 per head, this buffet does not justify its price. The restrictive ordering system, added stress over uneaten food make it a disappointing and overpriced experience. There are far better options out there that offer more value for money.

A side note: We did not order from the Sushi menu that was included which would probably have made it more worth it for some people.

Would I...

I used to like this place when it first opened, and although it didn't keep the same standards, I kept giving them another chance. However yesterday was the last time I stepped foot in there.

So as soon as we were ready to order at around 9:15, a waitress came to tell us that the kitchen will close 'soon' at 10:30. We opted for the buffet so she urged us to order all rounds in advance. So we did. Food took long to arrive, and then they started overlapping different rounds of food. Have to say the sushi was good but we were missing items from the order. Second round was okayish. But the rice and noodles and the main course were a disaster. Presentation looked like dog food. Plates didn't arrive together. We ordered two beef which on the menu said "rib-eye". Not even close to rib eye. They missed one of them so I asked for it. Then the missing one came with only one small piece of meat, while it was supposed to have two as the other one which we had on the table! The Udon seafood curry was half the portion of what I had last time I went there. The other main courses had rice missing which on the menu was said to be included. So I asked for plain rice. The waitress told we have to choose one of the side rice mixes. I explained to her that we wanted plain rice not pork rice to go with seafood plates, but she still refused without even having the decency to raise her head to look at me. Finally the pistachio ice cream tasted anything but pistachio.

At 11 we noticed they started switching the lights off above the customers who were sitting at the far end of the restaurant. This on a Saturday evening!

Maybe the St Julians restaurant is still decent, but I will never visit the San Ġwann...

We went there at around 7 in the evening and lasted up until 10 - 10:30...

The sushi starters were satisfactory and the ambience in there with the music, lighting and everything was great. However...

The service was friendly but we felt that we weren't being attended to because halfway through our meal it looked as if they'd forgotten about our order because what followed next were long waiting times coupled with an overcrowded atmosphere, and single-plate & single-plates of deliveries at random intervals of food followed lastly by the plate of vegetables that we were expecting to go along with the meats that we had long already consumed by then due to the time gaps between the food that they had served us.

The main-courses were very small - I counted 5 pieces of bite-sized beef pieces along with an assortment of carrots and other traditional vegetables that they serve with it. The salmon was flat in taste and the spicy meat-soup (forgot the name) I remember was good but not enough to finish drinking the soup of it except for the noodles and meat. Szechuan soup was really good though.

Overall, I guess it wasn't the most disappointed experience I have had with how little effort was being made to make it seem like we had any control over the service we were being given while dining here. We frequently found ourselves in the uncomfortable situation of having to almost 'beg' for attention to receive our orders despite being literally at the entrance and podium where the restaurant's guests are walking through and being greeted by.

I think I would give them another try some day, mainly for the starters and their convenient location, but it will not be...