Yakuza — Restaurant in Mérida

It’s probably the better “Japanese” in Merida in terms of taste but it’s not really Japanese, it misses the mark completely in terms of authenticity.

The Karaage chicken was more American-Chinese style sweet & sour topped with chilies and sesame seeds. Typically in Japan the Karaage chicken is battered with a specifically seasoned batter which is very different to this and accompanied with some lemon and mayonnaise (Japanese mayo is often referred to as yum yum sauce). The chicken was nice, but it wasn’t Karaage.

Shabu Shabu is one of my favourite dishes of all time, of any cuisine. It’s something that signifies winter season in Japan and I’d eat a lot after a day snowboarding in Hokkaido. I was excited to see Shabu Shabu on the menu because it’s not common to see outside of Japan but again, it really wasn’t correct. This version has a miso based broth, which sometimes you’ll see as an optional flavour at a Shabu Shabu restaurant but it’s more traditional to have a dashi base, which is more of an umami taste. The beef was also the wrong cut, there wasn’t enough fat to render when cooking and it was sliced FAR too thick. Typically the beef should be cut to less than a millimetre so that it can cook in the time it takes to say “Shabu Shabu” which is what kids like to say out loud when eating it in Japan, but this beef took a really long time to cook to the point I was waiting so long without eating that the waiter thought I was finished and came to take the plate away. The sauce was also wrong, it should be a sesame sauce but what I was given was a weird paste with a nutty flavour, maybe it was sesame but more something you’d spread on toast .. but it wasn’t the right sauce which makes Shabu Shabu so delicious. It was a complete fail.

The Sushi, like every Sushi I’ve had in Merida, the rice was cooked in too much water and was stodgy. While the Sushi also wasn’t authentic, it was more American style, it was pretty good. I’d say the best sushi I’ve tried in Merida.

If this were bigger urban city like cdmx I’d have given this probably 1 star but I think for a small city being so far from the pacific it’s ok.

What really bothers me is that restaurants Instagram pictures are actually pretty authentic looking but the reality is so far from what they present themselves as. Literally Google Shabu Shabu or look at the Yakuza instagram where they show proper Japanese beef and then see what they serve you and it’s...

Goofy, baffling experience, go to Miura instead if you’re already at this strip mall

TL;DR: Mall Sushi tier pasty rice + This restaurant’s strategy is to neg customers with rude service to bait them into visiting again to see if this time they will get it “right”, like this is the late 80s in NYC.

Perhaps it was my mistake for not reading past reviews and how they mostly agree that the staff is kinda rude, so the fact that they are indeed took me by surprise, considering the overall experiences I’ve had in Merida establishments throughout the years.

You have to knock the door to get in, which is ok, whatever; from the get-go the guy that opens it greets you with a disdainful look. That’s whatever, still, everyone can have a bad day.

Upon our “no” as an answer to “Do you have a reservation?”, they delegated us to the bar, even when the restaurant was empty.

Judging by the other reviews of this place, this seems to be the daily bread at this place. Fresh off the beach my husband was wearing shorts too, maybe this was why (but they don’t have a dress code disclaimer anywhere, not even their socials) but other reviews mention that their clothes were not a determinating factor to still be sent to the bar gulag.

The service overall is from indifferent to disdainful, so much that it seems like a deliberate decision by the corporate management to be able to replicate lame PUA tactics to neg the customers into liking this place through a faux sense of exclusivity.

And the food…I do appreciate the effort of having a big menu + I’m sure the chef worked hard on creating every dish, but the rolls we got were mediocre, the rice was pasty and a little gummy, very similar to the average sushi you can find at any mall food court. The proteins didn’t feel particularly fresh either, that salmon is definitely from Costco.

All and all, just go to Miura, the restaurant next to this one.Funnily enough, they’re both owned by the same company, I wonder if Yakuza sticks around just to make Miura seem like...

The place is very nicely decorated. Food is a fusion Japanese- Mex. However, food is delicious. Service was very rude. I left a 15% Tip. And the waiter came to not only claim but to force me to leave more tips. For a Japanese Restaurant where service must be at the center of the heart of the customer satisfaction. The waiter should have questioned himself why he received a low tip. This deserves a 1 star in service.

In this case me and my family who just came from a 20 years living in Asia, this will be a no return for sure.

Management should look into it to correct and improve the service as there are other japanese restaurants around to compete with and for us to...