Tora | Japanese Restaurant in Tulum — Restaurant in Tulum

We had reservations at Rosa Negra for Saturday night for two of us, but apparently, a reservation here is more of a suggestion than a guarantee. They weren’t able to accommodate us unless we were willing to wait 1.5 hours. Their “solution”? Sending us to their “sister restaurant” Tora, conveniently located next door.

Let me just say—Tora isn’t a sister restaurant. It’s more like that awkward second cousin who inherited none of the family charm or talent but insists on name-dropping the connection anyway.

That said, I will give credit where credit is due. Both Rosa Negra and Tora are masters of creating a lively atmosphere. The energy is palpable, with music, lights, sparklers and vibrant decor designed to make every guest feel like part of the party. The staff goes above and beyond to keep the vibe inclusive and engaging—whether it’s chatting with diners, hyping up special celebrations, or making sure every table is having a good time. If you’re there for the buzz and not overly concerned about the food, you might actually enjoy yourself.

Tora bills itself as a “Japanese”-themed restaurant, but the only thing remotely Japanese about it is the presence of chopsticks and a few cocktails that flirt with lemongrass. We gave it a shot, though, and ordered the Fire Balls, which were supposed to be flambéed tableside rice balls with Alaskan King Crab. Emphasis on supposed to be. The flambé attempt was so lackluster it felt more like a candle flicker, and the dish itself was mostly rice, a smattering of sauce, and the tiniest fragments of something that might’ve once been crab in a past life. Avoid.

Next up, we tried the Short Rib Gyozas, actually pretty decent.

Then came the Angry Dragon Maki Roll. As someone who knows many Japanese people, I can confidently say the entire nation would collectively disown this dish. It’s like calling instant ramen “authentic Japanese cuisine.” Just no.

Now, let’s talk about the bill. The total came to a staggering $450 CAD (311 USD). While our direct server was pleasant and genuinely tried their best, things took a turn for the worse when their manager—or as he claimed to be, The One Who Collects Payment—got involved. This guy took it upon himself to sneakily add an automatic 20% tip and conveniently avoided showing the machine’s screen when processing payment. Nice try.

I wasn’t having it. I told him I’d tip 10%, and he reacted as if I’d suggested committing a felony. He insisted it was “policy” and, when challenged to show where it was documented, proceeded to huff, puff, and mutter curses under his breath.I stood my ground and had him adjust the tip to 10%, though not without some dramatic eye-rolling on his part.

Establishments like this are the epitome of tourist traps—perched on a high horse, out to gouge unsuspecting patrons. My review is here to make sure you, dear reader, stay vigilant and keep them accountable for their shenanigans.

We left unsatisfied and headed straight to our favorite street taco spot. As always, it delivered. Props to the real MVPs of Mexican hospitality. (I’ve included a picture of our tacos, but for the life of me, I can’t remember the name of the place—if you know,...

Went to Tulum for my birthday and was super excited to eat here! I was messaging the hostess via what’s app and told her we were going to be a little late to our 8:30 reservation, she said no problem, I already moved it to 8:45! We get there at 8:45 at the dot and she says it’s not ready yet can we sit at the bar and order drinks- not ideal but sure. We are a big party and not all of us could fit at the bar, so a good amount of us are standing around out of place. While going to the bathroom we notice there’s a huge section of empty tables. We’ve been waiting for about 30 minutes and ask the hostess why can’t we sit at the empty tables in the corner. She says they are reserved and points out which table is suppose to be ours. Only problem is they are JUST setting the food down for that table and they do not look ready to leave anytime soon! We still decide to wait about 30 more minutes with nothing happening. Finally we ask AGAIN why we can’t sit at those empty tables (do we need to buy a bottle? Why is a reservation that’s not even here more important than our reservation we’ve been waiting over an hour for?) she finally says she will do something about it. Nope! Nothing gets done and we are so hungry at this point we leave. Very disappointed with the service and I would not recommend anyone coming here, especially for a...

I wasn’t expecting to love this spot as much as I did. It is a whole ass PARTY. Mixed bag but had a good, if overpriced, time overall.

Atmosphere: EXTREMELY loud club music, don’t bring your kids here. I would actually recommend earplugs. However, it serves the vibe well: the place was packed and energetic and the staff occasionally handed out sparklers when specific songs came on. People were well dressed and standing on chairs. It was very fun. Don’t come here if you want a chill or intimate dinner, it’s not the right place for that.

Food: everything was good except the Robata skewers…aka the distinguishing feature this restaurant markets itself for. Corn skewer and pork skewer were both cold, butter on the corn felt oily and lukewarm. Pork skewer was tough.

Mushroom rice bowl: this was great because it’s just a cheesy mushroom risotto. It’s not Japanese at all. Miso soup: sue us for paying $9 USD for a bowl of miso soup but it was honestly refreshing. Store bought flavor Gyoza: also surprisingly good Fried tofu: tofu was delicious and creamy

Dessert: yuzu key lime pie is for 6 people to share. That thing was 3 inches tall and 6 inches wide at its widest. The filling to base proportion is waaaasy too high, it became nauseatingly rich after a few bites. I don’t know why they would make something so off.

Service...