Sumo Markthal — Restaurant in Rotterdam

⭐ 1 Star

I visited Sumo Markthal in Rotterdam on 25th December with friends (two families: 4 adults and 1 child) as it was one of the few places open on Christmas Day. We were looking forward to enjoying lunch and having a good time, but the experience was incredibly disappointing.

Firstly, there were significant delays in our orders, and the waitstaff seemed clueless about the menu. While delays can happen during busy times, what followed was completely unacceptable.

When we received the bill, there was a shocking €150 extra charge. Upon questioning, we were told it was for a "Christmas menu," something we were never informed about. It wasn’t mentioned in the menu, there was no signage, and as walk-in customers, we had no prior notice of this additional cost.

We asked to see an itemized breakdown of what we ordered and its original pricing. Instead of helping, the young man who claimed to be the manager rudely dismissed our concerns and threatened to call the police if we didn’t pay. His tone was unprofessional and downright disrespectful.

He insisted that the extra charge was stated on the restaurant's website, but as walk-in customers, this was irrelevant and unacceptable. After waiting for 10 minutes, we decided to call the police ourselves. At this point, another man (possibly the actual manager or owner) stepped in and reluctantly offered a discount. We ultimately paid €185, which was closer to the fair price, but the damage to the experience was already done.

This was, without a doubt, one of the worst dining experiences I’ve ever had. The unprofessionalism, lack of transparency, and rude behavior were appalling. I strongly advise against visiting this restaurant if you don’t want to risk...

The overall experience was highly unsatisfactory 👎🏼

I recently visited Sumo in Rotterdam Markthal with high expectations. Unfortunately, my experience at this establishment left me feeling incredibly disappointed and frustrated.

One of the most notable issues was the staff's unfriendliness and unprofessionalism. They lacked basic customer service skills and seemed unaware of how to properly communicate with customers. Instead of being accommodating and hospitable, they were rude and lacked respect. Their behavior was unbecoming of a professional setting and made the dining experience uncomfortable.

Another issue that detracted from the experience was the slow service. It was clear that they were understaffed and unable to handle the volume of customers.

Additionally, the restaurant mandates that customers order at least one drink, which felt like an unnecessary restriction. This felt like an attempt to squeeze extra money out of customers rather than a thoughtful suggestion to enhance the dining experience.

Finally, the time restrictions placed on customers were unreasonable. It was not possible to order five rounds of food in only 90 minutes, which felt like a ploy to rush customers out the door. This pressure to order quickly and consume food hastily made the experience feel stressful and uncomfortable.

Overall, my experience at Sumo was highly unsatisfactory. The unfriendly and unprofessional staff, slow service, mandatory drink order, and time restrictions detracted from what could have been a pleasant dining experience. I would not recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for quality sushi and a relaxing...

We've been to several Sumo restaurants in The Netherlands over the past 10 years or so and today's re-visit to Sumo Markthal fell well short of expectations to the point where our dining experience was negatively impacted.

Some constructive feedback for management:

We were given the opportunity to order drinks at the start, but this was the only opportunity to do so. I was looking forward to enjoying a Japanese plum wine afterwards, but the staff were so uninterested that I gave up on the idea. You're leaving money on the table by not training your staff, which brings me onto...

You need to address the level of service your staff offer patrons; it just isn't good enough. Our experience today, from a service perspective, was just poor. It's common place for wait staff to share with diners what it is they're tabling; this is especially appreciated when it comes to sushi...we had no idea what was being served and had to refer to the pictures on the tablet to work out who ordered what. The wait staff sort of just dump dishes on the end of the table and walk on without so much as a word. Terrible.

The 'time limit' aspect of your service just doesn't sit well with your patrons. Unless there is limited space and a line out the door, there's absolutely no need for this. Read these reviews. Your entire upper floor was empty. Understand that this time/service limitation does nothing but create an uneasy atmosphere in an otherwise nice surrounding. Remove this altogether and I guarantee you people will enjoy their experience more.

Charging extra for fruit etc is really lame.

For now though, this was our last visit to...