Sumo Niku - SM City Davao — Restaurant in Davao City

⚠ WARNING: SUMO NIKO DAVAO PROMO MISLEADS & MANAGEMENT DENIES MISTAKES – READ BEFORE DINING! ⚠

We arrived at Sumo Niko Davao at 1:18 PM and saw a large banner advertising a 20% discount for groups of 4 or more dining in. Wanting to confirm the details, we approached a staff member named Karen. She stepped inside to check and returned with a clear answer:

“Promo starts at 2:00 PM, Ma’am.”

Trusting this information, we decided to wait. We even called five more relatives to join us, rearranging our schedules just so we could meet the promo requirements. At exactly 2:00 PM, we came back, placed our orders, and enjoyed our meal without asking again about the promo — because why would we? We had already been told it would start at 2:00 PM.

Then came the shock: When the bill arrived, we were informed that the promo had already ended at 2:00 PM and had actually started at 11:00 AM. This was the exact opposite of what Karen told us earlier.

Naturally, I asked to speak with the manager (wearing pink). Instead of apologizing or trying to resolve the issue, she flat-out denied that any staff had given us the wrong information. She questioned our credibility, making it seem as though we had invented the story.

I challenged her to check the CCTV footage. The footage clearly showed Karen assisting us at 1:18 PM and indeed telling us the wrong promo time. Only after being confronted with this evidence did Karen admit her mistake.

We then politely asked if the restaurant could still honor the promo as a gesture of goodwill, since the misunderstanding came from their own staff. The manager refused, saying:

“IF TAGAAN TAMO SA PROMO MAAM, MA KALTAS NA SA SWELDO SA STAFF.”

This statement was extremely upsetting. not only because it shifted the blame onto us, the customers, but also because it implied the staff would be punished financially for giving wrong information. That is an INTERNAL ISSUE and should never be used as an excuse to deny fair treatment to customers.

To make matters worse, the manager insisted that the promo guidelines stated the time. I reviewed the guidelines myself (photo attached) There was no time stated anywhere. If the details had been clear in the first place, we would not have had to ask at all.

⚠ WARNINGS FOR FUTURE CUSTOMERS: ✅Always get promo details in writing before ordering. ✅Do not rely solely on verbal confirmations from staff — even if they seem certain. ✅Be aware that management may deny responsibility even when mistakes are proven.

FEEDBACK FOR MANAGEMENT: ~Train staff to provide accurate, consistent information. ~When mistakes happen, acknowledge them immediately instead of denying or deflecting blame. ~Empower managers to make fair exceptions when customers are misled by the restaurant’s own team. ~Display all promo conditions clearly, including start and end times, to avoid confusion.

This review is not about the 20% discount anymore, it’s about honesty, accountability, and professionalism. Every business can make mistakes, but the way they are handled is what defines the customer’s experience. Unfortunately, this incident left us feeling disrespected, unheard, and treated as though our time and effort meant nothing.

We will not return to Sumo Niko Davao. If I could give -100,000,000...

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There was no teriyaki sauce available as they’re still making it and we had to wait 30-40 mins, so they served us a vinegar type sauce. No server available to take immediate orders as everyone’s more focused on drying utensils. Restaurant manager was seen scooping rice, that shouldn’t be her job. A Restaurant’s Manager role is to make sure business operations run smoothly. Delegate small tasks like scooping rice to your team. Assign one or two persons to be customer service-focused, not everyone needs to be wiping tables and drying utensils.

Will definitely not come back and would not recommend. Now it made sense why this restaurant only got 2.5 stars on Google Map, I should’ve listened to...

Terrible service. We ate with our hands due to chopsticks not being available. We had to wait 20 minutes just to get a single fork. Their ordering system is confusing and very slow. Only one server was tending to everyone's tables. The pork belly was good, but the cheese was just straight up cheese sauce (it was not mozzarella like they advertised). Coleslaw tasted like a wet carton with mayonnaise. The miso soup was tasteless, you can barely taste the miso. You're paying top dollar for underwhelming and slow service. The atmosphere was great though, it felt like a street grill in Roppongi with J-pop and J-rock music playing. All in all, probably won't be coming back just because of their...